Below you will find pages that utilize the taxonomy term “Bangkok”
Silom and Chinatown
November 17, 2015
During the day, Silom is a business district with office workers filling the streets. At night it’s still a business district but the industries have changed. One of the sois is home to the infamous Pat Pong sex tourist haven and the whole main road is lined with small shops selling… pretty much everything. Souvenir t-shirts, fake Rolex, dildos, knuckle-dusters, hand-carved soap, …
I had to ply through there every time I wanted to catch the skytrain (BTS) - which basically means a couple of times a day/night.
Bangkok to Yangon
November 16, 2015
Can’t believe I’ve already left Bangkok again. I had a couple of really good days and (as usually) was reluctant to leave Thailand. But with Myanmar calling, it was much easier to leave. I had an 11:30 flight out of BKK’s old airport, Don Mueang, which in terms of facilities isn’t exactly up to speed with Suvarnabhumi. Still, getting there is easy enough and the longest part of the trip was waiting for AirAsia to check people in at glacier speed.
River Bus
November 14, 2015
Boats on the Chao Phraya river form a vital part of Bangkok’s public transport system.
Bangkok Ferry arriving at Mooring from Pat Nomad on Vimeo.
Noodle Soup on familiar Turf
November 12, 2015
It’s 7:20 when we take off from Colombo, en route for the short 3h hop over to Bangkok. Once arrived, it takes a while to clear the long queue at immigration but finally I’m on the train into the centre.
Seeing the city approach brings back memories. I’ve only visited Bangkok properly twice (I think) but also came through a few times on my way to other destinations. All-in-all it feels somewhat familiar, yet still excitingly unknown.
Leaving the Land of Smiles
April 5, 2012
This morning I decided to pamper myself and support the local economy by taking a taxi to Phaya Thai station. Yet when I stepped onto Silom, the whole road was jammed. Alas, once again I’m back to carrying my backs through the streets and crowded skytrains.
The Bangkok Post recently reported about delays at the airport immigration, even causing passengers to miss flights. Thus I arrive a bit earlier than usual at check-in and am delighted to see that they have almost no queues.
Another Night in Bangkok
April 4, 2012
Even if one is not into binge-drinking and sex-tourism, a night in Bangkok has a lot to offer. Especially for those with a camera in their hands. The BTS stations are a nice spot because they show the street life from above.
The streets in the tourist areas are lined with make-shift markets but the side-alleys still offer local life (and food).
Bangkok Sightseeing
April 4, 2012
With daytime temperatures in the painful range, it’s worth it to get up early and do the outdoorsy stuff before it gets too hot. Couchsurfer Czharina joined me here in Bangkok and yesterday morning we went to do some templing.
The central pier is just a short BTS ride from the hostel and taking a boat to the temple area beats being stuck in traffic by far. Bangkok’s Chao Phraya river is served by ferries that are frequent, cheap (unless you end up on the tourist boat…) and most of all, not affected by rush-hour.
Nakhon to Bangkok
April 3, 2012
Another adventure. Nakhon Si doesn’t have any public transportation to the airport. My friendly helpers at the hotel organised a ‘shuttle bus’ for me but I wasn’t happy with it. It was to leave town at 3 and the check-in for my flight would close at 3:30. No problem they told me, we are small city, everything relaxed here.
Well you can say about SEA what you want, but it works.
Bangkok - once again
April 2, 2012
It must the the 7th time I’m heading to Bangkok from either abroad or a domestic location. My options of getting there this time were diverse and mostly unattractive. Due to the upcoming Songkran festival all beds on the overnight train are sold out and all I could have gotten was a seat in 3rd class. Would have been fun for a short trip but not for 14 hours.
Second worst option was getting on the bus which takes 12 hours plus any delay the congested roads of BKK cause.
Bangkok with the Locals
September 10, 2011
Yesterday and earlier today I got to experience Bangkok with local knowledge by my side. Two Bangkok-born couchsurfers, Sara and Oh, showed me around their parts of the city and told me about Thai everyday life. Now I know that Thais really love their king, they don’t like the prince and the police is corrupt to the bone.
It was an interesting encounter each time and both Sara and Oh have their own opinions on Thailand and westerners so I got to hear more than one side of the story.
Bangkok's buzzing
September 9, 2011
It’s business as usual. Bangkok is smelly, smoggy, crowded, hot and humid. In the beginning I always wonder why I’m staying here again and again but the answer comes with the first stroll through the streets: It’s interesting. Getting bored in Bangkok is almost impossible.
I started yesterday evening with a massage. There isn’t any places around the guest house but the lady at the reception recommended to take the subway to Silom Road.
Back in the Heat
September 8, 2011
Wednesday morning starts early for me. I don’t want to take a gamble with the railway and decided to take a train that takes me a couple of hours early to Berlin. All connections are on time though and I arrive in Berlin around noon. The central station in Berlin is impressive, trains on two levels and heaps of shopping possibilities.
I spend some time with my cousin and his wife at their place and it’s nice to see them again.
Back in Town
July 5, 2011
After three times in Bangkok all my visits have been quite unique. This time it was mostly the life after sunset that made the streets very interesting. The wild mix of families with kids, hookers, touts, pimps, merchants, food stalls, moto drivers and Muslim tourists with women dressed up like tents. Here’s a video of the small lane where my guest house was.
I spent my last day walking around, sitting down every now and then and just watching the show.
Koh Tao to Bangkok, the Journey's first part
June 23, 2011
The day before my departure was an uneventful one. I did some final travel planing and tidied up my stuff, getting rid of gear I never used in hopes to make my backpack a bit smaller and lighter. It’s the third time I did that in Thailand but every time I end up with a heavy and bursting backpack not much later. No idea how that’s physically possible, must be some special backpacker law of physics.
Koh Tao accompanied my evening beer with a nice sunset. After all that time on the Aussie east coast I saw the sun rising over the ocean countless times but never did I see it set there.
In the morning I have to leave my room at 10:00 which is quite early for Thai standards. I asked them if a later checkout would be possible and was told I’d have to pay 100B per hour. Considering that the bungalow cost me 500B for the whole day that’s a blatant rip-off.
They do offer to store my backpack though and as I trust them I gladly accept. Carrying 20kg of luggage on a 35°C day is something
Train to Bangkok
June 10, 2011
After our adventure in the north it is now time to go south. Destination is Koh Tao, tropical island in the Gulf of Thailand. Hiro will stay in Chiang Mai for a couple more days to settle her stuff but I left town yesterday evening.
This time my transport of choice is the train instead of the bus. Oddly enough the trains take much longer than the buses but they also offer additional comfort.
The modern Bangkok
May 6, 2011
Despite the fact that I don’t know the slightest bit of Thai I got along well enough with the people in the streets. With people in the streets I mean the food stall owners. When I want to order something I simply point at it and when I have to pay they either write down the amount or show me the banknote I have to pay.
As there are only few tourists in the area I’m often the only westerner and get a lot of looks.
Wat what?
May 5, 2011
Wat is the Thai word for temple and being a Buddhist country Bangkok is full of them. Today I had some of the most famous ones on my list. In walking distance from the hostel is Wat Phra Kaew, home of the Emerald Buddha and part of the Grand Palace.
While walking there I constantly had to get rid of tuk-tuk drivers. A common scam in Bangkok is a very cheap or even free ride to some allegedly famous Buddha or temple.
Bangkok in Daylight
May 4, 2011
During the day Bangkok is as overwhelming as it is at night. The streets are full with taxis, tuk-tuks, scooters and buses and simply crossing the street becomes the first adventure of the day. The area around the hostel isn’t a major tourist destination so most people in the street are actually Thai. Which means I stick out and not just because I’m roughly one head taller than the average Thai.
Asia
May 3, 2011
My journey to Asia started somewhat rough. The airport bus that was supposed to pick me up at eleven ran late and didn’t arrive before 11:20. The driver did his best to get us to the airport in time and an hour before check-in closure I was at the terminal.
The domestic terminal, cause that’s what it said on my ticket. Turned out to be a printing error and my flight was leaving from the international terminal as one would expect.