And so our Journey Begins

---

---

Sawat Di Cup/Hello!

We arrived safely after a long arduous journey pitstopping in Bahrain. Upon stepping off the plane we felt the unbearable heat and humidity amidst the scurry of passengers from the plane and through customs.
Hot and sweaty we jumped in a cab and got charged a bit too much, nevertheless it had aircon which was a real treat.
Our eager eyes drawn to the windows as we entered into Bangkok, we were dropped right next to our hotel which was decorated with wooden elephants, buddahs and comfy chairs - Very Nicola! The first thing we did was strip and jump into a cold shower and find the thinnest clothes we had! Nicola's hair was already a curly "sensation." We decided to explore the amazing koh san rd straight away avoiding rabbies ridden dogs and so many sellers trying to hassle us, our favourite line was "hey romeo, come in mah shop." Nevertheless it was great to be in the thick of things. We also managed to sort visas out for Laos and Vietnam. We bought one or two clothes and sampled a variety of mega cheap food from the street sellers, as cheap as 40p for a good meal!. we then headed to what we thought was a market only to find hundreds of people kite flying in front of the Grand palace. Nik chose a crappy kite that wouldnt even fly, but apperently it looked good ( Girly Butterfly). After alot of help from the locals we managed to get it up in the air for a short while, only to crash land it near a "pack" of Rabbies dogs, we carefully realed in the kite right passed there noses, suprised that they werent jumping over it. Later that evening we sampled our first Thai curries.

The second day we set off late and went for a boat ride along the river and into canals. However I (Ben) searched for a cheaper one and we ended up walking a fair distance in mid day heat.! We finally found a cheaper long boat although we need to counter balance it with an enormos girl trying to sink it. It was good to see the real Bangkok with poverty amongst very rich houses. After more cheap food and plenty of bottles of water to rehydrate and chilling out, we hailed down our first Tuk Tuk to Siam Square making sure there was no stop no shop involved. What a death ride but a great laugh! Nik thought it beat The Oblivion hands down! Siam Square was yet another side to see of Bangkok, filled with commercial shopping Malls which were airconned. We saw some very swish sushi bars and variety of shops, unfotunately not much for our budget though. We came back and shared our second cheap dinner and chilled playing cards.

Today we was awoken by the gongs and budhist chanting from the nearby temple, before drssing appropriately for the Grand Palace and Wats (Temples). We know the route well so we decided to walk it, making sure we were kept cool under the shady trees. The grand palace was a beautiful/unbelievable sight, intricate mosaics of colour - Nik went camara mad! We spent a long while in the palace grounds hopping from one temple to another to avoid the sweltering heat. Soon the heat got the better of us and we searched for cool water and a bite to eat. We found some lovely Pad Thai (Noodle dish) from a one eyed man. Only when cooled down slightly we walked to watPoh where the reclining Budha lays. It's a huge golden budha situated within the oldest Temple in Bangkok. In need of a cold daytime shower we bartered for a cheap tuk Tuk back to our hotel, and chilled before packing to go to Chiang Mai by train.

Now we're ready for our first sleeper train up to the North of Thailand...

---

Comments

[Ben and Nik]

missing you loads too, i keep seeing wild orchids in the rainforrest and it reminds me of us in our office, hope its still flowering, will reply properly when i can xxxxx