BANGKOK, THAILAND
A blur of lights, smells, and noise, Bangkok is intoxicating. As the first stop on our trip, I have to admit, we were a bit overwhelmed. But despite the intense culture shock, this was just the rush of adrenaline we needed to begin our 6-week excursion through SE Asia. We arrived on our fantastic flight with ANA airlines, an amazing deal we found through Scott’s cheap flights. Portland to Seattle to Tokyo to Bangkok. Easy peasy! Seriously though, it was surprisingly comfortable and provided every accommodation you could imagine. The food was delightful and included tons of snacks AND ice cream, all the booze was free (drinking on planes is one of my favorite things, it feels so extravagant!), and the movie selection was superb. And the leg room!!! With Taylor being 6’4 this is a true luxury. He could actually move his legs, it was amazing!! Also, on our flight from Tokyo to Bangkok, we were on the R2D2 plane!! Equipped with Yoda and all. It was magical.
We arrived in Bangkok late, around 11 pm, made it through immigration just fine and were greeted by a sign with our name on it from our hotel, the Amara Bangkok, that instantly made me feel very important. Getting to our hotel and checking in was a breeze. Something important to note: if you’re staying in a hotel (opposed to an Airbnb or homestay) they will require, on average, a 1,000 baht cash deposit that will be returned to you upon checkout so make sure to have that on you. We found that having tried to stay awake for the majority of our flights really worked in our favor. We drank a couple Singha’s and fell right to sleep, immediately acclimating to the time change. It was almost too easy. Don’t get me wrong, the next day we were a little groggy but we had planned to take a relaxing day by the pool to adjust anyways so it worked out perfectly.
After a day of rest, we were ready to hit the town. We didn’t really know much about the area we were in so we simply started walking and stumbled upon the most amazing food and culture festival! It showcased the cuisine and arts from each region of Thailand with an abundance of performances in every direction. Taylor had a bowl of noodles that honestly changed his life. The photo I took of him slurping those noods is possibly the happiest I’ve ever seen him. Pure bliss. In addition, we had some amazing duck, spring rolls, and pad Thai. Though it may have been a bit touristy, we felt this was the perfect transition into the culture we were so eager to absorb.
The following evening we explored the night markets and met a couple who, originally born in the states, both grew up abroad. Mila and Chris told us all about the wonders of Bangkok and SE Asia. Showered us in advice and invited us along on their plans to attempt to beat the infamous connect four lady at a nearby bar. Yeah, that’s right, connect four. Perhaps a little too cocky, I was sure I could win and gambled away a gooood amount of money. I never won once. Those women are quite skilled in the art of connect four! But it’s all about the experience, right?!
Our time in Bangkok was just a glimpse as we had planned to return at the end of our trip to spend more time there but became so enamored with Vietnam that we couldn’t leave. We were bummed not to have more time here but figured that it’s never a bad thing to have an excuse to come back.
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