during this time of the year, i can’t bring myself to call it winter time. i’ve dubbed it beer garden season. when the temperature slightly drops, little tents of yellow and green start to appear around vacant lots– that’s when i know the rest of the northern hemisphere is entering winter time.

there’s a certain romance about it, how a few degrees can make bangkok the best city to live in. how all of a sudden, the streets are covered with people walking here and there, and walking from central chidlom to siam doesn’t seem too crazy. it might be the holiday lights or the cool weather that makes me constantly fall back in love with bangkok again and again. i’m not too certain, but beer garden season sure makes life in bangkok that much better.

tonight, an enormous tent went up at sanam seu pah near the parliament building– the heineken bangkok jazz festival. i must say, much, much better than all the previous 4 years of hua hin jazz festival combined. maybe that’s why it’s B1,200 a pop, and B2,000 for two days. either way, i thank my agency for freebie tickets.

i arrived right when the chulalongkorn university band ended, didn’t miss much i suppose, i was looking forward to the ‘real’ bands. the james taylor quartet came on, and i found myself getting up from my newly purchased B200 heineken mat to dance along to the tunes, but i sat firmly while local jazz artist koh saxman and the all stars band was playing. at approximately 9.30pm i fell in love with the eight-string bassist of minaswing, and later on dance to dave sanborn and al jarreau.

al jarreau!!!

this festival is one of those things that make my day. a little jazz, a little mat, a little beer and a whole lot of dancing barefoot. with the parliament house lit up in the background, and the sensual aroma of khoa kha moo and kai jiew in the air. only in bangkok.