Me running full speed through an airport because I miscalculated something or got lost somewhere. Out of breath, I finally made it to my boarding area to find the flight was delayed. Big surprise. Every single flight I have taken in China so far has been delayed. I got in the long line of asians and waited excitedly. I was finally going to Thailand. The months of waiting had finally passed. I was getting out of this dirty, cold city for one of the most beautiful countries in the world.
After a quick layover in Guangzhou, I finally landed at the Bangkok airport at about 11:30pm and waited around for an hour to see if i'd catch my friends landing. Ryan and Tyler (2 teachers from the Xudong branch) were supposed to be arriving around the same time as me. Almost immediately I noticed the amount of english everywhere. The Thai people were all so friendly and helpful. The language I had attempted to pick up became almost pointless as everyone there spoke english. The moment I stepped outside someone came up to me and asked me where I was going, translated for a taxi driver and escorted me there. This wasn't like China at all.
I made my way through Bangkok, past huge highways, toll booths and shopping malls, juxtaposed with hundreds of temples and massive pictures of the King on every corner. Yellow. Everywhere. It was a shock to my senses after the grey of China. I've never seen so much yellow in my life. As well as elephant statues. Thailand has revered elephants for many centuries as well as being part of their national symbol.
Driving through the very small back streets, I arrived at the area around Kao San road; The main spot for tourists and backpackers from all over the world. As I was pulling up to my hostel I didn't feel like I was in asia anymore. Hundreds of foreigners all sat at outside bars and restaurants. 7/11's on every corner. I would come to know this area well. I checked into the Wild Orchid Villa in my double room. Vanessa, My friend and travel buddy from Ottawa was supposed to have arrived that night, but her flight was delayed and she was stuck in Tokyo. So I was all alone in this strange new place, but after a long day of travel I passed out quickly.
The next day I stepped outside to the heat and blue skies. Suck it China.
Randomly, I finally bumped into some of the other teachers and we all set out for the day. Bangkok is situated on two sides of a river and a ferry taxi can take you to most of the main spots in the city. It was great travelling around Bangkok by boat and it offered scenic views of the various temples along the river. Me and another teacher boarded the boat and some lady started yelling at me. She pointed to a sign saying "space for monks." and I was standing directly under it. Great. I've only been here a few hours and i've already disrespected the culture.
In Thailand, Monks play a big part in society. Everybody is encouraged to become a monk for a few years of their lives. They must be silent, dress in a giant orange robe and shave their heads for the duration of there monkhood. Everywhere I went in Thailand there were monks and it was a strange sight seeing them in loud, bustling Bangkok. It's not a very serene city to say the least.
I visited my first temple compound, replete with giant conicle spires and the biggest Buddha statue i've ever seen in my life. There were also a lot of rules for being on temple grounds. You weren't allowed to wear shoes or shorts and women had to cover their shoulders. All out of respect for the city monks. The temples were tourist attractions, but they are still used daily by the hundreds of monks in the city. I respected the culture accordingly, and asked Buddha to not let me die a tragic death on my vacation. Why not.
As the day winded down I came to learn the other side of Bangkok. The nightlife. As I drunkenly staggered through Kao San at night, there was music and alcohol as far as the eye could see. The beer was also %6.4. Which after drinking the sad excuse the chinese call beer for so long, hit me like a truck. My third night in Bangkok I vaguely remember meeting some Thai people, downing some scotch and ending up at a gigantic club. It was shortly after that I realized there were absolutely no women in this club. Except for Vanessa, who had finally arrived, I wondered why it was the biggest sausage fest in all of Asia. Oh yes. I finally realized, I was at a gay club. Awesome.
I layed off the booze for awhile after that. We needed to get out of Bangkok asap. I packed my bags and we booked our bus ticket to Kanchanaburi, where we'd spend the next leg of the vacation.
We took a 4 hour mini bus out of Bangkok and, after passing out from our hangovers, we woke up in a much different scene than we came from.
Kanchanaburi is a quiet little town with a small foreign area for tourists and backpackers. It would become one of my favourite places on the trip.
The driver dropped us off in the middle of the town, and we somehow had to find our way to wherever this backpacker area was. Hoping my lonely planet guide book was up to date, we made our way to Sams place which was a hostel one of the other teachers had recommended. As we strolled through town, I immediately fell in love with this cozy little place. It had a small town feel to it and the main tourist street was lined with small westerner bars, restaurants and live music. Most of the town is right by the river and across that miles of jungle and the mountains of Burma. At Sams place, we checked into our little wooden bungalow that was actually on a platform over the riverbank and I talked with the owner a bit about my itinerary. I planned on renting a motorcycle and driving two hours into the countryside to the Erawan waterfalls. Let me add that I've never ridden one in my entire life. Add the fact that in Thailand they drive on the left side of the road. I also get lost quite often. But I decided that on this vacation I wasn't going to go with any tour groups or take guides, I was going to do things my own way. Which required a lot more planning and left lots of room for disaster. Which the bruises on my body would now tell you.
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