At this point Bangkok, Thailand has been the place where I have spent the most time.
I found a really amazing hostel called
Three of a Kind. It is run by a Angrit, a really wonderful and hilarious Thai man. His staff is also really awesome. On one of my last days in BKK they took us to a rooftop bar with an amazing sunset view.
It has taken me a while to write about my time in BKK because I am not exactly sure how to tackle this subject. It is a huge city and I got to do and see a ton of things while I was here. Bangkok is a huge city, around ten million people. And its amazing how densely packed it is. My hostel was five floors and a rooftop deck, with only a couple rooms on each floor. When you get up on a roof or find a view of the city, it seems to just go on forever. You almost forget how many floors all the buildings have because they are all so tall.
 |
| A couple of stands at a weekend market. You can buy anything here. I got lost the first time I went here. |
With so many people, there are small food carts full of fruit, snacks, chicken and all sorts of random things that you would never think of. The carts are generally mobile, either attached to a motorcycle or able to push by hand. In addition, there seems to be no end to the little stands selling clothes, jewelry and all sorts of little trinkets. I'm pretty sure the density of 7-Eleven stores in Bangkok could rival the density of Starbucks shops in Seattle.
 |
| A statue in Lumpini Park |
.jpg) |
| The afternoon I spent in Lumpini Park. It reminds me of Central Park, on a little bit smaller scale. |
The city is spread out a bit in that you go to different parts of the city depending on what you would like to do. There are a couple of red light districts, a few business districts, a street called Khao San road which is backpacker central. It has so many bars, clubs and odd tourist attractions it is overwhelming. Traffic in the city is really bad during rush hour, but you can take boats up and down the river as well as the BTS which is a light rail system with two lines that (most of the time) work really well. This is what I used to get around almost all the time. And whenever I rode it I just kept thinking "Why is it so hard for Seattle to get one of these. It's brilliant."
 |
| Wat Pho |
 |
| Wat Pho statue |
 |
| Buddha Buddha Buddha rocking everywhere |
 |
| Reclining Buddha in Wat Pho |
 |
| View from Wat Arun, my favorite temple so far |
I really liked the city. It seems like anything you could want or need is within only a few minutes. I got some vaccinations at a large hospital that was SO much cheaper than the US and I spoke with an English speaking doctor. I think really my biggest complaint is that the heat and humidity are so much more noticeable in a big city like Bangkok. The air is full of car exhaust and big city smells, so I definitely noticed a change in the air and how it felt when I went out to less populated areas of Thailand.
 |
| Red light district |
 |
| This is where you go to buy tickets to go to other cities by van. |
 |
| Night out on Khao San Road |
 |
| Khao San Road |
While I was in Thailand, I had the fortune of getting be take part in a celebration called L
oy Krathong. It is a celebration to thank the water spirits. It occurs on the full moon of the 12th month of the Thai lunar calendar. Little baskets with candles and incense are floated out on bodies of water like the Chao Phraya river that runs through Bangkok. They are traditionally made of wood and/or leaves, but but many of the ones that I saw sold contained styrofoam to make them float. I chose one that was made of hard colorful bread so that the fishies could have a nice biodegradable snack instead. I took a boat up the river to float our krathongs and we arrived back to shore just in time to climb up to an overpass to watch some fireworks.
 |
| So many people down by the river |
A pun about Bangkok you wonder? Don't think too hard about it....
