First stop: Bangkok

First up on the series ‘Places I have been’ is Bangkok, Thailand!! So hectic and so fun.

I decided to start with Bangkok as this was the first place I travelled to this year, back in February. I am gonna start by saying that the humidity is not as bad as I thought it would be. Trust me that was one of the first things on my mind, probably because I had set the bar high for humidity levels as I have curly hair that loves frizzing up on me. Also a lot of my friends had visited Bangkok and spoken about the humidity levels. Not what I imagined.

As this was the first stop on the Southeast Asia tour we suffered immensely from jet lag. Trying to overcome jet lag and wanting to see a lot of things needs plenty of self discipline, or mastering jet lag. I kid you not, one day at 5am Thailand time, me and two of my group were attempting several yoga positions thanks to jet lag. Something I am yet to master, but I will own it one day and share my secrets with you!

There is an overwhelming amount of things to do and see here, and to my surprise easy to navigate around. On the first day we took a tour of what the locals referred to as the ‘old Bangkok’, seeing the houses built on the river and going past several temples and the grand palace. We did somehow allow ourselves to be ripped off by the tour price, something that annoyed us for the rest of the trip. I guess it is all part of the experience, learning how to stretch out every bit of your hard earned money by haggling. However, the boat ride was amazing and humbling, and provided me with some of the most beautiful sites during my two month backpacking.

Around Bangkok there are so many temples. Beautifully intricate gold working like I had never seen before, buddhas to pray by and rub their bellies for good luck, and an incredible amount of friendly locals always ready to explain significations and the importance of each one. We even took a few pictures with an ex member of the Thai army who, before we turned up on our tuk-tuk to look around, was preparing one of the oldest temples in Bangkok for New Year celebrations.

I am sure if you have spoken to someone who has been to Bangkok, Khao San road has been on the top of the must see list or close to it. Khao San road is the place for parties, handmade goods and delicious street food. At night it is a completely different place. Plenty of partygoers spilling out into the streets with a bucket of alcohol in one hand and the other waving around in the air. Bars competing for who is playing the best (and loudest) music. Tuk-tuk drivers making popping sounds with their mouths offering visits to ping pong shows. Ladyboys catwalking through the street. You can not miss out on a place like this.

I personally would recommend people not to stay at a hostel/hotel/guest house near or on Khao San road. It is very busy, and being there a lot may take away from the magic. Stay out a bit further, this will make you explore more unfamiliar (or typical) areas too.

The only nightmare I found in Bangkok was the traffic jams. We were once stuck for two hours in the same spot, we did all make the most of it by taking a nap, so not the worst of situations. However, if you have places to go and not many days to explore, stick to the several train lines and boat trips that gives you access to all the major spots in Bangkok.

If the Asian culture intrigues you, you want your next trip to be a city escape with great weather, and love making new friends then Bangkok is the place to be. There are plenty of travellers who are always open to making new friends, locals who always love to tell the tales of their city, and a bit of everything in one place. What more could you ask for?

T x

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