Tales of 1508 Sathorn…
The aroma of fresh baked banana bread wafts through the doors of our SAP social sabbatical common rooms in Bangkok. Markus Meisl, the baking maestro, whips out a perfectly risen loaf in a matter of minutes, every few days. No ripened banana in our vicinity can escape this fate.
As the team saunters into long, late evening team meeting debriefs with Pom, our local coordinator, these breads feed our hungry, tired, stuck-in-traffic-for-hours-after-a-long-day-at-work bellies. Sometimes, if you wish for it hard, bananas ripen faster, in a hurry to make it into these bakes. Maybe one day, those german chocolates in the fridge will take on a new fate as chocolate chips, to sweeten the deal. But until that point, I will obediently eat what is served, in fear of angering the hand that feeds.
With a view that could only be described as the poor man’s Willis tower of Chicago overlooking the Bangkok train station, the set of 3 rooms has the vibes of a young startup in the making. Dining tables double down as makeshift offices, TVs serve as extended monitors for presentations, multiple groups converse over each other in their little subteams, zoom backgrounds mask the mess behind as we take client calls, this room is bustling with raw, albeit not so young talent.
As much as they serve this all-too-critical purpose at day time, the rooms raise the game to an even bigger purpose in the evenings. They breed discussions so deep into each non-profit’s unique struggles, as each team strives to create a big impact during their time here. The kitchen area becomes the focal point, with one kind soul or the other taking on the risk of politely eating the dinner whipped up by enthusiastic self-made chefs.
It is the place where weekend plans are hatched and hawked. Presentations abound as each planner sells their vision for the weekend, with one being the clear leader in all things planning. Lautaro Spotorno could take on a second career selling dreams… the team awaits attentively as he masterfully unveils what the weeknd could hold, backed with maps, research, pricing, area attractions and all. When Lauta gets up to speak, the room listens. And follows.
