Busy in Bangkok

Bangkok is really a pretty awesome city. I'm not sure what it would be like to live here full-time, but I've found myself fully enjoying the time that I have and appreciating some of the more interesting facets of Thai culture. Sure, there are traffic jams and smog that make Los Angeles look positively glowing by comparison, and crossing any street (or even just strolling on the sidewalk) often makes you feel as though you are playing a particularly dangerous game of human Frogger. And the culture is so laid-back on the whole that "customer service" can be something of a misnomer. But those are things that one just has to take as part of the experience when being introduced to a totally different culture. Overall, Thai people are generous and friendly and cook absolutely amazing food. Consider me sold.

On Sunday I checked into a new hostel in a very central area of Bangkok that is unbelievably massive and clean and yet still so cheap: only about $10 a night, which in Europe would get you a flea-ridden bed in a hellhole somewhere. I ventured out of the hostel to find some dinner and got approached by a random girl who not only happened to be staying at the same hostel as me, but also happens to be a GEPIK teacher on vacation from Korea as well. We're like mosquitoes, we're everywhere. So we joined forces and hunted down the most incredible Indian restaurant in the nearby Muslim district and gorged ourselves on naan, pappadums, lassi, about 8 different types of curry, and some masala tea. We shared a leisurely two-hour meal, good conversation, and then walked 30 minutes down Silom Road to the big gay club in Bangkok for a night of dancing and general fun. It was unexpected and a total blast, which is exactly why I love traveling alone. The random people you meet and stuff you do can never be predicted and are usually so much fun.

The start to my Sunday night, followed by.....

Monday I slept in a bit late but still had plenty of time to do some significant sightseeing so I decided I would go visit the Grand Palace. The Grand Palace is the former residence of the king and also home to some important temples, like Wat Phra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha), and is basically the main tourist attraction in Bangkok, so the decision to go there was a no-brainer. And thus began my unexpectedly perfect day. I can't remember the last time I had a day that was that good. Everything just went my way, and even when it didn't, I couldn't have given a crap. The iPod shuffle gods were rocking my world, seeming to know exactly what song to play at any given moment of the day... you know you're in a groove when you never have to skip a single song. The water in the Chao Phraya river was flowing like it was freaking alive, I had a light sheen of sweat on my forearms from the mild heat, there was a warm breeze on my face, I ate like I've never eaten before, and it was all on my own time, of my own accord, with no need to rush, nowhere to be, nothing to do, no responsibilities. It was, in a word, glorious.

(Trying something new here...)

Atop Wat Arun; the riverbanks get less developed further down.

The Chao Phraya is one of the most bizarre rivers I have ever encountered, in the sense that the riverbank is not as developed as one might expect. There certainly are plenty of huge, modern developments, usually in the form of fancy hotels and apartment blocks that rent out high-rise rooms with a river view, but they are only sporadically interspersed among really legitimately old-school-style rundown Thai houses on stilts. It's so disconcerting to see such pristine, clean, modern buildings literally right up against the most ramshackle falling-apart building you've ever seen. And it's like that all up and down the river, just alternating between rich and poor at every turn. My couchsurfing host, Sup, had in fact told me that the only people that live on the river are the very rich and the very poor. Since the Grand Palace and most of the important wats are located right on the river, the main form of transit to visit them all are the various river ferries, so when you spend an entire day going up and down this filthy, polluted river, seeing the blatant inequalities staring you in the face on all sides, you are so very aware of where you are and how different it is from home. It also forces you to soak up the character of Bangkok whether you like it or not.

The view from my lunch table

I ate lunch at some random little hole-in-the-wall, lost in one of the back alleyways in the giant maze of narrow market alleys, chosen for no other reason than that I could sit literally right on the water, watching the boats go by and the garbage float next to me while I ate. My lunch consisted of papaya salad, which sounded innocuous but turned out be freaking deadly. I am not kidding, it was one of the spiciest things I have ever eaten in my life. I wanted to tear my lips off by the end of the meal and I felt like my head was on fire. It was intense, but delicious. Afterwards, I wanted some fruit to cool my mouth off and I purchased some mangosteens and lychees from the most spectacular fruit vendor of all time. She really wanted to spend some time playing with my iPod, so she took some pictures of me while letting me sample my very first mangosteen, which gave me a total foodgasm. Possibly my new favorite fruit ever. Oh my gosh, it was so good.

Papaya salad, aka fiery pain on a plate 

Trying it out...

...and loving it!!

Awesome fruit lady

Mangosteen from the outside... nothing special? 

Ahh, but inside is juicy goodness.

The Grand Palace itself was fantastic, as was to be expected. I love how palaces and temples are created so differently in different parts of the world, from European countries to Korea to Thailand. They all have their own unique architectural styles and uses of design and color and things that are valued or that have religious significance. The Thai style was very colorful, with many different types of tiles and gems and pieces of mirrored glass used to cover practically every surface, or just done in straight-up gold. It was cool to see, although there was an odd factor in that certain landmarks in Thailand are considered to be places that deserve respect,

which means a certain dress code is enforced. The Grand Palace is one of these places, which disallows tank tops, midriffs, etc, but most surprisingly, regular old shorts. Of course, when it's in the 80's Fahrenheit, every tourist is in shorts. So vendors across the street rent out light billowy pants with garish patterns on them for 50 baht so that we idiot foreigners can gain entry to their heritage sites. I also think they do it partially because it gives them a kick to see us all looking so ridiculous  ;)

The rest of the day I wandered through Chinatown, which turned out to be mildly disappointing in that I've never seen a less Chinese Chinatown anywhere in the world. Sure, there were Chinese characters on all the signs, but it was still very much Bangkok. I think most people visit Chinatown primarily for the markets anyway, as they're famous for being extremely cheap, and I'm not a shopper so it was really just a nice meandering afternoon stroll. The day was topped off with a wonderful evening spent over drinks with a lovely English couple that I met at a bar, again quite randomly.

(More Grand Palace pics):

Today was a little more calm, but still productive. I went to a giant international food court in the famous MBK shopping center and had some Indonesian food for lunch, served up by a ladyboy in a chef's hat. I should pause for a moment and reflect on the fact that I have really noticed something amazing in Thailand. The ladyboy phenomenon is pretty well-known to foreigners, but I never considered that it's indicative of a much broader acceptance of gender identity and sexuality in Thai culture. There's a reason that there are so many ladyboys walking around Bangkok, and it's that there is nothing in Buddhism that creates the conditions for people to be guilted and shamed by who they are or they perceive themselves to be. Thai people seem to look at people as separate individuals who just are the way that they are and there's nothing inherently wrong with being different from others. There are no religious leaders preaching that certain segments of the population are going to burn in hell, as in Christianity or Islam, and culturally that prejudice just hasn't taken hold. It's utterly amazing to see how totally integrated transgender and transsexual people are into Thai society. Most of the world has a hard enough time just with gay people; the vast majority of humans on Earth aren't anywhere even close to dealing with transgendered individuals and issues of gender identity in an understanding manner. Yet here, a dude who is blatantly a dude-as-a-lady can just be serving me up my lunch like it ain't no thang. I guarantee someone like that wouldn't even get hired in 98% of the United States. It's both uplifting and depressing at the same time.

Outside the Art and Culture Centre

Anyway, after lunch, I walked across the street and literally stumbled into the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre... I had no idea this place even existed and certainly wasn't seeking it out, but wow, it was awesome. Another happy accident thanks to flexible solo traveling! Some of the art pieces were really impressive and a couple actually freaked me out, which I'm not sure is a reaction I've ever had to art before. When you're actually getting creeped out by something, that's a true emotional evocation so I guess the artist was successful in making the viewer really feel something, even if it was unpleasant. There was also a huge photography exhibit put on by one of the Thai princesses and I got to sample some wasabi ice cream. Because Bangkok rocks like that.

About a 10-minute walk from the center was the Jim Thompson House Museum, which wasn't something I was planning on seeing, but since I was right there, I figured why not? Well damn am I glad I changed my mind! I loved it! Jim Thompson was a former CIA agent in World War II who moved to Thailand after the war because he loved it and became responsible for reinvigorating the Thai silk industry and became very very rich from it, but then in the mid-60's he was on vacation in Malaysia and vanished without a trace. No one still has any idea what happened to him.

His company, however, lived on and is really famous for Thai silk products, so they converted his old house into a museum. The reason it warrants museum status is because the entire house is made out of teak, a really hard, beautiful wood that is native to SE Asia, and it's filled with ancient artifacts that Thompson had collected from Burma, Cambodia, China, and other Asian countries that have just stayed in the house since he disappeared. This stunning house is set in the middle of these lush gardens and the museum tour guide gave such an interesting account of this eccentric man's life... it was just really unexpectedly cool. One of my favorite touristy things so far.

Really?

Finally ended my day by making my way to the Baikoye Sky Hotel, which is the tallest building in Thailand, to hit up the 84th-floor revolving observation deck. Cuz you know, it's kinda my thing. For a location touted as a tourist attraction, what with being the tallest and all that jazz, it was pretty unclassy. I was actually pretty shocked at the grossness of the carpets and the bizarre outer-space decor and the general kitschiness of the whole enterprise. But it did afford me a 360-degree view of the city, which is enormous, and for the first time, I got a real good look at what it is I've been breathing in for the past week. Holy crap!!! I really didn't realize how bad Bangkok's air quality is

Kitsch.

(I mean, I haven't been coughing or anything like in Beijing) until I tried to look out at the distance through the incredibly thick smog just settled on top of everything. It was definitely an eye-opener. It makes sense though, considering the amount of cars here... the traffic is... atrocious doesn't even cover it. There are common stories of Thai families who decide to leave for a holiday weekend and eventually turn around to go back home after only moving 3 miles in something crazy like 15 hours. It really does make LA look like a driver's paradise.

What I was breathing

And on that note, I am going to bed. I truly can't believe how much I just wrote about only 2 days worth of traveling. Insane. Tomorrow I am off on a day trip to Ayutthaya and then finally on my way to Cambodia! Can't wait!