Friday, November 30, 2007
A Random Day in Bangkok
One full (and unexpected) day in Bangkok and I am reminded of how much I love this place.
First of all, it's not hard to love any place with 25 degree weather and sunshine. Secondly, I just like the chaos and lack of rules on the road. (That is, provided I'm not a victim of these lack of rules.)
Plus, it's just different. People, cars, scooters, tuk-tuks, and motorcycles are in excess. A lot of the roads are 6 lanes, and the dotted lines that mark the lanes are completely disregarded. Gaudy memorabilia is everywhere- bling bling decorates cell phones, trinkets are dangling from rearview mirrors, and pictures of the king are all over the streets. The vendors sell funny things such as t-shirts that read outrageous things that I can't actually type on here, for fear of my grandmother reading it (a lot of four letter words that start with "F" which are so misplaced, it's clear these Asians have no idea what they are marketing). The traffic puts LA to shame and the language barrier is always a mix of amusing, frustrating, and humorous (such as commenting on the cab driver's ears: "Man, that guy's ears are HUGE!" "Poor guy, he looks like Dumbo." Then we start to giggle at the ears, feeling slightly bad for it, and he sees us laughing and starts laughing with us, so we are all sharing a hearty chuckle and he has no idea that we are laughing at him!)
We travelled the city by tuk-tuk, cab and on foot. There are two options you have when getting trucked around Bangkok: 1. Close your eyes and cross your fingers and say your prayers. 2. Keep your eyes open, tell your travel companion that he/she may have your [insert prized possession here] and sit back and think that getting smucked in Bangkok would be an exciting way to go. For all the close calls it's amazing there aren't carcasses and smashed up vehicles littering the streets.
We mostly just shopped the markets yesterday. Everything is so cheap here. I indulged in fresh fruit from local vendors ($.30) and refreshing coconut milk from the shell ($1.00). Of course I did a bit of shopping. I got a pair of Pumas for $15.00 (authentic, I swear) and a necklace for $.67. I won't bore you with the rest of my purchases, but you get a lot for a little here. The bartering system is fun for a bit, but tiresome after a while.
We got back to the hospital in the early evening (after being stuck in a tuk-tuk for an hour in traffic jams, inhaling the fumes. Man, I'd hate to see the score on an emissions test for those things). I adorned a fresh pair of hospital clothes and ate some Thai hospital food, which was remarkably good. We squeezed on Kev's bed and watched "Blades of Glory", but I could barely keep my eyes open (jet lag had finally hit me, as you probably surmised after seeing that horrible picture of me above). I was sleeping in 1/2 hour. I had a full night of sleep last night, and this morning a hot shower (possibly the last one of the trip) and eggs and bacon for breakfast. All for free!
Being in the hospital is a riot! Only hours from now we take the 21 hour train ride to Laos...
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
herro denise, hope you have good time in asia! many luck!
It is so great to hear from you. It is so funny that you are "sick" in bed with Kevin. Hope you're feeling better. It is so neat that you could stay at the hospital as a guest. Have a great time. I love you dearly.
Love Grandma Esser
P.S. I am praying for your safety
Say hi to Meaghan (I love you too), Kevin, Dana the paina and Benny Bear.
Ha ha, I forgot about all the pics of the King! What a hoot!
I still occasionally crave the fresh coconut milk we drank in massive quantities last year...
Dear Denise, Meaghan, and the rest of the gang.
Sounds like your are having a marvolous time. When I was your age I had three kids. No chance of me doing those things. I didn't know that Laos was so beautiful. Anyway, I think it is wonderful that you guys are getting along so good. This is obvious, if you were able to sleep three people to small twin bed. I hope you didn't smother ol' Beno. YOu five behave yourself I want to see you home alive! and well. Kevin don't do funny things with your knees.
Love you dearly, I will talk to you all again.
Ciao
Man, it's a good thing I'm not in Bangkok because you'd know I'd steel a 'tuk tuk' and do some of my famous 'bajahing.' I didn't know Kevin could do stupid pet tricks with his knees. Maybe you can smuggle something back in that gapping wound you have on your knee Kevin.
Post a Comment