BKK v2.0

After 3 days of R&R in Ko Chang, I headed back to Bangkok to catch my flight to Manila. En route to Bangkok, I found myself in a bit of a pickle because I hadn't reserved a ticket for the bus ride. Bad move seeing as it was the Sunday following a public-holiday long weekend and the whole world was returning to Bangkok (but honestly people, I don't speak Thai, so how was I supposed to know?!?) . Fortunately, I befriended a Thai woman, Nina, who was returning home from a long weekend at the beach with her 3 kids. They had reserved 3 seats between the 4 of them, and she graciously gave me one so that I wouldn't get stranded overnight in the middle of nowhere. Thai people truly have hearts of gold.

I spent my one day in Bangkok retrieving my passport from the Philippine embassy, followed by some temple sightseeing and a wander through Chinatown with Alex, a friend who I had met on the way back from Ko Chang, and Maria, another traveler who I had met at the ever-so-clean Soi 1 backpacker's Guesthouse.

For the first time in months, I started to get cravings for western food. I've learned that western food is a wild card at most local restaurants in Asia: either it's decent or really horrible, and no matter what, it will be more expensive than the local fare, so you are generally better off just sticking to the rice and noodle program (which I quite like, so this is normally not a problem for me). Bangkok has a big ex-pat community, some of whom have opened their own eateries. For the first time in a while, I had a number of good options so I splurged on a good western meal (or three). What can I say, sometimes you just want some bacon.

-Julia


Nina and her munchkins, who saved me from a night in the middle of nowhere


Minor bus issues on the way to Bangkok (we had a run-in with another vehicle, so the driver had to make some roadside repairs)


In honor of the king's 60th year as king, everyone dons yellow on Monday (really, it's amazing to see the sea of yellow on the subway and sidewalks)


One of Bangkok's canals


Hmmmmm...could that be a giant dead snake floating in the canal?


Temples in Bangkok


Temple spires, reaching towards the heavens


Temple exterior


Buddha


Bangkok skyline


Bangkok buildings


Chinatown


Chinatown alley