I said my goodbyes to New Zealand and jumped on the plane over to Sydney not sure what to expect. The ride over was uneventful, although I did get to see some of Sydney's highlights from the plane. I wish I could put it on my travel map, but I don't think the three hours spent wandering the airport counts for much. I had the great pleasure of being in the absolute last row on the monster of a plane from Sydney to Bangkok. With massive turbulence pushing us in every direction, I was glad that I had a couple glasses of wine before boarding. I will be correcting my seat request before getting on that flight again.
I arrived in Bangkok just before midnight on Tuesday and was immediately struck with all of the lights, smells and loud music. I'm staying near Khao San Road, the tourist mecca of the city. It's basically like Las Vegas; I'm pretty sure just about anything goes here. I checked into my hotel and have found that traveling will be different, once again, here. I had my own room with comfortable bed and nice ceiling fan, although sans bathroom, for just 325 Baht...about $8. It'll be different from the dorm life that I've become so accustomed to. I like dorm life sometimes as it's easier to meet people and see what's going on, but after that first night with no big guy snoring on the top bunk, I think I'll just find a new way to make friends.
Yesterday I woke up with a giddy feeling. I could not stop smiling as I faced the extreme heat to take a walk around the city. I am on the move again and there are so many things that I'm looking forward to seeing. Asia is just so different than anything else. With it's guilded palaces and happy faced statues, what's not to love. The people seem lovely, although I feel bad that I know nothing of the language. I've asked how to say thank you about 20 times, and still can't remember it. The words and tones all sound the same to me. I'll just have to keep asking until I get it right.
I made it to only one tourist attraction as I walked around yesterday, the temple of Wat Pho. This temple houses a 47 meter long statue of the Buddha and it's surrounding gardens had a plethora of interesting sculptures and buildings to see. I entered the site and lit some candles for my family and friends and just felt at peace with where I am at the moment. Life is going to be good here, and it's already started off well.
In the heat of the afternoon, I was melting so I decided that it was time to get my first Thai massage. Just before I left Christchurch last weekend, I managed to throw out my back. I talked to a physiotherapist the other day, and she said it was stress related, but I can't figure out how that works with my life and lack of structure. Basically, I felt something funny when I woke up on Saturday morning, and when I went to throw my pack on as I always do, the muscles in my lower back gave out. By the time I got to Auckland, I was immobile. It was a backpackers worst nightmare. It's feeling better now, but still sore when I sit for too long. The magic fingers of that Thai woman yesterday definitely seemed to help. At $4 for a half hour, I may just do it again today.
I was lucky that I got to meet up with another friend of mine on my first day here, even if it was brief. The companion I had throughout eastern Europe just happened to be passing through Bangkok yesterday afternoon before his flight back to the states. It was a wonderful reunion. We got to have a few drinks in between him wrapping up his souvenir shopping. I was sad that it didn't last longer, but as we both plan to continue traveling, I'm sure that we'll be seeing eachother again soon.
I'm leaving this evening on the overnight route to the island of Ko Tao. I went to one of the hundereds of travel agents on the street and bought a ticket yesterday afternoon for the stunning price of 500 Baht. This was by far the cheapest I found anywhere else, and I have to admit that concerns me a little. When I told Dave the price I got, he basically told me to prepare for the worst. Lots of stops, possibly no air conditioning and hidden costs that weren't presented to me when I bought it. I actually considered just going and buying a whole new ticket, but that could end up just the same. So I'm going to try this shady bus to god knows where. If I get lost or dropped somewhere strange, then maybe that's how it was supposed to be. As long as the bus points south, I will eventually get to this island. I've got nothing but time on my hands and with 40 plus scuba schools on Ko Tao, I'm in no rush to get there.
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