Alison describes herself as living in the best, or worst, of both worlds. It must be discombobulating for her that her physical appearance and her sense of personal identity are not completely synched, potentially even at odds. If you were to encounter Alison on the street in virtually any western country, you likely wouldn’t bat an eye.  Alison’s physical appearance is totally normal for a woman born in the early 1960s, of British parentage.  Yet, the circumstances of her birth and upbringing have meant that in many ways, including legally, Alison is Thai, through and through, and lives this dichotomy in her everyday life.

The fact that she has lost contact with so many of these relatives is one of Alison’s biggest regrets.  Alison’s mother passed away of complications from breast cancer when Alison was only 14 and her father had significant kidney disease requiring dialysis for a number of years prior his passing before she turned 18.  As a teenager, Alison had no idea about the importance of obtaining and safe-keeping details of family contact information or anecdotal history, so much that was precious was lost to the need for daily survival and self-sufficiency after her parents’ deaths.

Childhood for Alison was an idyllic and privileged time.  She was born in Bangkok Nursing Home (making her a Thai citizen) and then completed her early education at Bangkok Patana School, Thailand’s first British International School, as her mother worked for the British Embassy.  Alison lived in what was basically a family compound, with the nuclear family of four, including her sister Julia, living in the main house, while family helpers including a driver, cook, cleaning lady and washer woman resided in the maid’s house, with their children. This meant that Alison was never alone, there were always people and events surrounding her. Her favourite childhood memories are of annual fortnight-long family holiday trips, with a caravan of vehicles packed with everything, (including the kitchen sink!) heading to either Pattaya or Prachuap township.  Alison suspects that a rest-stop on one of these trips would have been her very first introduction to Hua Hin, before she even started school. She has a more distinct memory of a trip to Hua Hin as a 19- or 20-year-old to participate in a Rugby tournament.

Alison’s schooling had two distinct periods, her western education and her Thai education.  While at Patana until grade four, teachers reported she wasn’t working to her potential and Alison readily admits to laziness at this point in her life.  Things were different when Alison began her years of Thai schooling. From her western home life and upbringing, she brought the attitudes and mind of a free-thinker into a Thai educational setting, and very quickly had to learn discretion, when to keep her mouth firmly shut.  Alison was considered a bit of a tomboy, her reputation for being a little rebellious even threatening to get her excluded from finishing her secondary education at one point. While the transition to Thai school meant moving back a grade or two, Alison’s natural intelligence and dedication saw her complete secondary school on schedule and progress to university. While in Thai school, she and her sister were the only farang-looking children, but had little difficulty in fitting in with the other students. Alison was a passionate horse-woman and athlete, competing for her school and then her country, spending about 20 years on the Thai National Equestrian team.  To this day, 90% of Alison’s friends are Thai since it is in her Thai persona that adult Alison seems most comfortable. Here in Hua Hin, Alison enjoys her sport every day of the week, pickleball on 3 days, badminton twice and then padelball on the final one, leaving little time unaccounted for in her brimming schedule.

Alison was a realist when it came to post-secondary education.  She knew she needed a university degree to obtain a job which would support her adequately, so looked for the course of study which had the easiest-to-achieve entry requirements. That was a politics degree majoring in International Relations, which she undertook at Chulalongkorn University, with the intention of then moving into a job in Thai bureaucracy.  That never happened as Alison eventually twigged to the fact that she could not hold an official government position, not having ancestors who were Thai nationals, so Alison had to look elsewhere for employment. Alison’s proudest moment was having Rama IX, His Majesty King Bhumibol the Great present her degree upon her graduation.  She has a photo of it she carries everywhere with her. In addition, Alison cites Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, the younger sister of Thailand’s King Vajiralongkorn, Rama X as the living person she most admires, because of her dedication to improving the lives of all Thais. This is a love and admiration she shares with the vast majority of the Thai population, who refer to Princess Sirindhorn as "Phra Thep", meaning "princess angel".

As a teenager and then a young adult, Alison only ever dated Thai men until she met her American husband David, whom she married in 1994. As a girl who was Thai on the inside, Alison never thought she would marry a non-Thai, yet a chance encounter with a friend of a friend at the Polo Club on what is commonly known in English as Wireless Road in Bangkok changed the course of Alison’s future. Alison had been growing tired of the chauvinism she was finding in her male compatriots, who in general were distinctly unhappy with her outshining them, one even having the temerity to insist she not travel to compete with the national team in Australia, because of how this would be perceived by his friends. David, on the other hand, had a more progressive approach to the role of life-partner that Alison found most refreshing.  

But even in her marriage to David, Alison is still Thai, recalling being quite fascinated that her daughters, now 29 and 25 years old, were born with blonde hair and blue eyes despite the fact that their mother was a Thai! A distinct disconnect between genetics and culture, captured succinctly in a momentary reflection. A Thai man once labelled himself “Coconut” as although outwardly having Thai colouring and facial characteristics, his time living abroad had changed his attitudes so much that he considered himself “white on the inside”. Thinking in these parameters, Alison would be a Ferrero Raffaello, a sweet with a white shredded coconut exterior with a hazelnut chocolate centre. 

Alison lived the whole of her formative life in Thailand, not living abroad until she was 35 years old and so considers herself more Thai than farang. As an adult, her main contact with the farang community had been through the riding school where she taught, as riding is an unusual and costly pursuit for the average Thai. Alison followed her then boyfriend David back to his native US a year or so into their relationship, originally on a student visa, and their relationship became more permanent. In the US, Alison worked as a pet-care professional, and this provided her with considerable expertise and experience she now brings to her daily voluntary work in Hua Hin.

Alison and David started raising their daughters in the city of San Diego in the United States to give then a more grounded and less privileged upbringing.  Indeed, Alison views the raising of her children as her greatest personal achievement, heaping them with love but also firm boundaries.  She never had to raise her voice to her children, a stern eye and a strong belief in fairness enough for her daughters’ disciplining. The family then lived in Rayong for ten years, where Alison owned and operated a riding school.

Alison has considerable skills with, and love for, animals, particularly horses and dogs. At the present time, Alison is living alone in Hua Hin.  It had always been the couple’s intention to eventually live back in Thailand, post-retirement, and once their girls were both finished studying and settled into their own lives, but the effects of Covid are still lingering in some ways. David is not sure that Hua Hin has fully recovered from the pandemic. By nature, David is a more outgoing person than Alison and enjoys all aspects of a bustling, city lifestyle, with nightlife and live music. By contrast, Alison is more of a home-body, though that is not to say that she is not constantly busy, involved in one project or another.  To tell the truth, Alison is not actually alone in Hua Hin.  Her beloved Cali, a dog she rescued five years ago now, is a constant source of companionship and Alison often shares her home with a short-term foster dog as well, so that even when she feels guilty for leaving Cali at home, Cali has company. 

Although Alison’s parents were nominally Christian, and baptised her as a matter of course, as Alison grew in her appreciation and understanding of herself as a Thai woman, she also became more aware of her spirituality.  Alison is Buddhist, and was surprised when a Thai friend told her she believes Cali is the current embodiment of her dead mother’s spirit. Alison and Cali enjoy their active time together, with long walks, frequently accompanied by the pack of soi dogs who live nearby and who are beneficiaries of daily feeding by Alison. Together, Alison and Cali undertake agility training, though as Cali gets a little older, she is not as quick as she was in the cooler and less humid atmosphere of their home in the US.

Another way Alison contributes to the Hua Hin community is through sharing her intimate knowledge of Thai culture with new expats, on an individual and group basis. She helps recent arrivals navigate day-to-day living in Thailand by providing insights into aspects of Thai culture which might surprise or perplex newcomers, such as Thai hierarchy, monks, Thai ceremonies, good Thai manners and how to communicate most effectively with Thais. Alison receives frequent compliments about how helpful she is in empowering new arrivals to confidently go about their daily business.  In essence, she has become a de-facto life coach for expats in Hua Hin.

Walking Cali has become a meditative time for Alison, giving her opportunity twice daily to count her blessings.  Alison sees and acknowledges the problems faced by the youth of today, in a world becoming ever more complex and dangerous to navigate, when compared to the simple fun and safety of her own childhood.  She is thankful that her daughters are well-equipped to face whatever challenges may arise in their lives.  Ever the optimist, Alison begins planning the next annual family trip the minute she returns from her vacation, her favourite place in the world being wherever her family is, despite currently living away from them, David remaining in Oregon for the time being and her daughters now having their own paths to tread.

Alison is a hardworking, passionate and tenacious Thai woman who metamorphoses into a western woman as needs be.  Her favourite food is Som Tam Gai Yang, grilled chicken with spicy green papaya salad. To her Thai friends she is known as Aew, which is pronounced with a rising tone, the Thai rendition of Al, as her sister Julia called her. Julia, now married to a Thai General and mother to two Thai daughters herself, was called “Ju” as a child, and so that became her Thai nickname of Joo, which unfortunately also means penis in Thai. It seems Alison, Aew, was the more fortunately named of the sisters.

Although she is temporarily without human company in her home, Alison is quite satisfied with the quiet lifestyle she and Cali have embraced in Hua Hin.  She has found a comfortable place within the local community and enjoys the respect and esteem of Thai and farang alike.  She drives, always expecting that others will be unpredictable, requiring her to be constantly aware of her surroundings.  Now, if only the vegetation on the roadsides was not allowed to riotously interfere with her vision around bends, life could be considered perfect.