University of Wisconsin–Madison

Thailand: Allison Grund (A Day in the Life in Bangkok)

A clear plastic to-go coffee cup filled with a coffee beverage. The outside of the cup is marked with a blue and white seal saying "Double U Coffee & Bakery". The cup has a white straw and is sitting in front of an open computer.
Taiwan milk tea latte from Double U

Hi! My name is Allison, and I am a Senior at UW-Madison studying Microbiology. I was given the opportunity to participate in a summer research internship abroad through the University’s Study Abroad Biological Research Internships. I attended Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand working in a Medical Microbiology laboratory. Here’s a day in my life!

The interior of a coffee shop. The back wall is royal blue and there are windows along the back wall behind the white and blue logo for "Double U Coffee & Bakery". A barista leans on a counter to take orders.
Double U Cafe

On a typical weekday, I usually wake up around 7:30 AM and get ready for lab. One of the other students, Lucy, and I would meet at 8:30AM to stop at the local coffee shop, Double U, around the corner from our apartment. We’ve visited this café enough during our time in Thailand that we’ve gotten to know the staff well. Mimi, one of the baristas at Double U, knows my iced latte order and we spend about 30 minutes here chatting before making our way to the SkyTrain. The staff are always so nice to us, and the café became so familiar, it reminded me a little bit of home.

A photo of a woman with brown hair up in a messy bun wearing a white lab suit. She is using an electric pipette at a lab desk.
Working in fume hood of a laboratory
Inside a busy hallway. The ceiling is gray and has beams There are many advertisements along the wall. Many people stand in lines, some wearing masks, others not.
BTS Skytrain Transportation platfom

The walk from the apartment to the SkyTrain is about a 10-minute walk straight down the road, and we arrive amid rush hours. To make it onto the SkyTrain, I must squeeze body-to-body with people for 3 stops and about 10 minutes until I step off in Siam district. Historically, Siam was the official name for the country until it was changed to the modern name of Thailand about 85 years ago. Now, Siam is the district Chulalongkorn University, or Chula, is located. Once I am off the SkyTrain, I walk 5 minutes down the street to wait for the pink university shuttle that drives students to campus. I liked the shuttle because it was a free form of transportation to the university with air conditioning on a 90-degree day.

A meal on a tray with a red bowl of miso soup, a brown bowl of white rice with black seeds on the top. The largest bowl is a white and brown bowl with a meat patty covered by a fried egg, a serving of some macaroni noodles, and lettuce and cabbage.
Hamburg meal at a Japanese restaurant.
A cup of coconut and strawberry sorbet ice cream with toppings of corn flakes and red popping boba. The ice cream is in a cup being held by a hand.
Coconut strawberry sorbet at school market

On Tuesdays and Fridays Chula has a school market until around 2pm filled with foods, desserts, drinks and more. I usually stroll past before heading into lab to get an idea of what there might be for lunch, and on a rare day I’ll buy a treat for breakfast to eat quickly. On average, I’m in lab from 9:30AM to 4:30PM, but as  my professor is not too strict on lab hours. as long as I complete my required work for the day, I can leave at any time and have the rest of the day to do as I please. The work in the lab is a very challenging and rewarding experience!

Lucy and I grab lunch with our lab members at the school market. We wait patiently every week for Tuesday and Friday because the lunch and dessert options are very good for a good price. On an especially hot day, I’ll buy coconut ice cream to cool off. I will definitely miss that when I head home!

A woman with brown hair pulled back wearing a black outfit with pants and a short sleeved shirt with buttons. She is holding a cup of coffee and smiling in front of a garden.
Image of myself in park near apartment in Bangkok
A hand holding a plastic cup of bubble tea with a brown straw sticking out of the top. The drink is pale brown with black boba bubbles and darker brown drips. The logo on the cup says, "O-Li-No"
Milk tea with boba

It takes a little while to return to the apartment with how busy the SkyTrain is during “rush hour.” By the time I make it home, the other students from my program have also finished up at lab, and we look for a new restaurant to try for dinner. This night, we decided to try a tiny Japanese restaurant about a 15-minute walk away. It was one owned and run by one woman with about 3 tables total to sit. She made all our food herself, one meal after the other, and it was some of the best Japanese food I’ve had in Thailand.

On our walk home, sometimes I stop to buy a drink of some kind at the nearby mall for 25-30 baht, or $0.80-$1.00. I order a Thai tea with boba, which is a black milk tea sweetened with condensed milk. The tea color is a bright orange color, and the boba add a fun texture. Add this drink to the list of things I will miss in Thailand.

With such limited time in Bangkok, I’ve tried to make the most of trying new foods and experiences that I cannot easily try back home in Wisconsin. I’ve had the privilege of learning from the Thai students in my lab at the university.  They were very welcoming and introduced me to all things Thai, including the Thai language, foods, traditions, etc.. Building relationships with them has also been another rewarding aspect of my study abroad experience.

A woman with long, wavy brown hair wearing a tan shirt with white and black stripes smiles at the camera with her back to a black wall.

Allison Grund

Hometown: Janesville, Wisconsin

Major: Microbiology

Program: UW Biological Sciences Research Internships in Thailand

I am eager to travel to Thailand for this internship to enhance my scientific laboratory skills while gaining international academic experience, building global connections, and immersing myself in a culture. I chose this program specifically because it offered international scientific research experience in a field that correlates with both my major and certificate studies. As a microbiology major working towards a certificate in global health, this programs offers both the microbiology and global experience I was looking for. I am most looking forward to experiencing the 24 hour food culture in Bangkok. I’ve heard that many of the traditional Thai foods vary in each region, but that many can be found in the capital city. I do not have many expectations entering this internship, so I am excited to see what it has to offer!