Days 51-58: Thailand

View from Temple of Dawn

           After a very complicated border crossing and transfer to a new van, I was in Thailand.  The reason for the vehicle switch became obvious as suddenly traffic was on the left side.  I hadn’t expected this, almost all left-hand driving countries are former British colonies, and Thailand is known for being the only country in Southeast asia that maintained it’s independence from European powers.

           After a several hour drive, I got dropped off at a cul-de-sac in the middle of Bangkok.  I had no idea where I was going to stay tonight.  I thought I had a host lined up through Couchsurfing, but I had failed to get back to him soon enough, and he had already hosted someone else instead.

           One thing was apparent when I entered Thailand: Thailand was humid.  Vietnam and Cambodia were very hot, but it was a dry and very bearable heat, but once I crossed in Thailand, it because much more unbearable.  On top of this, I still hadn’t had a good nights rest in three nights.

           Having no idea where to go I wandered a bit, tried to connect to the cities free wifi (which is apparently full for the next two months), bought a SIM card which I couldn’t get to work, and finally bought a drink at a restaurant to use their wifi.

           Even with internet I didn’t have much luck finding a good place to stay.  I saw one with a decent fairly close and started walking towards it.  I tuk-tuk driver offered to take me to a cheap place to stay.  Exhausted and overheated, I agree.  The first place he brings me is ok, but doesn’t have internet which I kind of needed to figure out my plans.  He takes me to a tourist information place next and they say all the cheap places are full and offers me a fairly expensive place.  Next they try and up sell me into providing everything for the rest of my Thai trip.  The number they offer is incredibly higher then I had hoped to say and I try to tell them I’m not interested, but they keep insisting.  i eventually jsut give up, walk out, pay the tuk-tuk driver, and walk on my own hoping I can find a decent hotel.  After a short walk I come across one and it’s not too bad and has AC and internet, so I stay there.

           The next day I slept late, catching up on needed rest, and tried to figure out my plans.  Several people along the way had recommended going to Chaing Mai, so I looked into getting train ticket to there.  But when I called I found out they were completely sold out.  I tried to find a sleeper bus, but I didn’t have much luck finding one that seemed decent and the ones I did find were already full.  After the rough rides I had just gone through, I wasn’t in the mood for more.  So I reluctantly gave up on Chiang Mai and decided to stay in Bangkok.

           After walking outside for a bit, I decided I’d spend more time in my air conditioned room.

That night I met up with some people from couchsurfing and explored the night life of Khao San road.  I thought I was near this famous tourist street, but when I looked it up it was a good 20 minute drive away.  So I walked a few blocks from my hotel, hopped into a cab and told him to take me to Khao San road.  He seems confused and double checks with me “Khao San road?” and I confirm.  He drives up half a block and says we are there.   Fortunately I think he was too confused by my stupidity to try and charge for the short fare, and I apologize and get out.  One of the guys I met there was another couchsurfing from Istanbul.  I told him about several of the other people I had surfed with had all said that Turkey was their number one destination they wanted to go to.  He said I should come, and he’d be more then willing to host me.  I told him I’d be in the area in a couple months and might just have to take him up on that.

           The next day I tried to get to the train station to get my onward train tickets to Phuket.  Thailand used to have an online service, but they stopped providing it a couple years ago, and now the only way to get a ticket was to go to the actual train station, which was a ways away.  Bangkok has a skyrail system, but it was worthless to me since it didn’t connect to where I was or to anywhere I wanted to go, so I was stuck taking the bus.  I got to the bus stop just in time to see the bus leave.  Still not getting the sim card to work, I couldn’t look up how long it’d be until the next bus would come.  After waiting a while, I finally gave up and took a cab.  Unfortunately I had timed it just in time for the evening rush hour, so it took a while and was extra expensive.

           When I finally get there, I find out all the sleeper berths are full and the only option is an overnight in a seat, no other option, I buy it.  I try to get my ticket on from there to Malaysia, but they say I have to buy that other one at that other station.

           Frustrated, I stop and after several attempts with a 7-11 I finally get the code I needed to get my SIM card to work.

Grand Palace

           By then it was dark already and I still hadn’t seen anything.  I walked the long walk back, so I would at least see something.

           The next day I got up with the resolve to see something.  It was frustrating being in Bangkok for 4 days already and still to not have actually seen anything.  I went to the most important site: the Grand Palace.  I was pretty impressed with the extreme detail that went into all the architecture there.  My ticket included a free entrance to the Queens Textile Museum, which was basically just a bunch of the queen’s old clothing, but it was air conditioned and free.  Inside they had a video showing the entire process of making silk, which was very fascinating.

Temple of Dawn

           Next I walked to another temple that was supposed to be good, but it didn’t look too impressive from the outside, similar to the Grand Palace was smaller.  But in the distance I saw a massive temple of a completely different style that I had to check out.  It was called the Temple of Dawn, and the view at the top of the very steep steps up was great, allowing you to see the river and the Grand Palace.

I still head a fair amount of time left, so I figured I check out a floating market that I had heard a lot about.  A long bus ride, followed by a long walk, and I soon learned that the floating market was only on Saturdays.  Oops.

           At some point on my train ride, my usb plug on my phone broke.  I had been able to make it work by angling it at certain angle until it would charge, but by Thailand it had completely broke, leaving me with no way to charge my phone.  This was kind of an issue since my phone had kind of been my lifeline on this trip so far.  It was my emergency line, my map, my translator, basically my way to figure out any problem that I ran into.  Without it, this trip would get a whole lot more difficult.  Fortunately I managed to find a universal battery charger at a random shop that saved the day and allowed me to at least limp by for now.

           That night I boarded the train to Phuket and after a rather sleepless night ride, followed by a bus ride and then a shuttle ride, I had arrived.

           I had made reservations at the cheapest place I could find, but unfortunently I forgot to make sure it had air conditioning.  Every place prior to this always had AC, but now when I was in a country where I really wanted it, it was suddenly an extra luxury.  The room was unbearably warm as it had no outside windows and a very ineffective fan.  At night, it was colder outside.

           The area of Phuket I wound up in was very much a tourist area, but then I’m not sure what part of the island isn’t.  I checked out the beach for a while and went for a short swim.  I hoped for cool water like all the other beaches I had been to prior, but here even the water was hot.

           The next day I took an early bus and then a two hour ferry to Phi Phi Island.  It was a small island without cars with a narrow strip in the middle of it that’s filled with shops and restaurants.  I wanted to scuba dive while in Thailand, but didn’t have much time available to try and do it unfortunately, but I managed to find a place that had a morning dive the next day that I could fit in before the ferry back off the island.

Phi Phi Island

           Unfortunately for my timing, I appear to arrived just in time for low tide, and the beach was just filled with mud and very unappealing.  I went and climbed to the look out point that gives you a good view of the island and lets you see just how narrow the middle park of the island.

That night several bars along the beach held fire shows where people would spin various burning objects, or they would have flaming limbo poles for people go under.  I walked along the beach watching the variety of shows each place was putting on.

Scuba Diving

           The next morning I went scuba diving for my first time.  It was a bit nerve wrecking at first, practicing clearing the snorkel and mask underwater.  Having to constantly equalize the pressure in your ears turned out to be the most difficult part.  Once I got used to it, it was a lot of fun.  It was amazing seeing all these sea turtles, eels, corals, and other unique aquatic life in real life, just under the water.  Between our two dives we stopped and had lunch at in enclave on a island with a beach that was filmed in the movie “The Beach.”

            Afterwards I grabbed my gear and went through the photos of the dive, thinking I had an hour before the ferry left.  Just in case, I double check the time and saw it was leaving in 2 minutes.  I rushed and packed everything up as quickly as possible and started running for the dock, which was still a good distance away.  I get there and jump on board, just as the ferry pulls out.

           I spend the next night in a nearby town called Krabi Town.  Because of the timing of the ferries and trains, I was only able to spend one night on Phi Phi, and was only in this town so I could catch my train the next day.  Having several early morning trying to get everywhere, I was incredible tired and planned on just getting a good nights rest.  But before I went to bed, I decided to check on my plans for India.  It was then that I learned that pretty much all the train tickets I had hoped to buy for it were sold out.

           Apparently trains in India sell out really soon, but they don’t open them up for purchase until two months before, which was when I was still in China and busy concentrating on making it through that.  I spent a good couple hours trying to figure out a solution before finally giving up and just going to bed as I was about to pass out.

           The next morning a took a shuttle bus to train station a few town away.  The driver dropped me off at a point, and I asked if this was the train station, and he said it was.  However, when I go inside I find it’s just a mall.  Fortunately I found someone who could point me the right way and I eventually make it.  I had been able to reserve these train tickets online, fortunately, since they are run by Malaysia.  Online it had said I could just show them my confirmation number and they would print out my ticket.  When I tried to do this, he didn’t seem to understand and made it sound like I needed to go to a different train station.  Confused I walk away and guy comes up to me asks where I’m going.  I tell him I’m going to Kuala Lumpur and he takes me to this travel agent guy.  The guy tries to sell me a bus ticket to there, saying the train is sold out.  i tell him I already have a ticket, and the original guy finally understands and takes me to a computer place where I can print it off.  I pay them, and then he brings me back and asks for money for the gas of driving me to the spots on his motorcycle.  I give him a fair amount, he insists on more.  I say no and walk away.

           On the ticket I noticed it says all times are in Malaysian time, which is an hour earlier then Thailand, meaning the train was jut about to leave.  I hurry on board and find my spot, only to wait another hour for it to actually leave.

           I sleep surprising well on the overnight train and wakeup in Kuala Lumpur next next morning.