I can't think up a clever line about Bangkok without being dirty

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So, I would like to give a quick update about my Bangkok experience thus far. Well, quick depends on what mood I get into once I start writing. I can never tell, to be honest. 😊 Plus I am going to try to post a few photos in this entry if I can figure it out. A bit bummed because I took some AMAZING photos with my hipstamic program from my iPhone, and the computer does not recognize my iPhone, so I will have to wait to post them. Oh well!
Lets see, today is early afternoon Friday and I have been here since Tuesday evening. I am really hoping that my whole trip doesn't just fly by like the last few days, but knowing how my life tends to work, of course it is going to fly by! Oh well, I will do what I can to take in absolutely everything that I possibly can and practice mindfulness with every step! Although I do have to remind myself to do that. Every once and a while I remember that I am actually here and I get incredibly giddy, close to the feeling that you have when you are in love. Really, I am not kidding. It is a total rush and it absolutely comforts me and lets me know that this was a wonderful decision.
Okay, so lets get to the meat and potatoes - is that right? I get expressions mixed up all the time! So, anyways, I have had quite an exciting experience in Bangkok and I know that I haven't even scratched the surface. But I am okay with that, because I am still having a total blast. Lets see, on Wednesday I went to the Imperial Palace, which was pretty cool. Only thing is that my feet were still swollen from traveling and my shoes were way too tight, so I was in quite a lot of pain and cut things a bit short. When I got back to the hotel I was exhausted and ended up passing out at like 9 or earlier. My roommates in the dorm, which often change, are so considerate. And super nice. I met this one girl from California who, like me, decided to quit her job and travel. Only she is going for nine months and might end up settling in another city like London or Paris. She gave me this amazingly detailed map of Bangkok that was created by a woman who has been doing these maps for like 35 years - a fellow backpacker had given it to her. I then handed it off to another of my roommates. Lets see, the second day, I realized that I had completely missed this giant reclining Buddha statue, which is, funny enough, right down the street from the grand palace, so I got back on the skyrail, back on the public water boat, and off down the road, trying to figure out where it was. I reach this one area next to the palace, and this guy says, "No, not this entrance, the middle entrance to the palace." I explained to him that I was going to Wat Pho (where the Buddha is). He tells me that it is closed because it is Buddha Day. And I actually believed him. Buddha Day? Are you kidding me? If it were Buddha Day, then the Buddha statue would definitely be open! He half-heartedly tried to get me to go to a standing buddha which costs only 20 baht, which is less than a dollar. So, if I had followed his scam, he would have gotten what, less than a dollar out of it? I just don't get it, why screw with someone like that for less than a dollar? Maybe it is more about the power than the money.
Well, as I was walking away, I remembered hearing about these scams of people saying places are closed. So I stopped in at the Army Wives Association - where I had a yummy banana smoothie, by the way - and they said that it is NOT Buddha Day, and that Wat Pho is hardly ever closed. So I am glad I second guessed the snake oil salesman, because the Buddha was actually really cool and I took some amazing photos, which I will have to share at a later date. Then, I decided to hop back on the boat to go to the Khao San area, which is the backpacker's haven. I had been considering staying there but changed my mind to be closer to the rail. I am so glad that I chose not to go there, because, while it is good people-watching, it is also filled with aggressive people trying to scam you in any way possible. It definitely turned me off. Although I did have lunch at a place called Happy House, where I had a delicious chicken coconut soup.
But I love the hostel here. It is really nice and friendly, and the people are super nice. I ended up going out for drinks with two of the girls in my dorm, both Brits. How funny is this - one of them is 18, I am 28, and the other is 38. Isn't that a coincidence? Although the 18 year old is so much cooler than any other 18-year old I have ever met, definitely more mature than I was at 18. So it was quite comfortable and we had lots of fun. We had drinks on a rooftop terrace bar, where a woman was singing, not kidding, a cover of "California Girls" by Katy Perry. We also went walking about what I guess is the red light district. We got hassled by a lot of guys asking us if we wanted to go to the "Ping Pong Show." For those of you who don't know what that is, ask an older adult 😊 I looked at the man with disgust and said "NO." With a tone of, "Are you serious? Why would I ever want to see that?!" But they didn't really take the hint. I honestly don't know why anyone would want to see that, but people are pretty weird. I did enjoy the people watching though, it was definitely an experience. And seeing some of the ladyboys reminded me of home a bit. 😊 Except that they pass a lot better than their American counterparts, to be honest.
So, this morning, I went to get an hour-long foot massage for less than ten dollars, and it was awesome! They also included a free neck, arm and head massage, which was pretty nice. I am working on going to Chinatown for some Dim Sum, which is gonna be delicious, no doubt. Tonight I am catching the night bus to go to Koh Tao to learn how to scuba dive! So, things are excellent. 😊

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