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Travellers Hangouts and Golden Buddhas. (1995)

Thailand

Si_lad
2004-03-26 21:43:40

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Bangkok

Bangkok airport is big, busy and very smart. We passed through immigration easily, and for some reason we were given a 30-day visa (most people got a 15-day visa). We were still wrapped up in warm clothing from Nepal when we walked out of the airport., which was like walking into an oven. I couldn’t believe how hot and humid it was.

We took a taxi to Khao San Road (230 B – about UK£6). Khao San is the major backpacker area and it’s full of cheap hotels, places to eat and drink, travel agents and loads of backpackers. We decided to stay here for convenience, but I’m sure with a better planning and patience it would be easy to find a much better area to stay in.

It felt lonely when we got out of the taxi. We hadn’t planned where to stay and were expecting, as in India and Nepal, to just be approached by touts and to proceed into the usual hotel "search and barter" rigmarole. This didn’t happen. We just stood in the street. No-one approached us! We wandered around a few places; many were full, until we found the "Lek" guesthouse. 120 Baht per night, for a small room and shared bathroom. We dumped our stuff in the room and wandered out (after removing our warm clothing and donning shorts and t-shirts).

The streets were full of people and all the bars and restaurants were packed out. I’d never seem so many travellers in one place. We ate some delicious food and had a cold beer before turning in for the night. The place was like a little travellers haven in a big city. I saw people and recognised faces from previous parts of our trip.

Bangkok is a huge city and one of the most polluted in the world. Everywhere was so busy and noisy – the place never stops to rest.

The next day we took one of the express boats along the river. They act as buses in the city, which has many waterways, and are a good way to get around. Getting on and off is quite ...