First day in Bangkok:
We arrived at Bangkok at around 06:30 this morning. After a long flight with not much sleep we were eager to get a cab to drop off our backpacks so we could explore the city without having the weight of our luggage holding us down.
It was easy to find a cab to drive us to khaosan road. It was around a half an hour drive and cost us 350 TB. HOWEVER, our taxi driver was a keen collector of foreign currency so we made a deal to give him £5 which would equal around 250 TB, we managed to pay less baht which is better for us!
Our first stop, although i'm ashamed to say, was Starbucks. We both grabbed a latte and sat outside. It still felt so surreal to the both of us as we people watched backpackers taking leisurely strolls in the sun. You'll never be out of ideas for things to see in Bangkok; the street food will keep you preoccupied for a good few hours!
After starbucks we made our way on a mini adventure to find our hostel "the four sons inn". A local man managed to direct us to what we thought was our hostel, it wasn't. Seems silly to have two hostels nearby one another with "four sons inn" incorporated into the name. We didn't mind though as we managed to get our bearings with places around the khaosan road.
We managed to find our hostel, far out from other hotels we have stayed at but thats what we were expecting. I pre ordered our room online in november. We were lucky to have a window as it seems that half the other rooms come without one(probably more beneficial in the night, as i'm writing this the hustle and bustle and sound of live music is filtering our room even with the window closed! Double glazing needn't be an issue as we want to experience hostel life the authentic way).
After chucking our bags into the room we set off on a little exploration; first stop being 7elevan for water and cigarettes ( fully equipped with a god forsaken image of a man with half his throat hanging out, slightly disturbed by the image we set off on a stroll to find the grand palace, fag in hand). Many locals would stop us abd make conversation although sometimes there is a scam involved, lucky we have kept our wits about us!
We decided to leave the grand palace until another day and so headed for "wat pho ". The architecture is so breathtaking and added to the whole dream like experience we were having! After the visit to the temple, we stopped to eat at a little pad thai shack where we got the boat to the temple from. I can now say i have eaten the most delicious pad thai my tastebuds had ever experienced and all for only 60 TB!! Thats around £1!
We then set off to see the temple with the famous reclining buddha. I did not expect it to be anywhere near as big as it was! Glossed with gold, it really did take your breathe away. I was given a fetching lime green gown to wear for modesty, we also had to remove our footwear and show no signs of public affection while in the presence of the buddha.
I'm having difficulty remembering what else we had done after that as i havn't slept properly since wednesday night! Ahhh, i remember now, we took a little stroll around the city which lead us to an area where there were not as many tourists, instead, the streets were crammed with food stalls selling fresh fruits, vegetables, fried chicken and noodles! We stopped off in a little riverside cafe where we indulged in a delicious ice gold beverage. I had a delicious green tea iced latte and dan opted for a kiwi soda. Which was then followed by an in depth conversation about life, spiritually and love. Very apt for our situation!
After the little stop, we grabbed a tuktuk back to the hostel where we charged our phones and replied to messages from family back in London. Oh how i miss them. Still hasn't kicked in how long i'm actually away for. Just trying to keep preoccupied otherwise won't be able to enjoy myself!
We then set off to explore khaosan road at its busier time. The streets were filled with stalls selling fresh fruits such as mango, watermelon, dragon fruit, star fruit and others i can't for the life of me remember! We sat down in a cafe ob the strip to enjoy a nice cold beer and people watch. After the beer we slowlt walked back to hotel after beibg approached by many workers offering friendship bands, tacky bits of toot and insects, yes, to eat. I politely declined although i am planning on getting my teeth into a juicy scorpion later on in the trip!
This is a very brief outline of the day as daniel is currently konked out beside me. He did wake up not long ago saying "im gonna miss you when i've gone tomorrow, we all are" god only knows what he was dreaming of but that boy is confused as hell bless him. I hope he remembers we are no longer in london when we wake up! I attempted to hand wash a few pieces of clothing to hang on my washing line and i keep hearing the bloody thing fall down, so annoying! I feel like i also need a good nights rest, I'm going to pop dowbstairs to get sone fruit, fix that friggin washing line and hit the sack ready for another day of adventures tomorrow!