Day 2
Was pretty low key. I woke up and wandered around the neighborhood near my hostel (Silom) and then I decided to venture to a market on my own–Pratunum. It’s a whole sale market with hundreds and hundreds of little shops. It’s based around a very fundamental principle used widely in America: the more you buy, the more you save. They have tons of stuff to suit your every clothing and accessory need. Unfortunately, there are only about 3 mirrors in the whole area and they won’t let you try anything on. For your average Thai woman (5′ tall, 100 lbs and size 0), this is fine. I’m sure whatever you put on will fit with no trouble. For your average any other kind of woman, this system doesn’t work. So I left without buying anything except for a few accessories. I was also extremely hot (humidity has got to be around 100% here) and after several hours in the market, you start to feel jostled to your core. I was starting to remember my feeling after living in Sao Paulo, Brazil for a few months. As much as I loved Brazil, every activity of the day required 10x more energy than I had ever given to that same task. It’s the size of the city (11m in Bangkok and 23m in Sao Paulo), the hustle and bustle, the unique rhythm (which remains a mystery until you stay somewhere for a good amount of time) and the language barrier that really makes ordinary tasks into accomplishments. I love city life, but this is definitely one of the more difficult (but rewarding) parts of visiting and living in megacities.
I also hadn’t slept well the night before and the time difference was still killing me. So I went back, had a late lunch (at a yummy Indian cafe down the corner) and came back to the hostel. I chatted with some of the other travelers, watched a movie with a group in the DVD room and went to bed before midnight.
Day 3
The day before I had arranged with a fellow American traveler from Chicago to visit the Grand Palace and Wat Pho together. I woke up with rain pounding on the roof, but you can’t let a little thing like that stop you. So after a brief panic attack involving my debit card not working in any of the ATMs, we were off with a Dutch guy from our hostel. We took a taxi there (total cost~$2.50) and arrived at the Grand Palace. Immediately we were met by a man who told us, “Sorry, the palace is closing for a special holiday. You don’t have time to go.” As he’s halfway through his speech in explaining to us a variety of other options we could try, I realize he’s full of it. He’s actually just trying to get us to pay him money. It was a close call though, I was almost convinced. I tell the other guys in a half whisper that we should go confirm this story for ourselves. Low and behold, the palace was open. Success.
It was breathtaking. Even in the half rainy gray day, I was amazed by the colors, the details, the intricate artwork and the excitement of it all. (see a few photos below, more to come soon on Flickr)
Next we went to Wat Pho or The Temple of the Reclining Buddha (again see photos). You’ll never guess, though, it was also “closed”. On our persistent and determined walked towards the temple (only about a 20 minute walk from the Grand Palace), we were told no less than 3 times that everything was closed and we had to go somewhere else. Having learned the first time around, we decided to investigate. Again, it was open. We took a boat down the Chao Phraya river to connect back to the skytrain (BTS) that runs by the hostel. I ended the evening with some yummy thai street food and a few beers.
Today I’m headed to the weekend market and Chinatown (didn’t make it yesterday). Last day in Bangkok! Gotta make it count!
Adventures & Misadventures of a Twentysomething Traveler 