Saga chef Dale Curtis finds love and marriage abroad
Serena Howe
Issue date: 2/4/10 Section: News
For Saga, Inc., chef Dale Curtis, the journey toward marriage was just as exotic as the food he cooks.
"It was like that Nicholas Cage movie, Bangkok Dangerous," Curtis said, laughing, about his June 2007 trip to Thailand where he met his now-wife Chanida at a shopping mall food court.
Chanida, who is two years younger than Curtis and from northwest Thailand, had just separated from her first husband and was visiting her cousin Mui.
When Curtis confused the proper Thai greetings, the two women laughed at him and they started chatting. Only Mui spoke English, but that didn't damper the conversation.
"They kept teasing me pretty aggressively," Curtis said, smiling. "They kept asking me things like, 'You're so old! Why aren't you married?' Mui even said, 'are you a good man? she needs a good man.' There was definitely an initial attraction between Chanida and me."
The women offered to help him shop, and he asked Chanida to dinner - with Mui to translate, of course. They spent the next four evenings talking to each other through phrase-books.
"There was this one book called 'What a Man May Say to a Woman in a Bar.' We couldn't stop laughing," he said.
Far too soon, Curtis returned home. Every week for the next two years, Chanida went to the same internet shop to print Curtis's e-mail, have it translated, and write him back.
After a short visit during the school year, Curtis went back in the summer of 2008 to propose and meet Chanida's family, including her daughter Aui, 22, and son Em, 19.
"There was this really awkward mix-up where her family thought we were getting married then. I had to explain to her brother, who's a monk, and her whole family that this was just an engagement trip," Curtis related.
Following Thai tradition, he threw a feast for the entire village and went through the engagement ceremonies. They planned to get married the following summer. Curtis sent Chanida money to support her and pay for English lessons.
"It was like that Nicholas Cage movie, Bangkok Dangerous," Curtis said, laughing, about his June 2007 trip to Thailand where he met his now-wife Chanida at a shopping mall food court.
Chanida, who is two years younger than Curtis and from northwest Thailand, had just separated from her first husband and was visiting her cousin Mui.
When Curtis confused the proper Thai greetings, the two women laughed at him and they started chatting. Only Mui spoke English, but that didn't damper the conversation.
"They kept teasing me pretty aggressively," Curtis said, smiling. "They kept asking me things like, 'You're so old! Why aren't you married?' Mui even said, 'are you a good man? she needs a good man.' There was definitely an initial attraction between Chanida and me."
The women offered to help him shop, and he asked Chanida to dinner - with Mui to translate, of course. They spent the next four evenings talking to each other through phrase-books.
"There was this one book called 'What a Man May Say to a Woman in a Bar.' We couldn't stop laughing," he said.
Far too soon, Curtis returned home. Every week for the next two years, Chanida went to the same internet shop to print Curtis's e-mail, have it translated, and write him back.
After a short visit during the school year, Curtis went back in the summer of 2008 to propose and meet Chanida's family, including her daughter Aui, 22, and son Em, 19.
"There was this really awkward mix-up where her family thought we were getting married then. I had to explain to her brother, who's a monk, and her whole family that this was just an engagement trip," Curtis related.
Following Thai tradition, he threw a feast for the entire village and went through the engagement ceremonies. They planned to get married the following summer. Curtis sent Chanida money to support her and pay for English lessons.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Joy Pavelski
posted 2/11/10 @ 11:03 AM EST
This story had some GREAT details--like the fifty pictures, the emo kid translating emails, the book about "What a Man May Say to a Woman in a Bar." Quite compelling. (Continued…)
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