Bangkok : First Impressions

             We got up early on the day we're leaving for Bangkok and we took our free breakfast of french bread, scrambled eggs and slices of tropical fruits. All our efforts to get up early was wasted because the van that would pick us up did not arrive until 8:30 AM. It ruined our plan. We were hoping to reach Bangkok before 5pm so we could go to a night market. We were transferred from a van to a bus at around 9AM . The bus roamed around Siem Reap to pick up the other passengers from their respective guesthouses and hotels .

Back in Bangkok


                                

                  The trip back to Bangkok from Siem Reap took so much longer than we had expected. It went smoothly at first until we reached the suburbs of Bangkok. The road became congested and that's where we got stuck. We had been traveling for 8 hours and I had been putting up with the Thai songs blaring from the bus' stereo since I didn't have my earphone with me. I kept on complaining to Anna that everything in Bangkok so far looked like Manila. It was already 7 pm when we arrived at the Mo Chit bus station. I thought the bus station was just a walking distance from the skytrain station. I was wrong. According to everyone we asked , we had to take a cab.We were staying at my friend's place not so far from Khao San, the famous backpacker's area in Bangkok. I just can't remember the name of the street. It's a challenge when you're dealing with Thai nouns which usually are consist of consonants that outnumber the vowels by a mile. To avoid being stuck in traffic the original plan was to take the skytrain from the Mo chit station and get off at the Saphan Taksin station then walk to the Central Pier (then maybe pass out for a few minutes) and take the boat along Chao Phraya river to get to Pier 13 (again I can't remember its name but each pier has a corresponding number).We paid the cab driver 70 baht to get to the skytrain station. I slammed the door at him because he initially refused to take us to our destination. He just  had no choice since it's his turn to pick up passengers otherwise he would have to queue up again and wait forever for his next turn. There is no skytrain station near Khao San so our plan would have been the best way to avoid the dreaded traffic.The thing was the boats that ply the Chao Phraya routes only operate until 6pm so that was out of the question. We took a bus instead from the National Stadium station to Khao San area. We arrived at our destination in no time since it was already 9pm and the roads were almost empty. We were dropped off near a 7-11 store.We hadn't eaten dinner yet so we bought cup noodles and shortly after I had my introduction to Thai flavor.It was so hot and spicy that I felt sick afterwards.


                                

                                          

             We walked towards the area near the Democracy Monument and there we found my friend. My friend is a fellow Filipino who works as a teacher in Bangkok. He lives at an apartment near Khao San and he would be our host for the next four days. I didn't feel like sleeping yet even though I was tired so I left Anna with my friend. Neither one of them could accompany me, Anna was dog-tired and my friend had to go to bed early since he had classes the following day. After we settled our things at my friend's place I went out alone to explore Khao San.
             I was hoping that my first impressions about Bangkok wouldn't last as nothing so far that I had seen impressed me.