Just had to get out!

I've spent the better part of today napping in a hammock at the guesthouse I'm staying at in Ayutthaya. Bangkok is fun and crazy but to echo the suggestions I've been given in the past... you have to get out eventually!

The day or two after my last post was spent exploring Bangkok's Chinatown and some temples. I woke up and bought a plate of green curry with rice and chicken for 20B from a street vendor and then made my way down the river to Chinatown. This place is a very dense area of the city where many Chinese laborers were moved by the government in 1782. Now a maze of streets and alleys play host to a daily market where one can buy anything from dried fish to pirated DVDs. Each stall has something completely different from the ones bordering it. Fortunately, the hot sun is obscured by narrow alleys and awnings from every vendor which touch in the middle. After exploring for awhile, I bought an orange slush with black tapioca balls in the bottom and made my way to Wat Mangkon Kamalawat.

The most prominent temple in Chinatown was packed with people burning incense in homage to the various deities enshrined there. The smoke was so thick that you could barely breathe. Even the monks had to retreat outdoors from time to time. The whole experience was great and since it was off the popular Bangkok tourist track, I got to enjoy it among Thais and Chinese instead of yet another German tour group.

I woke up the next morning craving a change in scenery. After checking the timetables, I realized I could hop a train that left in one hour for the ancient capital of Ayutthaya. I packed my things and got in a Tuk-Tuk bound for the train station. Despite Bangkok's characteristic traffic, I made it on board with 5 minutes to spare. It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders as the train left the city and I was able to see the Thai countryside for the first time.

Ayutthaya was everything I needed and more. I've spent the last 2 days exploring the ruins of 600 year old temples on foot and by bike. One in particular was a stunning white spire that was built first by the Burmese and finished by the Thai. The Golden Mount as it is called was surrounded by a moat where a white horse was taking a drink. A little ways down the road was a statue of a Thai king on a horse. He is surrounded by dozens of tacky plastic roosters. The king won a cockfight while being held hostage in Burma sometime ago and this, apparently, was a big deal. His statue is flanked on all sides by a loyal army of plastic cocks in formation.

I've uploaded pictures of all this stuff to my flickr page so be sure to take a look. Also, you can leave a comment without signing up for anything by using the nickname box.

Anyways, I've spent most of today napping in the shade of the guest house I'm staying in. This sleepy little town has given me the respite that I needed before Pat gets here and the real action begins. As I type this, I can hear the rain slowing down on the tin roof and the temperature has dropped enough to make it quite comfortable out. I think I'll go for a walk...

What's that hose for?

Well I made it and it only took me 31 straight hours of travel to get here. My flight left Dallas at 10AM and chased the sun west for the next 13 hours. After landing in Tokyo, I had enough sun light during the layover to put me at just over 24hours of broad daylight which was pretty awesome. It was 4am in Austin but bright and sunny outside where I was. The next flight was 7 hours to Bangkok which I slept for most of but woke up just in time for the moist towel, whose purpose I still don't understand. Anyways, I eventually got dropped off around 2am in the backpacker's ghetto known has Khoa San Road. I didn't have any places lined up to stay so I just started walking around looking for a guesthouse with a room available. This proved more difficult than I thought it would be and navigating the throngs of drunken foreigners only made it worse. After walking down numerous alleys and side streets, I found a room with a bed and a bathroom and took the best cold shower I've ever had.

I woke up painfully early the next day because of the jet lag (something I'm still doing 3 days later) and decided to go exploring. I just walked aimlessly in any direction that looked interesting. It was surprisingly easy to escape the lunacy of KSR and happen upon Thais going about their daily business. I've spent most of the last few days walking around different areas of town such as Chinatown, Siam Square (which has the biggest mall I've ever seen... 6 stories, 300 yards x 100 yards) and the KSR area. I've taken a few pictures which I uploaded to Flickr with descriptions so I'll spare you the full narrative.

Now onto something completely different...
The "amenities" here are pretty basic. I've been staying in rooms without windows, AC or a bathroom because well they are about $6. I really just need a place to crash for the night and drop my stuff so I'm not really looking for much. Each stall in the shared bathrooms has a shower head and a toilet with a hose next to it. There's no toilet paper because they dont use that here but fortunately I brought some to hold me over until I bit the bullet. That happened pretty quickly... I went to the bathroom early in the morning on my second day and did business. I tragically realized I left my TP in my room and then thought "well this was inevitable I guess," looked at my left hand and said "it's just you and me old friend," grabbed the hose and went to town.



It really was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be! Everything ended up spick and span and I was on my way.

Anyways, I've walked my feet raw in the last couple days and I don't have much energy left to write more so that will be it for now. Be sure to check out my Flickr page for some real pictures (the link is over there on the right) and leave a comment if you feel like it.

Oh and almost forgot... It's loud, dirty, smelly, hot and humid here but the food is good and I'm having a blast. Cant wait for more.