The first stop of our trip was Bangkok, Thailand—a decision made for two reasons: 1) Price ($325 each), and 2) I really wanted to go to Thailand for at least a little bit.
After a long flight (which really wasn't that bad since we had been busting ass cleaning our apartment for subletting and other annoying stuff in lieu of sleeping) and a layover in Wuhan (Wuhan, we got you all in check!*) we touched down in Bangkok around 1 a.m. and scrambled to find a place to crash for a few days that didn't suck.
Prior to our trip, we had decided that certain sections of the trip required pre-planning/booking and others did not-- Bangkok falling under the "wing it" category. The Thai immigration department disagreed with our plan and required a hotel address in order to pass through customs, so we quickly perused TripAdvisor in line after Stacey was rejected for omitting that information. We landed on a spot near Khao San Road and got the green light to come on in.
Khao San Road is a fairly (in)famous area of Bangkok that has been cultivated into a crunk gringo sanctuary over the last 30ish years (i.e. cocktails served in massive buckets, frat boys, and whip-its sold as “laughing gas”). It is also conveniently located to a lot of what we do find desirable about Bangkok: Temples, the Chao Prya River, a variety of dope markets, and cats (they’re everywhere). Unfortunately, Khao San Road is also the last place Egon remembered being before he was rufied when he was 19 years old...
It's worth mentioning, we were in Bangkok (and Cambodia, post coming soon) during the River Festival celebrations. We weren't around for the major pop-off in Bangkok, however many of the goings-on around Bangkok were in preparation for the River Festival.
TIPS FOR STAYING NEAR KHAO SAN ROAD:
* Find a hotel off of a main road
Unsurprisingly, our first choice in hotels was booked up at 2:30 a.m., however the host at reception was kind enough to call and walk me over to Smile Buri Guest House on the same block down a long, but not too cutty, alley. For 850 baht a night (~$25USD) we stayed in a super decent room with a comfy bed, air conditioning, free WIFI, and a bathroom with a shower and a western toilet (no squatting necessary, woot!). The place was safe, the employees were nice, and it was cheap. Plus, there was no barf in the alley despite it being just two blocks from Khao San Road. Sadly, we were ill prepared for blogging and did not take our own photos of the room so the photos on the website will have to suffice.
* Hit up The Maharaj Street Market
The market is right off of Maha Rat Rd. and connects to the Maharaj Pier, stop 10 on the Chao Phraya River Express Boat Route. Sure, this market is fairly similar to many others, however, the combination of the location, variety of delicious foods, and other goods set it apart from many other street markets we visited. While on a mission to buy fried banana (Kluay Kayek) from a specific vendor, Egon coincedentally stumbled upon a fruit stand selling the other fruit he'd been on the hunt for-- mangosteen. It was fate, really. Aside from the other amazing produce stands, we bought the best Thai iced tea and coffee from a stand right on the pier for 25 baht each (that’s less than a dollar, people).
* Spend the Dough on Wat Pho
At first we (i.e. Egon) were reluctant to go into Wat Pho because we are adverse to tourist attractions and were deterred by a row of tour buses outside, but ultimately decided to suck it up and pay the 100 baht ($2.50 each). The place is so huge though, the number of tourists hardly matters (unless you're trying to take a photo of a series of empty doorways and a tourist is standing in your shot like an aloof beezy). IT IS SO WORTH IT. DO IT. SERIOUSLY.
Wat Pho houses an enormous golden reclining Buddha (think bikini model on the beach pose), in addition to a million other incredible temples adorned in unbelievably intricate paintings and/or carvings. I could talk about this place forever, but I tend to ramble, so I'll stop here.
* Weave your way through Pak Khlong Talat Flower Market
While you're in the neighborhood, stroll into Pak Khlong Talat Flower Market. This place is incredible. It's about a 10 minute walk from Wat Pho and is adjacent to the Rajinee Pier. Don't just visit the flower market, though-- go to the produce market in the same warehouse space while you’re there. The pictures don’t quite do it justice, but they paint a picture better than I can put into words.
And now, as promised, (interesting) commentary on Thai socio-economics: Egon and I witnessed so many examples of wealth disparity in Bangkok. For example, adjacent to the market walls—and even connected to the markets—is Rajinee Pier, a stark contrast from Pak Khlong Talat. The pier is lined with bougie stores and coffee shops and was clearly designed for tourists. Not gonna lie, they did make the shopping experience extra appealing as I ended up buying a pendant from one of the stalls…
Bonus tip: Don’t necessarily listen to someone conveniently standing next to a map who may tell you that your desired destination is closed and suggest alternatives. They’re likely lying to get you on a tuk-tuk to see a multitude of sub-par Buddha's, and eventually take you to a fake gem or suit store that they get commission. Full disclosure: This is what happened to Egon during the aforementioned rufie experience. These dudes will always quote you a ridiculously low price (25% of what you’d expect to pay for a tuk-tuk ride) to go around and see many sights. Remember the mantra: If it sounds too good to be true, it’s probably some bullshit.
* Avoid the Siam Center (and buy your zip off travel pants before you leave)
Being the procrastinator that I am, I ran out of time to pick up zip-off travel pants (shout out to Sarah for looking at REI for me!), and figured I could just pick some up for super cheap when I got to Bangkok. Silly me. I hollered at my old friend, Google, after a few unsuccessful trips zig-zagging through nearly every single stall at every single street market. Google referred me to the Siam Center where there are a few outdoor clothing stores. Unfortunately Google didn’t tell me what a shit show the Siam Center is and that every cab and tuk-tuk would refuse to take us there. Eventually a kind soul agreed to take us via tuk-tuk for 200 baht, and it was a crazy ride that exposed us to the full on Bangkok traffic experience.
After being in traffic that invokes comparisons to a lawless version of the Maze during rush hour, we got dropped off at this mega-mall with a million people. The Siam Center is comprised of three malls: Siam Paragon, Siam Discovery, Siam BTS, and another mall across the street. This mall has every luxury designer on earth AND Maserati, McClaren, and Rolls Royce dealerships INSIDE THE MALL. The Siam Center is yet another example of extreme wealth surrounded by extreme poverty.
We found the North Face section in the Siam Paragon department store a la Neiman Marcus after the North Face section in Siam Discovery was sold out of travel pants (what??). I tried on all the North Face pants they had, none of which fit properly because I’m not a petite Thai woman or man, but a tall American woman with a big butt. I did find a pair by another outdoorsy brand that I’ve never heard for 4500 baht (over $130 USD), but best believe Egon was not going to let me spend more than our entire Thailand budget on a pair of ugly pants. So, no, I still don’t have travel pants. We did see a pretty sweet sequined Blake Griffin Clippers jersey, but screw that guy and his whole squad (DUBS ALL DAY).
Lesson: Don’t procrastinate.
Final Thoughts
Bangkok is a beautiful city, but hectic as hell. Egon and I were both ready to head out after three days. Typical of many touristy places, there are opportunities to buy shit everywhere. Though the low prices are enticing, the number of vendors can be slightly overwhelming. Side note: I am a shopaholic. I wanted to buy SO MUCH STUFF, but I only spent $25 on 2 pair of pants, a dress, and a pendant—that’s a huge accomplishment. Thanks Boothang for keeping me in check.
We also highly recommend getting the all-day metro pass (140 baht or <$4). There aren’t any metro stations close to Khao San, but you can take the Express Boat down to a station (station name) and go from there. The Bangkok metro system is pretty cool—it’s not as thorough as the New York metro, but has a limited route and is more like what BART wishes it could be (clean, fast, timely, organized). Also the aircon inside the trains is a nice respite from the heat.
This was an exciting and great start to our trip. See you all in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Check out more photos from Bangkok here.