Blogs from Eastern Thailand, Thailand, Asia - page 19

bangkok there are no adjectives that appropriately describe the overstimulating energy that permeates every corner of bangkok. my heart has been beating erratically since the moment we stepped off the plane and boarded a hot pink taxi to Chinatown where, after 24 hours of travel, we were anxious for a pillow. our hotel was far from representative of the pictures advertised online and were shocked to find a toilet directly IN the shower as well as a populous family of gnats. the peeling wallpaper and headboard saturated with black funk were not exactly welcoming so nicole promptly made arrangements for a hotel transfer in the morning. i slept with my head at the foot of the bed. our new, uncontaminated hotel is in Bangrak, across from the Patpong distirct of Bangkok which we discovered is a ... read more

Today we got up @ 5.30am because it was Temple Day. Mum and Dad donated 10,009 baht (about $350AUS) to the village temple. We gave food to the monks and there was Buddhist prayer. It’s quite spiritual, I’ve never thought of myself to be religious and no offence to any Christians but its never really interested me but Buddhism for me is different its peaceful. I got given and new bracelet from the head monk, Christians were a cross, I’ll wear my bracelet but its not just for the sake of it it’s a spiritual accepting of the religion and more so the respect for the man who gave it to me. My grandfather gave me my other bracelet and I wear it for respect. Typical Thai’s though! Mum said we would leave @ 6 but ... read more

I didn’t sleep very well last night. My back hurts and I don’t feel very well and I am so tired. But here I am, it is 7.26am and none of the Falangs (white people apart from Locky) are up yet and I feel horrible. I was sandwiched between two girls last nite with very little space to move. Usually I can sleep anywhere; I am surprised that I couldn’t. I am sitting on the balcony and I can see mum playing with Louie (our adopted dog) and I can see 2 coconut husks my parents cleaned for me so I can have my very own horse hooves (Monty Python, Holy Grain). But yes, I still think it’s good to be here. Most people here go to bed @ about 8 so we Falangs are stuck ... read more

I am now in Koh Sumai waiting for the plane to Bangkok. I have to say it's a nice little open airport! Koh Phangan has been an interesting island. I have take a couple of tours around other islands from here. I do like the warnings giving by the travel agents about these tours, they really lower your expectations but I wasn't disappointed. Nang Yuan Island is really beautiful and I went snorkeling first time. It was really fun and did see some fish amongst with other "things". Now I am tempted to try diving at some point! We also went in a submarine in Koh Tao to have a look at some coral but didn't see much as the windows weren't clear. I got to see more coral in Koh Tao during snorkeling and this ... read more

After KL I was in Penang for two nights visiting Zaffarie. Really helps when you know a local who can show you around! Pengang Island is much bigger than I thought. At least I got time to recover from the over night train journey. Zaffrie and I took took a Rickshaw to a Bar in Penang, which turned out to be quite an interesting ride. The driver was gasping for breath, going really slowly and holding up traffic. Making comments that you two are really big guys! (me, yeah right!). Ofcourse to get more money but the looks we were getting from everyone made it a ride of shame! I am now in Thailand, Koh Phangan. Considering it was a long journey involving train, taxi, bus, boat and taxi my journey to Thialand was uneventful. One ... read more