Exhilaration and Exhaustion in Bangkok

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We've just spent the last four days in Bangkok - bright neon signs, ancient temples, supermodern shopping malls - this truly is a city of great variety. Glad to have stayed here but ready to move on to the islands of Southern Thailand !

10/07 - Arrived in Bangkok and took a taxi to Khao San Road, the backpacker's haven. We managed to check into the hotel, but not without difficulty as even though I had asked for a third mattress, we were put in a closet-sized room with barely a full sized bed. Welcome to Thailand, scamming capital of the world. Through a bit of haggling, mostly on Natalie’s part, as I was getting a little bit stressed, we sorted out the situation and got a room with king sized bed for the three of us. Showering before sleeping is no longer just optional ! We then began our adventure with a tour around the Banglamphu district by tuk-tuk. A good introduction to the city, although the driving was admittedly sometimes terrifying. It is so strange to see the ancient so closely mingled with the modern; not unlike Africa in terms of chaos : noise, dirt and everyone trying to get our attention. Some of the main stop points :
1.Wat Inthara Wihan - a temple with a 45 meter Buddha statues
2.Wat Benchama Bophit - a more modern white marble temple with an extensive collection of Buddha images
3.Golden Mount - a gold temple on top of a hill with amazing views of the extensive city

All the temples are so ornate and beautiful but really do not seem to belong in the hectic lifestyle of Bangkok. All the while on the tour we were wondering why it only cost 20 baht, yes the equivalent to about 0.50 pound. The catch was soon revealed…a couple of stops to jewelry and clothing stores where we were avidly encouraged to buy some goods. We later saw a notice in the guidebook that these goods are overpriced and sometimes the gems are also fake. Good thing we didn’t have the money to buy any of it anyways and it didn’t really waste too much of our time!

In the evening, experienced the thriving Khao San road. Natalie went to bed early, exhausted after all the traveling so it gave me a chance to get to know Hannah better. Hannah is a friend from Natalie’s in Leeds who is also traveling with us as her own plans fell through. We ate dinner from a street vendors : noodles…pretty tasty and then chilled out in a bamboo style bar before heading early to bed.

11/07 - Set out early in the morning to see a few of Bangkok’s major sites, namely The Grand Palace and Wat Arun. We opted to walk there to get a feeling for Bangkok daily life : past the Democracy monument roundabout, shops spilling out onto the street, across a few canals, through the markets and got some breakfast (fruit) from a street vendor. Finally arrived at the Grand Palace grounds, which comprises not only the palace itself (still used by the king for certain ceremonies) but also Wat Phra Kaew (the Temple of the Emerald Buddha) as well as a number of other shrines and parliament buildings. The whole complex really is breathtaking : an architectural masterpiece that gleams with gold and pillars encrusted by colorful mosaics. A view from above not only gave an idea of the sheer volume, but also a beautiful view of the orange and green roofs. I was mesmerized by the majestic power of the place as well as the devout Buddhists coming to pray. The Emerald Buddha is actually made of jade and the monks even change his attire depending on the season ! Then had a quick stop at the museum to look at all the royal jewels and escape the heat in an air conditioned building. Then off to the closest pier, pretty cool as many of the buildings are on stilts. Caught a ferry across to Wat Arun, named after the Indian god of dawn and built in the traditional Khmer style. The spire rises 82 meters and the entire temple is inlaid with porcelain mosaic tiles. Climbed up the tallest and steepest stairs ever (going down really wasn’t any fun) for a panoramic view of the river and city.

As it was Hannah’s birthday in the evening we had a great night out on Khao San Road : wandering around, stopping at bars for cocktails, meeting loads of people and enjoying the bustling street.

12/07 - After waking up about midday (a combination of the late night AND jet lag), we picked up some breakfast and got a tuk-tuk to Wat traimit, home to a 3 m tall, 5.5 tonne Buddha statue. Very impressive ! Then a ride of the skytrain to Siam Square, which is really just a metro on a bridge that runs through the city but I found it pretty exciting ! Siam Square is the major commercial district and the picture of a mega city - modern, massive shopping centers and offices with noisy traffic. Went into one of the malls and walked around the general area, soaking in another part of Bangkok. Then dinner in China town - another bustling area of neon lights, street markets and Chinese characters. The image of night time in Bangkok. Then back to Khao San for a quiet night

13/07 - Last day in Bangkok and off to Phuket later this afternoon. After many days of sightseeing, opted for a more relaxed day. As Hannah is not feeling so well, Natalie and I spent the morning at a rooftop pool in the sun. Really not too bad a spot! Then had some lunch, packed up our room and went to one of the hundreds of beauty salons for a massage. A Thai massage. Certainly not the most relaxing massage of my life but my body was twisted in ways I didn’t know possible and I certainly feel nice and loose now for our long bus ride !

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