Bangkok

We left Kho Pha Ngan on Thursday at 4pm and, after a ferry and several minivan/coach journeys, reached Surat Thani station at 10.30pm. As our overnight train to Bangkok was leaving one hour later, we had just enough time for a quick bite - we settled for a little "out on the pavement" restaurant (there was not much else open at that late hour) and, while I tasted the best banana and chocolate pancake I've had so far, Gary treated himself to a red curry in which he found... a nail! At least, the waitress looked worried about it. The "kitchen" being a stand a bit further away on the pavement, we witnessed her exchange with the Chef, and after a few minutes she came back to triumphantly show us the thongs - sorry, I mean tongs :) - which the Chef had used to put chicken in Gary's curry: the nail had fallen into the mixture from the cooking implement. She seemed satisfied enough with the explanation to let us pay the full bill at the end anyway.

The sleeper train was surprisingly good: clean matresses, crisp bedsheets and pillows, a thick blanket which prevented the air con from making us cold and navy blue curtains on the side of each bed to block off the light, which was on all night in the carriage. My head hit the pillow as soon as we got on, and I was only woken up at about 8am when an endless stream of Thai ladies started to walk up and down the carriage, selling all sorts of food and loudly chanting what the items were over and over again, like a Thai mantra.

By lunchtime yesterday, we had reached the Khao San Road, where we found a guest house to stay. The street and its surrounding area are amazing: the pavements are lined up with hundreds of stands. You can find "backpacker's clothes" (you know, the hippy/loose/cottoney/washed off type...), bags, jewellery; pirate CDs and DVDs; people who will plait you hair or make dreadlocks out of it; other people who will sell you all sorts of fake IDs (student card for the University of Bangkok, anyone?)... and the choice on the numerous food stands is vast - you can buy every type of meat known (and also quite possibly unknown) to man, grilled on skewers; fried worms and tempura grasshoppers; pad thai, vegetable fried rice; pancakes with all the fillings you can dream of; all sorts of exotic fruit beautifully carved out or served up as smoothies; buckets of beer bottles or spirit with cans of mixers (ok, that's not really food); etc., etc.! Hidden by the stands are a quantity of bars and restaurants, Internet cafes, second hand book shops, travel agents, tattoo and massage parlours...

The place is buzzing with people, mostly Westerners: the tall, blond German who wears both socks and sandals; the shirtless English Northerner (chest bright red from sunburn); the flock of beautiful Swedish girls with long hair, white teeth and slim legs; the pierced, tattooed and dreadlocked Italian couple; the (overly) friendly middle aged American guy dressed from head to toe in white linen; the tanned and muscly young Israelis wearing straw hats and t-shirts with dirty jokes on them; and of course, the twentysomething French girl who moans she can't find a decent glass of wine or piece of cheese anywhere :) Among them, locals try to do business. There is the Thai guy who asks you if you need a tuk-tuk, the one who asks you if you want a hotel, the one who asks if you'd like to buy gems, and the one who just asks you where you are going ("Over there, if that's OK with you!"). Indian guys dressed in sleek black trousers and well cut shirts, trying to get you into their shop to sell you a taylor made suit. And the tiniest Thai ladies you have ever seen, wearing a funny beaded hat, walking around clutching a wooden frog which croaks when you stroke its evenly ridged back with a wooden stick (sorry if you have no idea what I'm on about!) and selling bracelets, necklaces, lighters and bamboo cigars. It is not rare to see a young Thai guy with a ladyboy on his arm. I wonder if this is an "accepted" heterosexual" practise around here??

Add to the above loud music blaring out from every direction and the crowd of pedestrians being splits in two by cars, tuk tuks, occasional flocks of Thai "Hell's Angels" on their Harley Davidsons, and even elephants led on a rope (weird, I know! We are still to figure out why they are here) and I think you get a pretty good idea of the atmosphere around here. I just love the messiness and craziness of it all!

It's in this same Banglamphu area that we met up with Andy and Rachel yesterday evening - they spent the last few days in Bangkok and were heading down to Cambodia for their holiday this morning. It was really nice to catch up with them and to hear all about what is going on back home, and, most of all, it was nice for us both to have someone else to talk to than one another!! I am joking, Gary ;)

Today, we went to Chatuchak Weekend Market. It is a giant flea market - we walked around it for hours and the "window shopping" was very enjoyable. To get there and back was a bit of a trek as it is in a completely different area of Bangkok, but it was rather worth it as it involved taking a speed canal boat which operates as public transport (quite an experience!) followed by doing a few stops on one of the two Bangkok sky train lines.

Off for a meal and a few drinks now!

C.