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A+7%2F11+in+Amphawa%2C+Thailand%2C+offers+a+variety+of+snacks+and+treats.+%0APhoto+Credits%3A+Liam+H.+Flake

A 7/11 in Amphawa, Thailand, offers a variety of snacks and treats. Photo Credits: Liam H. Flake

Letter of Recommendation: Foreign Convenience Stores

I never thought I’d stop at so many Thai 7/11’s.

While spending winter break riding across Thailand, I stopped at more gas stations for restroom breaks than I could count. And, much like in America, each one was nearly identical. There was always a bathroom, a Café Amazon (which seems to be the Thai equivalent to Starbucks), and- also like in America – a 7/11. Every hour or so, the routine repeated. We’d stop, the doors would open, and we’d all file out to the restroom. Then, with any spare time, we’d stop in the ubiquitous, international convenience store.

Stepping into a Thai 7/11 was a bit like a parallel universe. The lighting, the floor tiles, the packaged foods, and the general atmosphere was consistent with their intercontinental counterparts, but the food on the shelves were slightly different variations on the snacks we are familiar with. Additionally, as one may expect, the labels on the plastic wrappers were in an unrecognized alphasyllabary, unknown and unreadable tags boasting sesame crackers and mangos, strawberry drink and Coca Cola.

My family spent a fair bit of time just wandering through the contained aisles, simply observing the foreign packaged goods we found so unusual. We pointed out fish sauce to each other, as well as dumplings and black jelly mushroom beverages in a sense of strange wonder.

In the age of globalism, cultures are blended, mixed together, blurred at the edges. No nation or region is free of influence from the rest of the world. 7/11’s exist within that cultural blur. They are a global constant, almost inescapable. The fluorescent lighting and the cheaply priced (regardless of currency) snacks are a premium example of how societies have intertwined over centuries.

At the same time, 7/11’s display the differences that define geographical culture. Their shelves are stocked with those products that make a region unique, from king size chocolate bars to skin whitening cream, and reflect the varied tastes of a diverse world. They contain what a culture wants: hot dogs for Americans and fish sauce for the Thai.

And thus 7/11’s exist as a middle ground between global cultural unity and cultural identity. In a true display of cultural diffusion, they offer both consistency and variety. In a way, a 7/11 demonstrates what a place is like, and how it is unique. They proudly claim that yes, a country or a region may be similar to what you’re accustomed to, and also strange and unfamiliar.

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