Off the beaten path - Downtown Thai Oasis

photo by Ashley McCue

This is my 12th year in Los Angeles. I've been living downtown for about a year now and I still thrive on the endless exploration that is at my finger tips daily. Saturday I got on my motorcycle around noon with no destination...the usual plan...and I ended up over the river taking some photos down by the tracks and by the LA river...It was and always is surreal the way that this city opens up to you if you let it.  I toured warehouses, had a photo shoot with a friend and an impromptu photo shoot with a gypsy post punk rocker chick that feels most at home in England and is from "nowhere"...

I sang Karaoke at a little Thai Oasis on Main street just past China town that is set up on the weekends only in the parking lot of a hidden but huge Chinese grocery market...a market where you can get amazing chinese food and have any and as many fresh fish of your choice fried up to perfection to take home with you...
The little Thai Oasis is called "Mae Ting's LA". The women there cook up amazing sticky rice and coconut cake that is to die for. "Nick " is on the grill serving Thai sausage and a choice of chicken or pork satay...We shared a mixed of 3 satay and one sticky rice and finished with two orders of the coconut cake. There are no restrooms so we had to go into the market across the lot to wash are hands. That deserves an entire write up of its own. I'll get to that another day. A perfect stop for a mid day nosh to fill up a little and be around some really happy people.
I have always found Thai people to be so incredibly friendly and happy. Once about 9 years ago, when I was in Thailand diving off Koh Tao...I stopped into a salon to get a straight razor hot shave. It was slightly unnerving but really relaxing...hot towels etc...when my girlfriend and I were leaving the woman asked if she could make us dinner later...she actually insisted...she said she wanted us to get "real Thai food"-not the tourist street vendor food...we politely declined but she was persistent and the next thing I knew it was 7 pm after we had gone back to our bungalow and napped and swam etc...we walked back to the little salon and she had set a small table outside for us.  she brought our food out and then went back in to finish her work...Tom Kha Gai (Chicken Coconut Soup) It was amazing...It was a beautiful night and such a gift...she would not let us pay her for the food but instead she asked what we wanted the next night...and she meant it...simply out of kindness...amazing. We thank her for the meal and for the offer and I was definitely tempted to just eat her food every day but we passed...
The people at Mae Ting's are just as wonderful...check it out and in between your satay and your coconut cake get entertained by the grill cook singing Karaoke or sing a little Tom Jones yourself...
Only open Sat. and Sunday...not sure the hours but I know they were open until 6...
1100 N Main St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
In the parking lot across the lot from 

LAX-C Market...

Short quick clip...

Just one more thought about the day... around Sunset I thought the light might be right so I went back to the tracks where I had been just hours before...one of my favorite things to photograph in Los Angeles are the bridges and the downtown skyline. It's a shady area but I saw a couple of cop cars about 100 yards away...so I thought...cool...I'm safe...I stepped onto the dirt by the tracks and started shooting. Not a minute later I was really startled by the sound of sirens and blinding blue lights...2 black SUV's and 2 LA County sheriff's cars...yep...

"what are you doing? Step over to the car...keep your hands where I can see them...turn off your bike...put your camera down...turn around and spread your legs...Wider...put your hands behind your back and lock your hands together." He starts to search me..."do you have any weapons that I need to know about...what's that?" 

My phone. 

"What are you taking pictures of?" 

the trains the bridges...I don't know...anything...

"Why?" 

I'm a photographer.

"Do you know it's an arrestable offense to be out on the tracks like that..."

I'm thinking...If I did....would have done it in front of a bunch of policemen?

and I was just on the dirt by the track...

"Where is your wallet. Don't reach for it."

"Ok pull it out slowly and hand me your ID."

"You can take pictures of what you want but I would not photograph the bridges. It's frowned upon by homeland security."

Noted...

"Have you ever been arrested...?"

Yes...In High School...

"Well that's been a while huh?"

No shit...

So then...while his buddy runs my ID...we actually make small talk...

"What year is your bike?"

82', Is there a lot of trouble down here?

"Yeah sometimes"

The other 4 guys were discussing how boring their night had been. 

His partners comes back..."He's good"

"You're free to go. Stay off the tracks...really you shouldn't be on this road at all."

It's a road...

Thanks guys...have a good night...