Thailand: Bangkok

Day 1

Arriving in Bangkok, I decided to take the local transportation to downtown, so I strolled over to the train, bought a ticket and hopped on the train. I had noted on the map where the train got into downtown, and it didn’t seem too far from my hostel. I, however, was mistaken, especially in the Bangkok heat. Always up for a walk, I had a nice little walking tour on the way from the train over to the Khao San district, and if you ever want to know where to get a Motorbike fixed in Bangkok, I can recommend a few places.

Having such a short time in Bangkok, I headed off toward the historic district. Walking past the clusterfuck that is Khao San road, I caught a tuk-tuk that took me to a couple of minor temples (one government temple, one that was closed, and one that had a 43m high golden Buddha). Walking back toward the Grand Palace, I arrived to find that it was about to close, so I decided to grab a drink and wait to catch the sunset from the Golden Temple (one of the highest in Bangkok). Heading back down one of the major roads in old Bangkok I caught an amazing view of the Democracy monument and stumbled into a cultural performance at a local art gallery. The way that these dancers were able to manipulate their bodies was truly incredible, and while I didn’t understand much (it was in Thai), the combination of the music, dancing, costumes, and performance made for a lively evening!

(tall Buddha, like...really tall)

(sunset over Bangkok)

(Money laundering?)

(cultural show)

(different sort of cultural show...Khao San Rd.)

Day 2

Waking up early, I know that I have a lot to do before meeting up with my friend Siamnat at 5pm: the Grande Palace, Wat Pho, Wat Arun, and a canal tour. All of these places were spectacular in their scale, but also in the number of people they attracted. While the buildings were incredibly magnificent in their design, construction, and decoration (as you’ll see in the pictures), that was certainly dampened by the hordes of people who were there.

(walking selfie)

(grand palace)

(ain't it grand)

(well would you look at that)

An interesting note was the difference in construction at the Grande Palace, the older parts of the Palace are classic Thai temple architecture, but once we reached the newer parts of the complex, there was this interesting blend of Thai and European influence brought in to “modernize” the look in the 1970s (I believe). Strange to see a very Thai roof on a more classic, Italianate building, but hey, the strange things are what keep architecture interesting.

(one of these is not like the other)

(hunh, makes ya wonder)

Feeling “watted out” after the last couple of days of temple viewing, I was excited to meet up with my friend Siamnat from UNC for a visit to Dusit Palace, parliament, some other government buildings, and capped of with the Asiatique market. Being such a gracious host, Siamnat let me stay at his place (significantly closer to the airport). So after a little rest, we got up and watched an AMAZING world cup final, and then Siamnat was nice enough to drop me off at the airport (at 4:30 in the morning…). Siamnat, I can’t express how grateful I am for everything!

(Outside Dusit Palace)

(Temple with Siamnat)

And with that, I my brief stay in Thailand had come to an end and I was headed off to Vietnam! I was left with a sense that there was so much more to see in Vietnam, from the jungles of the North to the Islands of the South, I can’t wait to get back.

Aside:

Three types of Bangkok Tourist

During my brief time in Bangkok, I noticed three distinct types of Bangkok tourist: the family traveller, the strange-seeker, and the lazy backpacker.

The family traveller: the family traveller is interested in seeing all of the historic sites, taking all of the pictures, and going to all of the museums. They are often moving slowly, part of a tour group, and often buying sodas/ice cream from street vendors. This sort of traveller is also afraid to cross busy streets.

The strange-seeker: the strange-seeker is interested in what he (usually white males) might say is Thai culture, but is some perversion of Thailand culture. By “culture” he often means ladyboy shows, strip clubs, and sex tourism. Strange-seekers may even be accompanied by a younger thai mistress or wife (not to say that every white man / Thai woman couple is put into this category). Yep, it’s a stereotype, Yep, they exist.

The lazy backpacker: pretty self-explanatory. You’ll find these guys probably lazing about some Khao San road picking up a Henai tattoo, buying a fake ID,  getting a foot massage, or just sitting in an Irish pub drinking shitty beer. They’re probably wearing baggy “temple” pants (affectionately labeled “pantaloons for white people” by some friends in Vietnam) with an elephant motif and a tank top. They have a VERY limited travel radius within Bangkok.