It’s been quite an eventful two days! Nothing really prepares you for the sights and smells in the metropolis that is Bangkok.
The first glitch of the trip presented itself when my mobile phone refused to accept the local SIM cards, as this will be my main means of communication I have been forced to buy a new phone, this is a bit of a blow to my budget to the tune of 6000 Thai batt. (My thanks to Ben Wilkinson for sorting all my accounts before I left, it has made the transmission to my new phone quick and easy).
I am spending my first few nights in a friends condo which is situated in the suburb of Prawet, a fairly poor area in the eastern suburbs of Bangkok so it’s a challenge giving directions to taxi drivers, I have to use pictures and sign language. I will probably abandon it fairly soon and head for the hostels.
Taxi rides can be flagged down in the street but I prefer to take the motorbike taxi, an exhilarating ride that takes you weaving and dodging between the waiting queues of cars, with only millimetres to spare for your knees either side and sometimes reaching higher speeds on more open stretches.
My friend, Seepen has asked her nephew, Chalee, to look after me for a few days so I went straight in and asked him to show me some of the legendary Bangkok nightlife. Last night we ended the evening in a nightclub with his sister and brother where a live band were playing popular Thai rock and some American R and B, the Thais really do know how to party…much raw Salmon and Gold Label Whiskey was consumed!
Ayutthaya
I have escaped the chaos and turmoil of Bangkok for a few days and made my way to Ayutthaya, the ancient capitol of Thailand (before the Burmese sacked and looted it).
The air is definitely sweeter here and the pace of life considerably slower, it’s possible to cross the roads unharrassed and the parks are virtually deserted during Thai working hours. The primary interest of the town are the ancient ruins of Wats, Pagodas and Temples scattered amongst the parks and side streets, remnants of a once thriving city.
It really is impossible to convey the different standard of living here, pavements (where they exist) are uneven and potholed, many shops are no more than a concrete room with makeshift or no shelving and foul smelling sewage seeps into the roadside gutters…mozzies are everywhere! How I wish I had purchased a mosquito net.
As I sit in the Hostel bar writing this, I can honestly say this is the most relaxed I have felt since I arrived in Thailand, think I’ll have another Singha…..Cheers!
Huge brass Budha-Wat Bohpet
Ancient murals inside prang of Wat Ratchaburana
BACK IN BANGKOK
Living as a backpacker you soon discover that a lot of your time is spent thinking about three things…your belly, where you are going to bed down for the night and how you are going to get from A to B. On Friday I spent over two hours finding and booking my next hostel, researching bus routes and train stations that would take me back into Central Bangkok and sourcing coach tickets for my journey into Cambodia. After all that I was ready for some Pat Thai and a beer.
On Saturday evening I arranged to meet Chalee and we spent the evening at Asiatique, Bangkoks plush Riverfront complex. After a few drinks on the promenade we took our seats for the Calypso ladyboy cabaret, a feast of colour, comedy and cheeky humour, maybe not as polished as your average West End show but very entertaining. We then joined his sister and brother at a club….much raw Salmon and vodka was consumed!
Calypso Ladyboy Caberet
Kao San Road – backpacker central
Crazy Bangkok, the city where 4ft lizards walk free in the parks and where you can eat an Italian gourmet meal for a fiver while watching Last Action Hero on their TV.
The last two nights, I spent just outside Koa San Road, the street that never sleeps. Street vendors offer you Scorpions on sticks or freshly barbecued chicken and you can take a seat on the street and watch the revellers go by as a lady massages your feet and kneck (not gentle mind, it really does hurt!).
The storms over here are spectacular too, the thunder booms and cracks viciously, shaking the buildings, the electric force striking with frightening ferocity and the rain lashes relentlessly, sometimes for hours…but its warm rain.
Chang Mai
I was too late booking a train ticket for Chang Mai so hopped on a short flight to this wonderful city in the north of Thailand. On arrival a taxi whisked me off to my hostel, although I was glad that I had learned to speak a little Thai before my trip, there were two Hostels with a similar name in the same neighbourhood, so Google Maps and Thai words for ‘left’, ‘right’ and ‘straight ahead’ came in very handy.
It was my good fortune to meet the two Fred’s at the hostel, a Dutchman who spent his summers at Chang Mai and a Frenchman who was also staying for a few days, we were all of a similar age and Dutch Fred agreed to show us around the local sites over the next two days.
Day 1
Our party of three borrowed bicycles from the hostel and spent the morning touring the suburbs and countryside to the south east of Chang Mai, Fred had excellent local knowledge and led us to a number of ruined Wats and Temples, some set in beautiful surroundings, my personal favourites were the ruins of Wat E-Kang, the beautiful Wat Chang Cam with its amazing wooden carvings and the stunning Wat Chedi Liam accompanied by a perfectly preserved temple.
Wat Chadi Liam
In the afternoon we cycled to the Royal Gardens of Ratchaphruek. This enormous park was designed by King Rama IV for the people of Thailand to enjoy, exhibiting different gardens from around the world and boasting orchid gardens, wooded walks and exotic plants this is a botanists paradise and well worth rambling round for a few hours.
French Fred is keen on Blues music so we headed into Chang Mai that evening to find a place where we could light up a cigar and chill out to some live Blues, we found an excellent bar near the Ka Lae Night Bazaar which I can highly recommend if that is your thing.
Day 2
Dutch Fred managed to pull together enough people so we could hire a minibus to tour a little further afield.
Our days itinerary included:
Mount Doi Inthanon. A hike along the mountain slopes took our party to a lookout which gave us spectacular panoramic views over the valleys below followed by a walk to see the enormous Royal Pagodas and ornate gardens built on a long plateau to the south west of Chang Mai.
Watchirathon Waterfall. A beautiful cascade where a rainbow dances at the base of the fall.
The Pha Chor Canyon. This curious natural phenomenon is an ancient dried up river bed that has been carved out of the local sandstone to form shear cliffs, the views from the visitor centre are spectacular.
Sukhothai
Unexpected moments of fortune, these are the times that make backpacking such a wonderful experience, in Chang Mai the two Freds became instant companions who shared moments in time that will live with me always. On arriving at Sukhothai yet another chance meeting brought me good fortune.
Stepping off the bus at Suckothai I was immediately surrounded by people offering me accommodation, cheap temple tours and Taxi rides, as usual I brushed them all aside and claimed that I was not in need of assistance and that I would be walking to my hotel (this was not true of course but this sort of hard sell frustrates and annoys me). After a few minutes the touts left me alone and dispersed. I was then approached by a local taxi driver who quietly asked where I was staying, my hotel was a good 40 minute walk and it was a searing hot day so I agreed a fare and hopped into his (rather run down) taxi. In the fifteen minutes it took to drive to my hotel we struck up a friendly rapport, it was established that he spoke some English, I spoke a little Thai and that he would be willing to spend the following day acting as my guide around the temples ( I later learnt that the days fee undercut the hotels tour price considerably!).
True to his word my friendly taxi driver turned up on time the next morning and spent the day driving me around the various Temples and ruins of Sukhothai, he also took me to a fantastic little restaurant for lunch and when the touring was over I was treated to a traditional Thai massage at a location where Westerners are virtually unknown.
Phitsanulok
Phitsanoluk Railway Station is on the main line back to Bangkok so a stop at this large city was essential if I wanted to experience my first train journey in South East Asia. I never felt threatened or wary in the city but it is definitely not a tourist destination, I saw very few Westerners.
It should be noted that the rail carriage class system in Thailand works in reverse to England, Third Class being the best carriages going down to the cheapest seats in First Class.
I opted to experience the ride back to Bangkok in First Class. There is no air conditioning and the seats are hard and a little uncomfortable, but being able to interact with the Thai passengers was ample compensation, I was the only Western passenger in my carriage until we reached Ayutthaya.
Birdwatching from the train was very good, especially when passing through Rice Paddies, plenty of Egrets, Herons and Ducks were seen and several Harriers too.
Making our way through the slums, as we entered the suburbs of Bangkok, I was reminded that there are many people who are not as fortunate as the tourists and wealthy Thais that shop in the centre of the city, these members of the population live in truly appalling conditions.