a week in bangkok

just back from my week in Bangkok. Originally I had just planned to go to for a break, get in some good eating and relaxation and visit a dentist (sounds sketchy but it's not).

The week ended up being absolutely incredible. The first time I went to Bangkok last year I spent time with some other JETs (Pam, Deccy, Yamagata Kristin) and it was fun, but we were just in transition down to the southern beaches. My attitude towards the city itself was not entirely positive; on the surface, Bangkok is just another huge city that stinks, screams at you and makes you feel like you've just smoked a pack of cigarettes from walking down the street. It has great temples and the cheap shopping and food is out-of-control, but if you are going somewhere like the beach the next day, you probably can't wait to go.

But this trip, I got to know Bangkok in a whole new light (no, not that kind of light. I stayed away from the ping pong banana shows and most everything else scandalous and eye-opening that the city is known for). I ended up falling in love with the city because I saw parts of the city that the normal tourist just never gets to. I spent the majority of my time in back markets selling food of every imaginable taste and color, the side streets and chopshops of Chinatown, and the waterway canals of old Bangkok where people still move and shop by long-tail boat. I ran into festivals with no other foreigners, and went to bars and restaurants that were the same. I ate street food that I would normally be afraid to touch. A big reason for all of this is that I quickly made friends who were locals...from just chance encounters in bars where the person wanted to show me around next day, to a guy just helping me read a map and then we end up in a taxi boat cruising the canals of the fruit plantations. As with anywhere, having a local show you around is the key to travelling right. But I just hadn't expected that on this trip so it was a nice surprise. I made a couple of Thai friends that I will keep in touch with.

Anyway, I'll probably be back there before all is said and done. More pics and stories to come.