Advertisement
Published: June 23rd 2008
Edit Blog Post
Khao San
The gateway to Asia for many, many travellers. Hello everyone!
Well I'm finally here. It actually happened! I still don't really believe I'm actually in Thailand. I'm just starting my second full day and already I have so much to tell I'm not even sure where to begin.
Anyway, Friday morning I flew out of Raleigh to Chicago, then Chicago to Tokyo and fiinally Tokyo to Bangkok. All in all it was something like 22 or 23 hours traveling. I finally arrived in Bangkok around midnight on Saturday. After going through customs then getting a cab to Khao San road, it was around 1 A.M. For those of you who are unfamiliar about Khao San, its the all night traveler area for Bangkok. There were thousands of people out when I left my cab and started looking for a place to stay. Imagine Bourbon Street in New Orleans but only with more people and louder. I ended up looking at a few guesthouses and got a room in one that was quite expensive for Khao San standards (600 Baht or roughly about 18-19 dollars). It was too late to be walking around with a large pack and after spending a full day in airports and planes, I
was more than willing to pay a little extra just to put my things down. When I got the room I was too excited to sleep so I walked around for about an hour. Right as I was walking back into my guesthouse, two girls got into a fistfight right outside my place. It left me wondering what kind of place I had just gotten myself into. The room though was surprisingly large, very quiet and was air conditioned. Other than a few small roaches, I had no complaints.
In the morning I talked to the staff and got word of the must-see Wats around Bangkok. After walking to one of them, I ended up hiring a tuk-tuk driver for the afternoon to take me around to the others. It cost me around a dollar and a half to have a personal driver for about three hours. The driver kept slyly asking me if I wanted to stop at a travel agency or tailor shop (old scam, they get a commission) and I kept refusing. I really like his sense of humor though and he showed me a few temples that are not as well known to travelers. Eventually
he just came out and told me he gets a commission if I go to a travel agency for a few minutes. With a big grin he put this way, "I help you. You help me." I busted out laughing at the way he said it. How could I refuse? He even coached me on how to pretend to be interested but then say the price was too high before walking out. The man had just brought me all around Bangkok for a just over a dollar so I went along with it. I did get a decent idea on prices to the southern beaches (my next stop) so it actually was pretty helpful. My driver was very grateful after as well.
I saw so much yesterday but let me just write about two of the best stops. One of the sites was a fifty foot tall golden Buddha statue. Impressive does not even begin to describe it. Right after that my driver took me to a beautiful temple in the north end of the city. There was only one other person there. The man was Thai and asked me if I was Buddhist or had ever prayed to
Tuk-Tuk Drive
Only 40 Baht for the day! Buddha before. After answering no he offered to show me how. We took off our shoes and sat in front of a huge Buddha. He told me there aren't really any rules on how to sit just so long as your feet aren't pointed at the statue. After a few minutes of silence we began talking. The man was in the insurance industry and gave me advice on what to do around Thailand. Like most of the Thais I have met, he was polite as could be and was always smiling. After about twenty minutes of talking with this incredibly nice guy left to see more sites.
During the night I lost whatever feeling of comfort and peace I had from visiting the temples. I stayed around the Khao San road drinking in the atmosphere. There are people trying to sell you everything and take you anywhere. Music is blasting from every building. Neon lights flood the street. People from every continent are walking about (perhaps Antarctica is excluded). I stopped in for a drink in one place and ended talking to a man who was born in Korea, grew up in South Africa, studied at Western Michigan University and now works in northern Thailand. Still tired from my long travels the day before, I called it a night early.
I changed guesthouses this morning on the advice of a young British couple I met on Khao San. Its nearly half of what I was paying at my other guesthouse. Its smaller but I'm hey, I'm not needy and I am cheap.
Sorry there aren't any pictures to go along with any of this. The internet cafe I'm at can't upload photos. I'll put them up when I can.
Well, time for me to see more of Bangkok. Take care everyone.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.061s; Tpl: 0.011s; cc: 10; qc: 47; dbt: 0.0403s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
kathy fusco
non-member comment
Bangkok
Hi Steve. Wish I had known you were going to Bangkok -- my daughter was just there a couple of months ago, and also did a blog. She did some of the 'behind the tourist scene' version, as well as the high spots. She absolutely loved it. I know from her stories that after a long day of walking, you can get an hour long foot massage for about $6 ~ or shoulder / back massage for about the same. If you like, I can email you her version of Bangkok. Have a great trip. Kathy Fusco Ligon