busy couple of days

Asia » Thailand
March 20th 2007

Published: March 20th 2007

I'm sticky. It's really humid. Not all that hot, just really humid. This keyboard is funny too and it's hard to type on. Maybe it's just a tiny bit smaller, for Thai hands. Did I mention that it's humid.

My flight was really long, but at least there was a space between myself and the person next to me (on both flights). I got a window seat and didn't actually mind. The isle gets their shins banged on the the flight attendants constantly, so I guess I lucked out. 20 hours is a long time to be sitting, and my butt got numb a few times, but all is good.

I shared a cab ride to Khao San Rd (backpackers central) w/ a guy from Holland. He had been to Thailand a few years ago and suggested a hotel. There was a either misunderstanding w/ the cab driver, or the guesthouse had changed locations, Loh (my Danish friend) said it didn't look familiar at all but we were both delerious from such a long flight, we caved and just stayed there. We did get a little discount though because it was so late. I couldn't sleep so got up early, took a shower, ate a complimentary breakfast, and set off for another guesthouse. My new home is 180 baht (per night and has a huge ceiling fan, window, large bed, and several mysterious stains on the walls. Not exactly pretty, but it does the job.

After checking in, I set off for an adventure. When in a new place, I prefer walking around. It gives me a better look at peoples every day lives and how they interact w/ each other. I wanted to just walk around to some of the sights since they seemed really close to each other on the map. Very deceiving. Seems like I got lost everytime I turned a corner. Once out of the tourist areas, nothing is in English. Nothing. Seems like the only people who speak English are trying to sell you something. Tuk-Tuk (motorcycle taxi - like a motorized rikshaw) drivers are very aggressive. Every 10 feet, "Hey you, where you go? I take you!" I saw several sights today including Wat Intharawaihan (standing Buddha), Wat Sam Phaya, the Democracy Monument, and my favorite of the day - Wat Saket (Golden Mount). Wat is a buddhist temple, used for worship. Seems like they are everywhere, some larger and fancier than others.

Later that night, I got a haircut (60 baht), ate some Pad Thai noodle (20 baht), and settled into a roadside bar on Khao San Rd. While there I met a Swedish girl (Ellie) and we joked around about all the other tourists, while drinking Beer Chang. Fun night. Ellie is VERY tall and the Thai people just loved her! Every 20 seconds someone walks by you trying to sell you something. Bracelets, wallets, lighters, jewelry of all kinds. Khao San Rd is lined w/ stall after stall after stall of stores selling knock off brands, native clothing, backpacks, and everything else under the sun. You could come to Thailand w/ only the clothes on your back and a passport, and buy everything you would ever need, at a fraction of the price it would be in the States. Consumerism at it's finest!!

Bangkok smells. Sometimes it's absolutely delicious. Sometimes it makes me want to vomit.

This is getting already way too long, so I'm going to be quick for the rest. I'm hot and sticky and need a shower. Tuk-tuk driver drove me around all day for 20 baht, I just had to pretend to be interested in buying a taylored suit. The tuk-tuk drivers get a kickback for bringing in customers, so mine (his name is Bee) let me know ahead of time, and then took me wherever I wanted to go! Pretty nice guy had a thick accent and was a bit hard to understand, but we made it work. Several more tourist sites today and my favorite was the Lucky Buddha. It's 300 years old and not as impressive as the others, but the building it's housed in was really neat. Lots of intricate painting on the walls w/ intricate carvings everywhere. I chatted w/ one of the workers for a while and he was very friendly and helpful. All the Thai people have been nice and friendly, even if they don't speak my language.

Strangely enough, I met a fellow Angeleno and we are meeting up for beer later, so I gotta go.

I got ripped off a little by the travel agency I went to, but it's still not that bad considering how far the US dollar goes here. Tomorrow AM I'm headed to Ayathaya (1 1/2 hr bus ride North) to see some ancient temples and ruins, then on to Phitsanulok by overnight train leaving @ 11PM. Once there I head on to Sukhothai by bus to a guesthouse the agent booked for me. I spend a day 1/2 here, then transfer to Chiang Mai by bus. Once in Chian Mai I'm going trekking in the jungle for 3 days and 2 nights. I origionally wanted to go to a different area for trekking, but I was advised by a few other travelers that it was very difficult to get to and the roads are not reliable at all. Though I'd go the safe route since I'm on a time schedule. After 5 days in Chiang Mai, I head back to Bangkok for a day, then I'm off to Siem Reap in Cambodia to see the Angkor Wat temples. All of this was arranged by the agent, but I could have easily done it myself at a MUCH cheaper rate. But it's all done and I'm just not going to worry about it any more.

I've rambled long enough.

pictures are taking FOREVER to load and there is a line to use the computer. Maybe later?

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