Q: Where Am I?

A: New York… er… London… er… Bangkok?

The correct answer is Bangkok, though it really could be any of those places. I arrived here today from Koh Chang on a bus. I know I’ve mentioned this, but I keep being amazed at how distinctly different Thailand is than Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. Seriously, Bangkok is like a western city, with 7/11s everywhere, public transportation that’s clean and efficient (and you can even understand the woman talking on the intercom, which is more than I can say for the DC Metro), and pretty much everything you could want. It’s a bit overwhelming. I’ve walked into a supermarket or drugstore a few times since I’ve been in Thailand and just walked around looking at everything without actually needing or buying anything. I’m going to be a wreck in the grocery store when I get back.

I checked into my hostel, which is also a hotel, and is really nice and will be a nice place to hang out in the evenings. I had a good dinner, albeit a bit overpriced, at a nearby restaurant. They tried to seat me in the alley b/c I was just one person, which is something that’s happened a few times. I find it intensely irritating when it happens and there are clearly free tables, so I started to leave, and then they seated me at a table actually in the restaurant. Tomorrow I’ll spend running a few errands and seeing a few sights, and then I’m hoping to spend a whole day at the weekend market, which has 23,000 vendors. Not sure what else I’ll do, though I always manage to find things!

On a final note, it seems public transport ineptitude is cross-cultural: There’s a campaign in the Skytrain (Bangkok’s public transport system) to get people to a) not run for trains they’re going to miss, b) not block the doors, and c) not hold open the doors. Apparently, humans just aren’t wired for these things anywhere.

Snorkeling, Thai Style

Yesterday, I went on a snorkeling trip to some surrounding islands. I’d heard the snorkeling was good, though not spectacular, and this offered the opportunity to get out into the Gulf of Thailand and see some more islands and such. We got to the boat dock, where we got on a huge boat; much larger than I’d anticipated. It was full of Thai tourists and the odd western couple, none of whom seemed all that friendly. The boat got pretty packed, which was when I realized this might be more touristy than I’d thought. We took off and I made my way to the top deck, which was tiny, but where I met a nice woman from South Africa who I’d spotted as she got on the boat. It’s actually quite easy (most of the time) to pick out who you’re going to end up talking to/hanging out with. Anyway, we went out into the gulf about 1.5 hours and made our first snorkeling stop. As we came up to the small island, it became clear there was something akin to a very large swim lane encircling it. As we got closer, it was also clear that there were about 40 tourists in bright orange life jackets puttering around in the water. It seems they’ve roped off the areas where you can snorkel, presumably so nobody gets lost or wanders away. It’s probably good, for that reason and also because it keeps boats from damaging the coral reefs.

The water was super warm, and there were lots of interesting things to see, including a few different types of animals that disappeared/closed up when you got close. Noticeably absent were fish. I’ve heard a lot about overfishing, especially in tropical waters, but it was blatantly clear that there weren’t any sizable fish to speak of. Even though Koh Chang lies within a “marine preserve”, there is an extensive legal fishing business, which I don’t quite understand. It’s like logging a national forest, which also doesn’t make sense unless you’re George Bush. We got back on the boat and had some lunch while we sailed to our next island.

At this juncture, I should mention that the Thai people seem noticeably different than the Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Lao people. They’re definitely more westernized, seem more cocky (the men especially) and more uninhibited. I’m sure it’s more pronounced because I’m at the beach. So on the boat there are a bunch of workers: cooks, dive instructors, etc., many of whom are overly confident Thai men. One of them was especially skeevy and way too touchy for my liking, so I was giving him the cold shoulder and ignoring him. That worked for half the day, and then I jumped in for some snorkeling and before I knew it he was swimming next to me. At first, he was showing me cool stuff, like sea cucumbers and sea urchins. Then, he kept trying to hold my hand… problematic b/c a) I don’t want to hold his hand and b) I’m trying to swim, which is more difficult with one arm at your disposal. I keep just taking my hand away. He takes this as an invitation to tickle me and stick sea creatures in my face, which I have a fairly strong reaction to, though it’s hard to convey the strength of my disdain with a snorkeling mask on and a tube in my mouth. As he’s doing this, and I’m trying to make him go away, I kick a piece of very sharp coral and scrape up the top of my foot. This does nothing for my patience. He pokes me in the ribs, and I come up out of the water and shove him back; when he still doesn’t get the message, I do it again, only harder. I swim away, and he doesn’t so much as look at me for the rest of the day. Instead, he moves on to another target. Mission accomplished. It’s really annoying to have to deal with that, especially from someone who works for the company. Yuck.

Anyway, the rest of the day was uneventful, with some more snorkeling and swimming, which was nice. I stupidly was applying sunblock evenly to my back and front, failing to realize that when you’re snorkeling, your back is much more exposed. Needless to say, I have a bit of sun on my back. I got back to my guesthouse just in time for the sunset, had a nice dinner, and then read until I got sleepy.

Today was a great hang out day… woke up, got dressed, had some breakfast and read a book for a long time. Figured out my game plan for Bangkok, including how to get there, then wandered down to the beach where it was way too hot to lay around, so I wandered a bit. I looked up and saw the sky was really dark and it was getting windy, so I jumped in for one last swim before heading back up to my bungalow as it started to rain. It was a beautiful little storm… it never rained very hard and the sun kept coming out and then going back behind the clouds. Back at the ranch, I settled into a hammock from which I could see the water, had a cup of tea, and read some more. Watched the sun set, called my parents, then had some great king prawns on the beach. Now, I’m headed back to do a little packing and probably hang out a bit.

Tomorrow, I’m headed for Bangkok, which will be my last long-distance ground journey of the trip. There always are so many options for getting from place to place, and figuring out which is best can be tricky. I’ve gotten some advice and I think I’m taking Government Bus 99, which seems to be the best option. This is funny, because in every other country I’ve been in, the government/public buses generally are the least enjoyable way to get places, although they are very cheap. The trip should take about 5 hours, and I’ve reserved a guesthouse in Bangkok away from Khao San Rd., which is the largest backpacker centre in SE Asia. It’s called Suk 11 (www.suk11.com) and it was recommended highly by a guy I met in Hanoi. I’m glad to have a place reserved, as there are just way too many choices in Bangkok, many of which can be a bit seedy.

I’m headed back up the road to get some provisions for the bus trip tomorrow. They have loads of 7/11s here, which is strange. Being in Thailand is definitely quite different than being in the rest of SE Asia. Of course, one similarity is that there are plenty of imitators, one of which is called “7 Day Mini-Mart” and has an almost identical logo to 7/11. This is where I’m headed. Next post coming from Bangkok!