Bangkok

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I was not quite sure what to expect from Bangkok, after spending six weeks on a beach I was wandering if i really wanted to be in a crowded dirty city again but how wrong I was.

We were staying on Soi Rambutri which was like a small alley with bars and restaurants and stalls selling stuff lined up on either side. Our hotel was nice enough, it had a pool on the roof which was refreshing to cool off in the afternoon sun. It was late when we arrived so we had a quick look down the Ko San Road which was just around the corner from us. This is the legendary street where most people head straight to in Bangkok once they arrive, although I am not suite sure why as it was a bit disappointing, a few average bars and T-Shirt stalls.

The next day we got up early so we could head down to the British embassy to sort out getting a new bank card sent over and it didn't look that far on the map so we thought we would have a little explore and use it as a good chance to see a bit of the city. This probably was not the wisest choice ever as it turned out to be quite far, very hot and a taxi would of only cost a couple of quid. That said though it was good to have a bit of exercise and we got to see a little market on the road side, but it was a relief to see the sky train and know we were finally downtown. The main city centre seemed to be a long street with shopping centres, and offices along it which was pretty cool as you could walk along the skywalk through the middle and above the traffic and look out over everything. We had a look around a few shops and then got a Tuk Tuk back to our hotel.

I fell in love with the Tuk Tuks as soon as I got in one, they are mopeds with a little cage on the back where you sit as someone goes mental behind the wheel nipping in and out, overtaking, undertaking, it is so much fun when they put their foot down. I wanted to get a video from the back seat but as per usual the camera was not working a great deal.

Later that night we went to the night market as I needed to replace the trainers that had been stolen from my feet and we had a good look around. You could easily come back with a completely new wardrobe for about 30/40 quid. In the middle of the market was a food and drinks court so we had a bite to eat and watched some local singers perform on this massive stage they had as well. It seemed like quite a few people must go to the market as it was pretty well set up.

We just could not get enough of the markets so went to the weekend market the next day hoping to find some exotic animals for sale like we had heard about but alas we could not see any, we did however find amongst all the fake football shirts a couple of originals and have now aligned ourselves for the next Thai Premier League season. Cuffley opted for the green and white of Bangkok Glass and I chose the royally approved Rayong Golden Dragons. Come on you Dragons!

That night we got the tube across town and tried to find an area I had read about which had lots of clubs where the young Thai student crowds hang out. We went to a place called Route 66 on the RCA which was very cool with three little clubs inside it and an outside garden along the edge. We threw some dance moves in the techno room and then went and saw some Thai indie bands as well who sounded like The Fratellis so Ralph would of loved them. The people I spoke with there all seemed friendly as well so I was quite surprised a few days later when I read about the police closing down the two local universities for a week as rival gangs kept murdering other students, and to think I thought I was rebellious going to a Leicester Uni party at Zanzibar.

The next day we went over to a park they had in the centre, the Thai parks always confuse me as you can't drink, eat or smoke in them which is pretty much the three things I want to do most in them. It probably explains why their parks are really nice and ours are Bede park. The park we were in had lots of little Chinese pagodas and bizarrely an outdoor gym in the middle. We also noticed they had some huge creatures that looked like crocodiles in the lake which was a little strange, surely it can't be safe to have one of the four deadliest animals in the world roaming about in the park? As it turned out they were not crocodiles after all, just eight foot long lizards. You know, just the normal thing you see strolling around the park.

We found ourselves on the Sky Train again and headed over to a random part of town that said it had bowling and a cinema so we thought we would keep ourselves entertained there. Jimmy now refers to himself in the third person as "The hardest man in Bangkok" after he broke some kids high score on one of those boxing machines whilst we waited for the movie. We basically had the whole cinema to ourselves which was a novel experience, as was having to stand for the national anthem as they played a video showing all the good work the King has done for Thailand. It got me thinking if this would work in England, but i came to the conclusion that a video of our royal family round the lunch table as the Queen ate caviar and cucumber sandwiches whilst Prince Phillip was telling racist jokes to a stoned Harry laughing to himself just wouldn't go down so well before the new Disney movie at the Meridian.

Later that night we found a hidden gem on the Ko San Road, a little Thai club that virtually no westerners go to which had bands playing Thai Ska music and reggae, all the locals were on the tables and chairs dancing and it was probably the best night we had in Bangkok. The locals were really welcoming and were happy to chat and party with us. We went back there on our last night with some girls from Leeds and it was probably even better then the first time. Hearing Job2Do last song had us crooning with with our hands in the air.

I have definitely fallen in love with this city and its one of the best i have ever been to and that's with only barely scratching the surface of what there is to see and do. Its no wonder Guti told Real Madrid last week that he might quit and retire at the end of the season so he can come and live here. I am with him on that and have already polished off my CV ready to start sending out in the not to distant future.

Anyway it is time to say goodbye to Bangkok, for the moment at least hopefully. Our visa runs out in ten days so we are going to head to an island called Koh Chang which is right on the border with Cambodia and is a national park so I am expecting it should be pretty spectacular...

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