Arrived in Bangkok at 1:30 am after a short layover in the impressive Seoul airport. It must be well organized here at the Bangkok airport, because we're tired & spacy but navigated immigration, baggage, customs & the metered taxi stand without trouble. Hotel is just as advertised by Intrepid Tours for its basic tour - clean & safe - not much more to be said for it.
Went out for a beer (just to be sure we'd be able to sleep - there's a 13 hour time difference). Streets seem similar to our Malaysian experience 35 years ago, people living much of their lives out in front of their homes. Stopped as soon as we saw people with beer on their table. It turned out to be Lilly's Place. Lilly is the two year old daughter of Paul, the proprietor. Paul is a British expat who runs this combo hole-in-the-wall operation - hostel, bar, restaurant, tour service & tattoo parlor (which his shirtless chest advertises well). Turns out "special bamboo" is a tattoo method, not something to eat. Paul has something to say about most anything. Helping Paul was Miriam, a Tunisian expat attorney who can't practice here & must cross the border every 3 months renew her visa. In bed at 4 am, Bangkok time.
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| Bangkok, smog and all |
Went to a nice quiet cafe a few hours later. Quiet till they started knocking down the brick wall next door - by hand. Walked along the canal where Doug spotted a lizard way too big to be living in the city - almost 4 feet long, right at the fish market.
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| Outside the grand palace |
Bumbling Boatman
Booked a canal tour with Bangkok's worst boatman, not sure if the problem was a faulty throttle or just him, but there was a lot of noisy thrashing and exhaust fumes. These longtail boats are about 30 feet long and 4 feet wide, wooden, with an engine in the back of the boat that looks like something from a medium sized jet. Sounds like one too. The prop sits at the end of a 20 foot rod. There were a lot of these boats churning up the water. We also saw some old one-person paddled boats with squared off fronts and backs that have very low gunwales that somehow survive the choppy water. It was nice to see canal life. We bought some "tourist bread" to feed the river fish. Doug says it's a good deal - the tourists buy the fish food and the locals probably net them as soon as we're gone.
Chatted with the tour agent at our hotel, born in Thailand, raised in southern California, and back in Bangkok for business opportunities. He says real estate here is bought with cash, not credit, and was unaffected by the financial crash. It's booming.
Went for an evening stroll to the flower market, which we never found. It's pretty clear on the map, so where is it? We're far enough off the beaten track that we couldn't find an English speaker to ask. Ate dinner at the same place that we had breakfast. Good food, good prices, and pictures on the menu that we can point to. They serve shrimp with the heads on, or falling off. Seems we have a high head to body ratio. Doug has a nice soup, from which he extracts an interesting collection of inedible spices (and shrimp heads).
Across the road, on the street, lives "Mohawk Man", with all his possessions, including about 3 teeth, there with him on the street. How'd he get that amazing Mohawk haircut? Who dyed it for him? He snags an empty beer bottle from the table next to us and goes to sleep happy.
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| Floating Market |
Went to the floating market, out of town, on a tour the next day. The market has many canals. Our guide says it was founded by Chinese fleeing communist China, who like being on the water for good luck and prosperity. Middle aged women will paddle you around to shop from their boats. Unfortunately, it has been invaded by young men in long tail boats vying for the tourist trade, making it noisy & filled with exhaust fumes. Ruined by tourism - the parking lot for tour buses was our first clue. At least it got us out of the city for a while. We drink coconut water and buy fruit - papaya, pomelo, rambutans, jackfruit. It's delicious. If we're going to get traveler's diarrhea, might as well start now. Back in the city we went looking for the flower market again. Found out our tourist map is not to scale - you can't walk there. Had a beer and watched tourists walk by. We're way cooler.
Tuk tuk adventure
Next day I pull out my skirt & Doug his long pants so we're dressed appropriately for the grand palace & the wat. A guy on the street asks where we're going, and tells us it doesn't open till 1:00. He offers an alternate tour by tuk tuk (a motorized trishaw). I tell Doug this is the oldest scam in the book. They tell you the palace is closed and take you to stores you don't want to go to. So we walk on to the palace. Guess what - it IS closed this morning.
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| Buddahs encountered on the tuk tuk tour |
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The Golden Mount
Next day we strike out on foot for the Golden Mount wat, the one tuk tuk man cheated us out of yesterday. Passed through one of Bangkok's political protests, but the street vendors & shoppers are still out, so we feel pretty safe. The wat is lovely, green & shady grounds, and a great view of the city from the top. We can see all the smog. We decide to pass up the hub bub at the Grand Palace and its associated wat. I think that just as Jesus might not be impressed by the gold and glitz of many cathedrals, the Buddha would not be impressed with palaces and glittering wats.
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| Two tigers at the Golden Mount |
Decided to also visit Jim Thompson's house. He was a legendary former U.S. secret service man who collected Thai artifacts and revived the Thai silk industry after WW II by marketing silk to Dior. He vanished in the Malaysian highlands without a trace. To get there we hired another tuk tuk man, who, of course, offered us a great rate if we made a shopping stop. After confirming it would only be ONE shopping stop, we consented.
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| Unrolling silk cocoons at Jim Thompson's house |
On the way back to the hotel we actually decide to pay the full tuk tuk price (well, we bargained a little). Tuk tuk drivers are amazing. Doesn't seem to matter if
they're driving with the traffic or against it because they've seen an open spot in the wrong lane. But tempers are calm in the Asian manner. A beep on the horn seems to mean "Here I come"' rather than "Get out of my way." Remarkably few dented fenders.
Dragged Doug out shopping. Didn't buy anything, but enjoyed the scene. Staff in stores & stalls are attentive, but not pushy. They are going on with their lives, eating, sleeping, clipping their nails, plucking each other's grey hairs, not at all worried about their personal privacy like I would be.
Met our tour group of 16 in the evening. Lots of Aussies, mostly single young women. No complaints from Doug. Our tour guide up till Ho Chi Minh City will be Randa, a young Cambodian man. We'll take off at 5:30 am tomorrow morning to avoid road blockages by the political protesters. Out to dinner with the group.
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| Inside a wat, Bangkok |
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| Another of Bangkok's many wats |
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