Sawadee

Arriving in Bangkok from Delhi was an unexpected culture shock. For starters, the new Suvarnabhumi airport is a far cry from what the overcrowded, stuffy old BKK airport was. The new airport building is an elegant structure of steel and glass that shade visitors from the tropical heat. It is absolutely spotless and the systems work smoothly. It was a pleasure arriving.

The drive from the Airport to Kho San Road also had me stunned for most of the way. For starters, the roads are quiet. Drivers only use hooters as a warning. The roads are not overcrowded with motorbikes and cows either. A nice change from the roads of Delhi. There seems to be a road system, or road rules that people follow. And the drive...well it feels like you're in the first class seat of a very smooth ride. No more auto rickshaw backache!

And then you hit the city. The first thing that struck me besides all the neat high rises is the billboard advertising. In India, there are very few billboards. You really get to escape advertising in India. Outdoor advertising is under developed and exists in predominantly in crude wall murals. But in BKK, the billboards are dynamic and feel quite innovative, even compared to the boards I've seen in the EU. They jump out at you, shout at you and you cannot help being drawn to them.

The driver pulled into Khoa San road and my heart started beating fast! It is completely wild - a mix of Asian and Western youth culture jam packed onto a single road. There are markets selling cd's, clothes, dvd's, bars selling cocktails, food vendors selling freshly cut fruit, mini coconut and rice pancakes, phad thai, anything you can think of. There are bright lights everywhere and a continuous buzz. The energy on this street is dynamic. I loved it and was SO PLEASED to be here. In some ways I felt a sense of release and relief.

I spent 2 days in BKK cruising around the city and getting lost. I visited a few of the main temples which are beautiful, had a massage - wow, had a hair cut, had a wax, and had a swim in a crystal clear pool (I treated myself to a nice hotel for day 1). I also managed to get 2kgs of laundry washed and ironed for the sum of 2 squid! It was great to hang out in a city that operates in a way that is familiar in some sense.

After a lot of umming and ahhing, I decided I would skip Thailand. I booked a bus ticket that would take me from BKK to Vientiane, Laos in 9 hours.

I had an excellent feeling about my decision.