After a gruelling 11.5 hour flight with next to no sleep we arrived in Bangkok. Getting through customs was a doddle and i was relieved to have passed through and to the taxi rank with such ease.

We then jumped in what was probably the shabbiest of taxis at the taxi rank and told the driver where to head to, all the way into the centre of Bangkok it sounded like the exhaust or part of the suspension was going to fall off the car but we got to our hotel quite easily and checked in.

Our room was quite nice for the price, small but with an ensuite bathroom and aircon for 6 quid a night! Not much of a view from the balcony as there were bars across it to keep the pigeons away.

We freshened up and went to eat at pretty much the nearest restaurant we could find, had a beer and chicken in curry paste with rice for 2 quid, win win..

Then we went for a wander to find our bearings, within 15 mins or so we were starting to feel the heat, cant help but think it may be cooler once we get out of the smog and general dirty air of Bangkok but having checked the weather for our next destination i'm not so sure. Either way, it will be nice to get out of what is probably one of the dirtiest cities i've ever visited and see 'proper Thailand'. Having said that, Bangkok has its own unique charm, there's loads going on at every turn and there's a good vibe about the place, everyone is friendly.

What has to be the weirdest thing we've seen so far is a defunct Shell petrol station that has been turned into a restaurant, tables with candles on the forecourt, totally bizarre!

We turned in after a few beers as we were quite weary from the flight.

Next day, we headed out after a nice breakfast at the hostel ( I had eggs with sticky rice and chicken and veg, start as you mean to go on..) and had a wander. One of the problems with Bangkok is that the heat of the day's sun brings up the smell of the drains and sewers, luckily we werent nursing hangovers as i could have easily brought up my breakfast at the stench, nice!

On wandering about, we noticed a place where you can pay to have these tiny fish (Garra fish) nibble at the dead skin on your feet (or hands). It sounds gross but is quite a nice sensation and your feet feel nice and smooth afterward, might have to have another session or two...

We then caught a cab to go and see the reclining Buddha, absolutely huge and well impressive..

In the evening, we had some Pad Thai with a few beers then wandered down Khao San Road an d had some more drinks. I lost miserably in a thumb war with a 9 year old Thai kid, probably the easiest 50 baht he's ever took off a Westerner, lol. We then caught cool Thai band that were playing Pink Floyd and Steppenwolf covers, all good. More beer and some more Pad Thai and we headed home at 3amish..

Lay in bed for most of the day today as I'm still adjusting to a new sleep pattern, as I'm writing this, I've just spent the best part of 3 hours trying to upload pics to this site and Facebook and both have let me down miserably! Will try to upload them in the next day or so..

My patience is at an end so for tonight its goodnight!