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Published: June 19th 2009
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When travelling (or taking an extended skive from gainful employment as some may call it!) the 'work' side of things becomes the hauling of your heavy pack in the heat, enduring endless bum-numbing hours on public transport, and the time spent at the mercy of immigration officials and in visa officials. Whilst living the life of Pai, we were all too aware of the time ticking away on our 14 day visa. We also discover that it takes 7 days for an India visa application to be approved in Bangkok, so we have a complicated few days ahead.
First dropping off our visa applications at the Indian Embassy before the weekend, and getting south to the border with Burma on Monday...then we're free to head south to meet our old friend Paul Smyth and get on some of those Thai beaches. This also means we get to spend a weekend in Bangkok before our run for the border, and then all's left to do is collect our India visa the day before our flight to Hong Kong in a fortnight. Easy.
It is hot and humid in Bangkok, even at 7am when our overnight bus from Chiang Mai pulls
into town. It is a huge city and the jumble of highways and flyovers around the Northern Bus Terminal are jammed with the Friday morning rushour. We move into the pedestrian commuter flow towards the local bus stand...all the signs are in Thai. Then an absolute gent, dressed for the office, finds the time to help us on our way and with his assistance we board the correct bus for Banlamphu, a neighbourhood next to the Khao San Road which is leafier, quieter and generally nicer.
I enjoy Khao San more than I was expecting though...it's much smaller than I imagined and is a bit like Camden Market. It's impossible not to shop, and is so cheap that I can replace some travel-worn rags with shiny new threads...god knows how many washes they'll survive.
The visa application for India is an amazingly hassle-free experience and a lesson in efficiency for the Indian Embassy in London. Boring job completed unexpectedly early, we head off sightseeing, to The Grand Palace, including Wat Phia Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha) and to Wat Pho with it's stunning reclining Buddha...over 40 mtrs long and 15 mtrs high, covered in gold leaf and
inlaid with mother of pearl. The gleaming white Grand Palace with it's garden of lollypop trees is the centre of a complex of the most elaborately decorated wats you could imagine. A spectacular kaleidescope of mosaic pillars, gilded towering stupas and shaded courtyard galleries of intricate murals. Early European imperialists' eyes must've popped out their heads with longing, but the Thais successfully remained an independant kingdom throughout colonial times.
The high temperatures with the added dibilitating humidity makes sightseeing exhausting. We often have to retreat from the heat...seeking out shady spots and cool cafes (air con ATM booths offer a quick fix!) When thunderstorms break, which is happening with increasing regularity, it is a blessed relief. A good downpour can leave Bangkok flooded...at one point the Khao San is knee deep in water, though it clears quickly and the sun is soon baking down on dry streets again.
We randomly bump into our friend Andy from Don Det, and meet later him for drinks around Banlamphu and Khao San. At night the market doubles in size and wandering traders fill the streets, selling all types of stuff that you don't need but seem like a good idea after
a couple of cocktails. The Khao San bars are packed and overflowing onto the pavements, where stalls serve pad thai and spring rolls to soak up cheap beer. Better street food can be found in the lanes of Banlamphu, where you can eat brilliant curries, soups and salads for a pound. The seedier part of town is way over in Patpong; a garish few streets of go-go bars and ping pong shows which make the Chiang Mai scene look tame. Amidst all this hedonism is heartbreaking poverty, as women protectively curl their bodies round their sleeping children by the side of the road.
The touting and scamming I'd been prepared for is virtually non existant, I don't think anyone can be bothered in this heat. Even the tuktuk drivers can barely muster a "Where you go?" too late, as we already walk on by. Our visa run also turns out to be hassle free, when we hop over to Burma at the Ranong crossing. The overnight bus from Bangkok easily makes the Monday morning run; a mini bus takes us to the port where we're stamped out of Thailand. Then we board a boat which takes us over to
Burma, where we're stamped in, then out, before turning around (it's like the Oaky Coaky!) and heading back again. All I can tell you about Burma is that the port is full of men selling black market fags, booze and viagra...so a bit like Dover then 😊
We're back in Thailand with fresh 14 day stamps in our passports, and on a bus to Phuket before lunch. When Paul Smyth pulls up to meet us at the Phuket bus station and I step into his car, Snoop blaring from the stereo, it's like I've been transported back to my teens...
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