Hello.
We made it to Bangkok. First they strapped us into the plane and then there was short period of maximum fastness and we lifted off the ground. We flew Northeast and actually went over Australia for about half the trip, couldn’t see much of NT or WA because there was a huge mass of cloud.
In retrospect it was just about the best time of day to fly because we could sleep on the plane without thinking too much about what time zone we were going into. It was just like having a really long day (actually it was a really long day). We watched TV shows and movies on the inflight thingy, slept for about two hours each, and were fed like kings and bought water or orange juice about once an hour.
I watched the Godfather Two which I haven’t seen for ages.
‘This is the business we’ve chosen!’ etc etc.
Getting off the plane we were surprised to discover that Suvarnabhumi airport is
a. brand new
b. very clean, and
c. easy to get through
There were lots of warnings in the city guide and so on about sticking to metered taxis but there also about four hundred signs saying ‘public metered taxis’ and a booking service where they stamp the name of your destination on a piece of paper in the Thai Language and give it to the driver. The booking service cost 50 baht ($1.70?).
There were also lots of warnings about traffic and delays and mind-warping heat but there has just been a new freeway built from the new airport and so we felt right at home when the taxi driver got out on the freeway and stepped on the gas. Always amusing passing utes with three guys sitting in the back tray while doing 120.
Meanwhile all the advertising signs on the way into town are for air conditioners…
We had a discussion on the plane about how much money to get out…the conversion fee is so much that we only wanted to do it once. In the end we weren’t sure if 2,000B ($67 …?) would be enough but we resolved to get that much and try to find ways to spend it.
Predictably when we get to the hotel the ATM has given me two 1,000 notes and the driver can’t change them (the fare was 340B… $11). The Asia Hotel in Bangkok looks basically like any western hotel (i.e. full of British people) and our rooms are
a. huge
b. air-conditioned
c. clean and comfortable and
d. air-conditioned.
OK… Bangkok itself… is …. um…. loud and garish and equal parts organised and shambolic. Also 3 of the 5 people we surveyed who have been here before said the best thing about Bangkok was leaving it, and getting out to the beaches.
Upon arrival we laid down for a bit as I had a headache from the flight, looked at maps and stuff and then just resolved to go for a wander. For people interested to look our hotel is right near Siam Square, on Phayathai Rd.
After about half an hour of wandering this way and that we picked up our jaws and started to wonder how anyone can not like Bangkok. sure, it’s absolutely mental and the humidity feels like it’s directed at you personally. Sure, it’s like there’s four kinds of cities stacked on top of each other in various orders. When we came off the brand new motorway into city-proper I looked up and was glad to see we had entered the land of hilariously shambolic electrical wiring.
But you wouldn’t believe how much fun it is. You’ll never need to find a taxi or tuk-tuk (a sort of motorised rickshaw); they find you, every time you stand still. But if you say ‘no thanks’ they leave you alone.
‘hello sir miss where you going’
‘no thanks’
‘only 50 baht anywhere’
‘no thanks’
And a surprisingly large number of signs and conversations are in English.
Greg
