I've decided I like trains much less after having been on one for what seemed like forever and not being able to sleep at all on it.
I arrived in Bangkok at "O dark hundred," tired, cranky and starving. I then had to to get a cab to my hotel. I almost started crying out of sheer frustration because the cab drivers didn't want to give me a ride since I was insisting they use their meters. (Yes, its optional here.) I think the train station guy finally felt sorry for me and told one of them to give me a ride, which turned out to be less than what they were quoting me. (So make a mental note if you ever take a taxi here, insist on them using the meter!)
Anyway, got to the hotel, but couldn't check in until 2 pm, which was hours and hours away. Thankfully, they let me take a shower and store my bags. I was just settling down to answer emails on my computer when a guy came up to me and said, "Do you speak English?" in that ever so slow, you must be retarded kind of way. Though many not so nice responses immediately sprang to mind, I answered, in perfect English, "Why, yes, I do." That was sufficient to make him feel like a complete jackass.
Turns out Tyler (that's his name) is from DC, just flew in from Singapore, where he was working on something or other as part of his law internship. He just got in the night before and was looking to only stay a couple days, take a couple tours, etc. But after meeting me, he extended his trip an extra couple of days. It was great. We spent the next four days hanging out from morning to night. We took the ferry to the different temples, visited the Grand Palace, went to Chatuchak market and went shopping at the best mall ever!
Chatuchak Market is insane. It's like a huge flea market. But the funny thing wasn't the shopping, it was Tyler. See....he's a bit of a Southern boy, having been born in Georgia. Naturally, as all Southern boys do (just kidding), he plays the banjo. You heard me...I know someone who plays the banjo. He actually spent like two hours about playing the banjo and blue grass music. Luckily, he's cute. Anyway, somehow he managed to find a fellow banjo player, in Bangkok, in Chatuchak market. We were just walking around when this little dude (little compared to Tyler, who was 6'3")comes out in full western regalia - tight jeans, cowboy shirt, cowboy boots and hat, with a banjo. He begins picking and Tyler's eyes light up like it was Christmas. He then rushes over and asks the guy if he could play. So there they were, this big white guy and this short little Asian guy playing their banjos in the sweltering heat. It was a total crack up. If you don't believe me, check out the video.
The other funny thing was we ran into Ben, whom I haven't seen since we parted ways in Chiang Rai, aside from a brief moment in Chiang Mai. Though we've sent message via facebook and he knew I was in Bangkok, I never intended on seeing him again. So it was a bit awkward seeing him again. OK...maybe not for me. I was cracking up on the inside, especially when Tyler got done playing and came over to me. He was perfectly cordial, introduced himself, and was engaging. Ben just sort of mumbled something, looked uncomfortable and then sorta slunk off. I can only imagine what he thought of me and Tyler, even though it was probably an incorrect assumption on his part. But whatever...The last I heard, he was off to Australia. Thank god! This country wasn't big enough for the both of us.
On one of our more lazy, slow start days, we decided to check out the local mall, Siam Paragon. Siam Paragon is like heaven on earth or could be hell on earth, since it is a very, very dangerous place to be for a girl who likes to shop. They have a food court that is unparalleled. You can get everything and it all looks/smells delicious. That's on the first floor. The next few floors have every name brand you can think of, and then some. They even have a cosmetic section that is absolutely enormous. I almost think it is larger than the one in SF. Did I mention they sell high end sports cars out of there as well? They had Ferraris, Lotus', Lamborghinis, etc. Unreal. Then on the very top floor are the movie theaters. They have the regular theater, the IMAX and the Nokia Ultra Screen. Everyone needs to go to the Nokia Ultra Screen at least once. It's off the hook. There are only about 50 seats all together. But the the neat thing is, the seats are actual love seats and the chairs have individual recliners. You get a pillow and a blanket and can totally lay down to watch the movie. It was awesome. I didn't even care that the movie we saw was completely lame. It was worth the 18 bucks. LOL
Oh the other thing I did in Bangkok is I finally broke down and got a Thai massage. OMG...it was crazy. I had tried to tell the woman that my back is a bit sore and I needed her to work out the knots. But I think something got lost in translation or they have a different way of treating knots there, because she just dug her elbows all up in my back, then she would put me in these WWF wrestling holds and twist me from one side to the other. I was cracking and poppin. Also, it hurt like hell. It took me a good 3 days before the new pain was gone.
Note to self, do not get a Thai massage from that lady before embarking on a 10 hour bus/ferry trip.
