Siam Diaries: My First Adventure in Southeast Asia

The Siam Diaries tells the story of Chen Ming, whose business failed, and his childhood friend Leizi, as they flee to Siam to survive and start a business. When they first arrive in a foreign country, the language barrier and differences in customs repeatedly trip them up. Fortunately, a local Chinese man named Ka Ang guides them, helping them find their footing. To escape the struggle at the bottom, they venture into the industrial district, where they learn the survival rule of “sticking together and compromising.” Their differing views on how to handle things gradually drive a wedge between them.

The two pool their money to open a bar. To survive, Chen Ming is forced to adapt to the gray rules of the trade. He seems to “go bad,” moving from “playing by the rules” to learning how to grease the wheels, but in secret, he helps Ya, a Siamese employee, repair the pier in her hometown. He still holds on to his original desire to change things. Just as the bar gets on its feet, he is framed and imprisoned for refusing to compromise with local powers. After his release, he discovers that Ya has taken over the bar. In the end, Chen Ming looks out at the repaired pier and continues making a living in Siam with Leizi. They may not have overturned the rules, but in the mire of survival, they have planted tiny seeds of change for themselves and those around them. The diary records the brotherhood and saga of survival forged by two ordinary men amid the struggles and steadfastness of clashing cultures in a foreign land.

Further reading: This book is both a practical guide to surviving abroad in Southeast Asia, a real place, and a diary of making a comeback that countless people burdened with millions in debt can learn from and draw on while living far from home.