We safely arrived in Bangkok this morning, after almost 24 hours of traveling. Before we left New York, we were taking bets to see which would be easier to navigate; in other words, who would speak more English, Chinatown in New York or Bangkok. Hands down, Bangkok wins. We are making our way around without too much trouble (although we havent even been here for one full day).
We quickly found our hotel on Kho San Road, which is in the heart of the backpackers' section of town. There are lots of small hotels, cool shops, restaurants, bars, and even a Chabad House! After grabbing lunch in a little restaurant, we explored the neighborhood a bit and started to get a feel for the city. Neither of us had any idea what to expect, and I think it is safe to say that we could not have expected anything like we have found. Today marks the 60th anniversary of the king of Thailand taking reign, and the city and its people have all donned bright yellow for the occasion. Every car and building has flags flying with the king's insignia and almost every person walking down the street has a yellow polo shirt on, also with the insignia. Shrines are set up all over the sidewalks with enormous pictures of the king all lit up with Christmas lights, in gold gilted frames and lots of yellow bows. There will be huge celebrations tonight.
This afternoon we treated ourselves to Thai massages (how could we not get them, at $4 for an hour?) They were sort of a pleasant mix of being stretched out and put through a meat grinder at the same time.
Tonight we went over to Chinatown and explored some of the open air markets, displaying baskets and baskets of who knows what, but it was fun to see anyways.
The highlight of our evening was the transportation. There are many ways to get around the chaotic streets of Bangkok, but our new favorite are the tuk tuks. These are little three wheeled motorcylces, that have a driver in the front, and a bench in the back for a couple of passengers. The drivers here are crazier than anything Boston or New York could have ever bred, but we hold on tight and pray.
Lots of love and spring rolls,
Jillian and Ari