My first stop was Bangkok and typical of this city things didn’t begin terribly smoothly. I don’t know what I really expected when I arrived and actually getting off the plane I couldn’t help but wonder what the hell I’d gotten myself into. I had no idea about the language and was actually relying upon other people to help me out which is never a good way to travel.
Thailand is of course right near the equator so predictably its bloody hot! That made it difficult to get around with my gear since after walking ten or fifteen meters your covered in sweat and dehydrated. My first few days were complicated by the fact that I hadn’t bothered to break in my sandals so I spent most of my first two weeks off my feet because they were covered in blisters.
Most backpackers stay down on Koh San Road which upon first impression looks like a demilitarised zone. It takes a bit of getting used to since every trixter, con-man, and quite a few boy-girls litter the streets begging, or hawking their wares or trying to get you to go along on a Tuk Tuk (A Rickshaw using a motorbike) ride. This can all be pretty overwhelming and I personally didn’t handle it very well for a while. Its important to remember that although these people will try and rip you off they are very friendly people.
Also Koh San will give you an introduction to the Movie Cafe scene if you will. A lot of Cafe's in Thailand try to entice people to dine there by showing the latest movies showing at the cinema's. You can see almost anything currently showing in a cinema and is a nice way to unwind if you find the whole experience a little stressing.
If you can get away from Koh San though then the city actually is quite a bit nicer. It is very polluted and there are too many people though so I split and headed out into some of the other towns and beaches that Thailand has to offer.
I managed to get out to Kochanaburri which is on the River Kwai near the Death Rail. The death rail of course was a rail track built buy Japanese POWs during the second world war. The Japanesse of course with their Samurai code viewed their prisoners with disgust and treated them inhumanly. Many died from starvation and over work building the Railway. I found a new respect for those men and found it hard to imagine being forced to work in that dreadful heat.
 | After that I headed down to Koh Tao to investigate the option of going scuba diving. I decided against it since Koh Pang Ngan’s ‘Full Moon Party’ was on that week. Basically a giant party held once every month to celebrate the new moon. With glorious beaches and more bars and clubs than you can poke a stick at this is a must. People come from all over Thailand to party so the atmosphere is really exciting. From there is was back to Bangkok although this time I stayed with one of my friends Lincoln down at the APAC University. Lincoln had run into some financial problems and so had moved into the University for a few weeks. This was fantastic since we got to meet a bunch of Thai people that were not associated with trying to rip us off. |
Seriously those people were so friendly and I really felt like I was seeing the real side of life in Thailand.
