Thailand is a place many people visit for its beautiful beaches and delicious food. I arrived in Bangkok at the beginning of August, from a wet and cold Western Australia. I hoped for warmth, and warmth I got.
As the plane descended from the clouds I got a sense that the scale of land used for agriculture surrounding Bangkok was immense.
With a population of 8.2 million people the city relies heavily on produce being brought in from the surrounding rural areas.
Water covers fields as far as the eye can see. An amazing sight from the sky.
With a quick change in to jandals (sandals) and shorts at Kuala Lumpur Airport, I was ready to hit the ground running.
I arrived in Bangkok on an August afternoon to a thunderous downpour of torrential rain and heat. I instantly broke in to a sweat. It was rainy season in Thailand!
With an hour or two of heavy rain each day, I figured it couldn’t be so bad. Nothing I couldn’t escape from.
For this reason I made the choice not to head to the islands but rather the mountains of the north.
Bangkok to me is chaotic, but somehow the city seems to function with a careless flow of synergy.
Jammed up traffic, motorcycles and scooters navigating the narrow spaces between cars, trucks and buses without hazard. I’m sure there are freaky moments but I’m thankful not to have witnessed anything to alarming.
The streets were interesting enough I spent most of my time walking around the city. I made good use of the Skytrain but didn’t ride on a Tuk Tuk, although I did have quite a few offers for rides across the city. An offer I will take up one day.
Most of the food I ate was Street Food, always doing a few passes by the stall before swooping in and making my order.
Thailand is renowned for its great Street Food. But one must use caution as it can be easy to pick up a severe case of food poisoning.
I found myself watching the vendor prepare the food before making my choice.
The first few days I played it safe, only ordering vegetables and rice without meat. Little did I know that rice can be the culprit in many food poisoning cases. I survived.
My stay in Bangkok was long enough to visit the main tourist attractions. Wat Arun Temple, The Grand Palace, Jim Thompson House and the Temple of the Reclining Buddha.
Wat Arun is a buddhist temple on the bank of Chao Phraya River. The temple has existed since the seventeenth century, its prang (spires) were built in the early eighteenth century during rein of King Rama II.
Although I enjoyed visiting these attractions, I did not particularly care for the crowds. People flocked to these hot spots.
It wasn’t until I wandered in to a back alley and found an old cinema that I was fortunate to experience the real people of Bangkok. Stumbling across a live poetry evening would be my ticket to a truly unique experience.
Meeting a group of Thai poets and spending an evening listening to them perform poetry live on stage was a highlight of my time in Bangkok. I was curious about these friendly peoples lives and wanted to find out more. They invited me to come and watch them perform the next evening too.
After the performance we talked and shared familiar stories of our lives. And here was the beginning of conversations I would have with friendly strangers during my travels.
I left Bangkok ready for a slower pace. My choice to head north in search of jungle and mountains lead me to Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand.