"Same same but different" would have been the perfect heading here but I already used it, sort of! This isn't the Bangkok of 2004. We didn't go thru a dingy, humid airport to retrieve our bags just to walk outside into the sweltering heat to find a mini van that would barely fit 6 of us. We weren't going down the highway with the warm breeze swirling through and intaking all the exhaust fumes.
No, we flew into a mega modern super futuristic ultra impressive airport that made you look around and think that you just got to Bangkok 2050. This airport makes all the others around the world drool in envy and hopefully inspires other cities, especially those in the US like LAX to follow suit. We walked through the immaculate airport just to come to the taxi counter where we were taking to an A/C spotless brand new cab.
Yes, some of the experience of the past has been lost but it's well noted that Bangkok and Thailand are moving forward. High rises are going up all over this already vast city. Everything about Bangkok is becoming modernized in a hurry. Case in point, and numerous Internet cafes spralled out around the city. High speed connections I have found no where else in Asia. The latest computers offering everything you need. All have flat screen screens and A/C. The frustrations of the past few weeks have immediately disappeared.
And then there is Khao San Road. It is rare that I come back to a city for a second time. I was not sure if I would come back here at all during this trip. I am happy I did and I am happy we decided on the week. There is nothing that makes me more happy than KS Rd. Ya, maybe there are more tourists now, and definitely some of the old buildings have been or are being replaced by newer, bigger ones (probably mega hotels). But still, the vibe keeps kicking.
We're located on Rambuttri which is just off KS Rd. It's a little bit lower key but stilll a lot of fun. The massages are as good as ever. So is the pad thai, the banana shakes and the banana pancakes. The fresh squeezed OJ is as good as it gets and only for 50 cents. It makes me wonder why fresh juice in the last 2 countries was $2. And yes, here in BKK, the food, the toiletries, the clothes, EVERYTHING is far cheaper than any city I have been to. Weird to say but very true.
As I walked up to the immigration officer, he smiled, made fun of my souvenir from Cambodia, and welcomed me to Thailand with a big smile. Later the taxi driver introduced himself as our "chauffeur" and kept cracking jokes we hardly understood! ha! And all the vendors- just so nice. In none of the countries, particularly Vietnam, did any immigration officer make me feel welcomed in any way. Some taxi drivers were nice, like the on in Siem Reap. The point is, in Thailand,it's across the board. It makes you want to be here. It makes you want to come back. It leaves everlasting memories. It is the reason people ALWAYS talk about Thailand.
Spending the evening here last night made me really reminisce about our last trip here. While I was getting my massage I got to thinking. My experience here for a second time has confirmed what I have known for a while. Nothing compares to Thailand. There is no country I love to visit more. There is something so magical and memorable about this place that I would be lying if I didn't tell you that I would want to come back again in the near future. I spent weeks exploring for something similar to Thailand and after making a full circle, I know what I like and I am sitting in the middle of it right now.
