Bangkok

It was time to say goodbye to the beautiful islands of southern Thailand. After getting 2 taxis and a ferry we arrived at Surat Thani to get on a night train to Bangkok. We met a solo traveller called Gary who was just coming to the end of his 6 month trip. It was interesting to hear from someone at the other side of their travels. Coincidently his ticket meant he was in a bunkbed next to us. We were impressed with the beds, they folded out and were properly made with sheets and blankets. I slept reasonably well with the curtains drawn. Unfortunately Lexi suffered during the journey with hot sweats and we think she got food poisoning.

Upon arrival in Bangkok we couldn't get into our hostel room so we left our bags and Immy and I attempted to go for an explore. The grand palace was too expensive and crowded in the hot sun for our liking. But Immy was struggling with an ongoing illness so the 3 of us ended up chilling in the hostel until we could check in. Later that day we found Johnny and his friends who we had coordinated with from back home to stay in the same hostel as us. They planned to go to a ping pong show which we weren't that keen on so we left them with plans to meet up later. It was Immys last night so she and I went to a popular sky bar. It was at the top of a very fancy hotel and we had to act confident as we walked in. We were unsure whether the clothes we were wearing were fancy enough to fit the dress code. The bar was on the 64th floor with an amazing view over the city. There was a cushioned seat lining the glass walls so you could sit with a drink and look out across Bangkok. The drinks were extremely expensive, starting at 650 bhatt that's getting to London prices of £13! It was a lovely evening and a great way to end Immys travels. Despite the illness she picked up along the way she managed to make the most of everyday we had in thailand. It was sad waving goodbye to her the next morning.

As Immy and Lexi still weren't 100%, I was left on my own to continue with the evening. I met up with Johnny and his friends on koh San road but they were a good few drinks ahead of me. Koh San road was pretty crazy, each bar competing to have the loudest music with sellers of buckets competing for customers outside. Everyone was spilling onto the street dancing outside the bars.

The next day we lounged around for a while before deciding we should properly go out and see Bangkok. We headed for the reclining Buddha but on the way a helpful Thai woman recommended we do a boat trip instead. We managed to bargain 500 baht each for a long boat trip along the river. We definitely saw a different side to Bangkok with wooden shack like accommodation lining the river. The boat conveniently dropped us off at the reclining Buddha and we got to explore a traditional Thai temple. The temples were very brightly coloured with red and blue mosaic patterns and lots of gold embellishing. We got to sit in on a ceremony where monks were chanting and praying. Of course all the girls were covered up with trousers and shawls. We were frustrated that guys didn't have to abide by any such rule! The reclining Buddha itself was huge surrounded quite closely by its own temple. It's feet had the most interesting pattern.

We headed back to the hostel to get ready for the evening. The others wanted to experience a sky bar themselves so we booked a table at one for after dinner. First we travelled 30 minutes to find a restaurant recommended by Lexi's friend who had grown up in Bangkok. It was called 'cabbages and condoms'. It was beautiful, the restaurant was full of plants and decorated with fairy lights and coloured lampshades. Some of the lampshades were made out of condoms. The food was amazing and we loved the atmosphere. The idea behind the restaurant was to promote family planning and safe sex in communities. At the end of our meal we all got given free condoms!

We then headed straight to the sky bar, a slightly less pricey one compared to the one I had been to the night before. It had a bit more character and tree like structures holding up the roof. It was a nice change to travel in a group of 6 for a couple of days. It changed the dynamics and it was nice to get to know Johnny's friends. Although I must say that I couldn't travel too long in a group that size! It was hard to coordinate and get to places quickly. We shared lots of advice with them because they were doing our trip but the opposite way round and we had met in the middle. It made us even more excited to start the next leg of the trip to Cambodia.