Sawatdee!!
Or 'Hello' in Thai!!
We made it alive... and Thailand is AMAZING! The weather is beautiful (a barely-humid and sunny 90d today), the people are friendly, the food is to-die-for, and -not to scare you, but- I think I may be in grave danger... the shopping is fantastic, too.
Today is out first full day in Bangkok. I am here with my friend Kelly from Trinidad, and I think I was right about Thailand being the cure to the lackluster holiday I was experiencing. It was definately an adventure getting here, though.
Ok, I will admit I have gained a little reputation for being fashionably late at times, but I swear missing the flight yesterday was not our fault! Kelly and I met at the station at 6am to make our way to Kansai Intl airport by 10 (usually an hour trip). We switched trains at Akashi, as usual, and arrived at Osaka Umeda Sta. with extra time under our belts. We didn't want to waste time, though, so we followed the signs leading to the airport train and embarked upon our journey...or so we thought. I have taken the Osaka loop line train before and have never noticed a stop for the airport, but we figured that we could trust the signs (despite the Engrish, 'airprrt') and there would be a stop somewhere. When we arrived at Osaka station (again!), an hour after getting on the packed train, however, this was not such a funny mistake. We hopped off the train
and followed a family with suitcases to the right section of the platform (again - so not obvious), but it was too late... we missed check-in. It cost us a bit, but we were able to re-route through Taiwan and Hong Kong and finally made it to Bangkok around 9pm. The airport staff were not always the friendliest on our trip, but the Cathay Pacific flight crew itself made it one of the best economy trips I have taken. They have little side,head-rests on the comfy seats (which I really need to sleep), ample leg room, amazing meals and personal screens for in-flight entertainment. I remember being impressed by the Asian carrier, Air China, but I have to say Hong Kong-based Cathay can also hold it's ground.
Once we got to BKK, we did not have a concrete plan so we caved in and talked to several of the harrassing travel agents that basically jump you as you walk out of customs. It was good to get a feel for what the options where and benchmark prices on hotels, but-with my beloved Lonely Planet in hand-we decided to bus it to the city center and scout out a place on our own. Much better idea. We had no problem getting into the hotel we wanted. Bangkok isn't really dirt cheap, anymore, but it is definately more than affordable for a 'shoe-string' traveler and the area we landed in was bustling even late at night, offering plenty of eye candy for a first-timer in south-east Asia. We rested for a bit and then walked around. We stumbled across a large dance club and followed the music inside. Turns out we were the only foreigners in the place, but we joined the chanting crowds (singing along with the live band) and danced to the Thai pop music (which both Kelly and I are completely in love with!!) until the place closed at 1am. We made a few new temporary friends (a group of girls came up to dance with us and some boys stopped to chat), so it was a good introduction and a good way to cap off the evening and get out the last bit of energy before crashing to bed.
On the whole, there are a lot of European tourists around (hear a lot of French & Hebrew), we get asked if we need a taxi or cart-ride every 15 feet, and I am surprised by all the propoganda on the streets (pictures and statues of the prime minister EVERYWHERE...currently exciled in England but rumored to be returning soon). Again, we are grounded in the backpacker alley known as Banglamphu, so you can expect tourists, but the big culture shock for me was definately the hoards of other westerners.
The plan for today is to hit up the big temples in our area, the royal palace, the shopping/market district and maybe another Budha. We are going to take a bus to some southern islands tomorrow (were the book The Beach was based), and prob stay in the area for the big New Years Party next week (rumored to hit 12,000 people strong...yikes!!). We wanted to go north to ChengMai, but 10 days really is not enough in this country (esp with no trains... so the buses force a lot of travel time), so I think that will have to be the next trip. Ko Chang was another top destination on our list (beautiful beaches, elephant safaris, national parks... with pythons, tho...yikes), but it will take too long to travel East and then back to go south again. Cheap as it may be, sitting on a bus and then a ferry for 12 hours is a big sacrifice when you have a limited amount of time in Paradise!
Side Note: Because of the earthquake in Taiwan yesterday, there is apparently a media issue throughout all of Asia. Internet is EXTREMELY slow (took me 20 minutes to get into Hotmail - and now it won't send!). Might be hard to blog, but I will try to keep this updated!
We made it alive... and Thailand is AMAZING! The weather is beautiful (a barely-humid and sunny 90d today), the people are friendly, the food is to-die-for, and -not to scare you, but- I think I may be in grave danger... the shopping is fantastic, too.
Today is out first full day in Bangkok. I am here with my friend Kelly from Trinidad, and I think I was right about Thailand being the cure to the lackluster holiday I was experiencing. It was definately an adventure getting here, though.
Ok, I will admit I have gained a little reputation for being fashionably late at times, but I swear missing the flight yesterday was not our fault! Kelly and I met at the station at 6am to make our way to Kansai Intl airport by 10 (usually an hour trip). We switched trains at Akashi, as usual, and arrived at Osaka Umeda Sta. with extra time under our belts. We didn't want to waste time, though, so we followed the signs leading to the airport train and embarked upon our journey...or so we thought. I have taken the Osaka loop line train before and have never noticed a stop for the airport, but we figured that we could trust the signs (despite the Engrish, 'airprrt') and there would be a stop somewhere. When we arrived at Osaka station (again!), an hour after getting on the packed train, however, this was not such a funny mistake. We hopped off the train
and followed a family with suitcases to the right section of the platform (again - so not obvious), but it was too late... we missed check-in. It cost us a bit, but we were able to re-route through Taiwan and Hong Kong and finally made it to Bangkok around 9pm. The airport staff were not always the friendliest on our trip, but the Cathay Pacific flight crew itself made it one of the best economy trips I have taken. They have little side,head-rests on the comfy seats (which I really need to sleep), ample leg room, amazing meals and personal screens for in-flight entertainment. I remember being impressed by the Asian carrier, Air China, but I have to say Hong Kong-based Cathay can also hold it's ground.
Once we got to BKK, we did not have a concrete plan so we caved in and talked to several of the harrassing travel agents that basically jump you as you walk out of customs. It was good to get a feel for what the options where and benchmark prices on hotels, but-with my beloved Lonely Planet in hand-we decided to bus it to the city center and scout out a place on our own. Much better idea. We had no problem getting into the hotel we wanted. Bangkok isn't really dirt cheap, anymore, but it is definately more than affordable for a 'shoe-string' traveler and the area we landed in was bustling even late at night, offering plenty of eye candy for a first-timer in south-east Asia. We rested for a bit and then walked around. We stumbled across a large dance club and followed the music inside. Turns out we were the only foreigners in the place, but we joined the chanting crowds (singing along with the live band) and danced to the Thai pop music (which both Kelly and I are completely in love with!!) until the place closed at 1am. We made a few new temporary friends (a group of girls came up to dance with us and some boys stopped to chat), so it was a good introduction and a good way to cap off the evening and get out the last bit of energy before crashing to bed.
On the whole, there are a lot of European tourists around (hear a lot of French & Hebrew), we get asked if we need a taxi or cart-ride every 15 feet, and I am surprised by all the propoganda on the streets (pictures and statues of the prime minister EVERYWHERE...currently exciled in England but rumored to be returning soon). Again, we are grounded in the backpacker alley known as Banglamphu, so you can expect tourists, but the big culture shock for me was definately the hoards of other westerners.
The plan for today is to hit up the big temples in our area, the royal palace, the shopping/market district and maybe another Budha. We are going to take a bus to some southern islands tomorrow (were the book The Beach was based), and prob stay in the area for the big New Years Party next week (rumored to hit 12,000 people strong...yikes!!). We wanted to go north to ChengMai, but 10 days really is not enough in this country (esp with no trains... so the buses force a lot of travel time), so I think that will have to be the next trip. Ko Chang was another top destination on our list (beautiful beaches, elephant safaris, national parks... with pythons, tho...yikes), but it will take too long to travel East and then back to go south again. Cheap as it may be, sitting on a bus and then a ferry for 12 hours is a big sacrifice when you have a limited amount of time in Paradise!
Side Note: Because of the earthquake in Taiwan yesterday, there is apparently a media issue throughout all of Asia. Internet is EXTREMELY slow (took me 20 minutes to get into Hotmail - and now it won't send!). Might be hard to blog, but I will try to keep this updated!
posted by Brenda Ann Elizabeth McKinney @ 7:41 AM
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