The begining of the trip, starting out in Bangkok.

My first tuk-tuk ride. Later to be known as the 'tuk-fuk'
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Well, Bangkok is a hell of a place to start out this open-ended, un-defined trip.  It has been perfect to get me back into the traveling mentality after too many months of answering phones and playing errand boy.  I've been staying in a nice enough hostel, which has had a good mix of all different sorts of travelers: old and young, western and eastern.  I quickly remembered the joys of walking into a new, unknown place and looking around for friendly faces, or someone to talk to.  I was able to find plenty of both here in Big John's Hostel... aside from Big John himself, funny enough, who is a middle aged australian guy with a very odd set of social skills.

Marnie and I on St. Patty's Day...
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But I digress... back to my story.  I got into town here right around midnight on the 15th, tired from what basically amounted to 48 hours of planes and airports: Albany, Detroit, Tokyo, and finally Bangkok.  I grabbed a cab to the hostel, and only got a little ripped off (I heard several worse stories).  Turned out an american guy who'd been on my plane from Tokyo was also staying in the same place, though we didn't realize it til we'd each arrive at the hostel.  We hung out and had a beer, digesting that we were in Bangkok.  Then it was to bed in a thankfully air conditioned room, as it's hot and sticky as hell here, even during the night.

The guys on St. Patty's Day: Erik, Olaf, Mathius, and I.
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The next day I woke at 7:30am not knowing what time it was... I didn't realize how early it was til I lugged myself down the 3 flights of stairs and by then I was already awake and smelling coffee.  A while later I met of with Mathius (the kid from my flight) and  we went out exploring the city a bit.  Riding the skytrain (basically elevated metro) into a more central area of the city (Bangkok is a sprawling city of 10 million-ish) we saw some sights, and generally wandered the streets, taking it all in.  Rode in a couple different tuk-tuk's which was a novel way to get around, at first.  Tuk-tuk's are motor bikes with a carriage connected to the back which could squeeze four tightly, but's great for two.   It's fun at first, but they like to try to take you to their 'sponsors,' tailors or jewlers who pay them to bring tourist there...  It got old after a while, and now I just ignore the tuk-tuks because they're pushy and expensive.  Anyway, that first day we went to a couple different wats, the most impressive of which was Wat Pho.  Wats are buddhist temples (over 300 in Bangkok alone), and come in all different sizes and styles.  Most of them are pretty dramatic and ornate.  Wat Pho has a massive (MASSIVE) reclining Budda that is really cool.  That day we also went of a 7 story(!) shopping center with all different kinds of stuff for sale.  Lots of decent quality designer imposter stuff for sale, and open for the bargining. That night I went out to a 'night bazaar' with a couple brits, an aussie, and a couple sweedish girls, where we sat in an outdoor beer garden enjoying the atmosphere and "Sing Ha' - Thailands finest.   A full and fun first day which ended around 5am.

Huge reclining Budda at Wat Pho.
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I slept in a bit that second day (17th, St. Patty's Day) and in the afternoon went with Mathius, and a middle-aged couple (Dutch dude, Italian chick) to the weekend market (the worlds largest flea market, as it's advertised; I believe it).  More than one square mile of vendors selling anything and everything, it was quite an experience.  That being said, it was another hot and sweaty Bangkok day with thousands of people perusing through the rows of shops and stands.  Made for quite a slimey afternoon.  While at the market I went to an ATM to take out some more money and was surprised to find my card not working.... I tried 5 more ATM's with the same result.  I had used my card for the first time the night before, and figured that my bank had just put a temporary hold on there.  Still, it's not a nice feeling to be unable to access your own cash.  I eventually got it resolved with some help from home later that night, thanks Mom.  But at the time, in the market, the lack of funds put a quick end to my purchasing for the day... Back to the hostel for a nap, the best way to deal with the problem :-)  That night I had a great night out with a different group of new friends: american, german, two canadian girls, and a sweedish dude.  Another long and incredibely entertaining night....

Mathius and i on the boat tour.
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The following day I hung out with Mathius again, setting out on the mission of taking a boat ride through the many canals, rivers, and waterways of Bangkok; eventually ending up at a 'floating market,' another wat, and a Snake Show where we got to watch guys play with pythons, vipers, and cobras, among others.  They still had all their venom too, as was shown when the 'milked' the cobra of their venom at the end of the show... The boat ride itself was cool too, cruising around in a long, narrow rig that leaned dangerously into every turn, and was propelled by a massive motor.  Massive in an old awkward way, it looking like an air conditioner you'd put in your window at home, mounted on a swivel, the propeller on a 6 foot shaft, all operated by hand.  A crazy looking, but reasonably effective setup.   The scenery that the boat cruised through was equally dramatice: piers and houses on stilts, rich places, poor places, greenish smelly water with smiling, waving kids swimming and playing in the hot afternoon sun.  It was a sight to behold...  Tired from the day and the previous nights, that evening was a quiet one of reading and writing.

One of the long boats, with the awkward motor.
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When I woke of the next morning I was 24.  I've managed to keep my streak of Birthdays going for another year: 21 in Copenhagen, 22 in Costa Rica, 23 in Chile, and now 24 in Bangkok (if only is started with a 'C').  I didn't actually do to much exciting with my day; the big event of the daytime was going to the US embassy to get more pages put into my passport (I'm almost all filled up).  While there I got some really good info from other folks waiting, mostly stuff about visas, Thailand and elsewhere, that'll be usefull as I proceed...  I also treated my self to a massage for my birthday.  Thailand is famous for their quality massages at dirt cheap prices.  I got a 1 hour 'Thai Massage' for 200 baht (like $6).  And for those of you with minds that instantly dive into the gutter (you know who you are) no, there was no hanky-panky, honest!  If anything it was my birthday evening was of an interesting, seady variety.  All the guy friends that I'd made so far had split town in different directions, so I was forced to go out with 5 girls for the night... it's a tough life.  It started out innocently enough, just going out for a beer at a local bar.  The conversations eventually turned to the 'shows' that go on in Patpong (the red light-ish district in Bangkok).  They were all interested and down right eager to go, I followed suit, reluctantly of course...  Ask me the story some day :-)  It was certainly a birthday that won't soon be forgotten.

Cobra
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All that leads up to today, the 20th.  A solo day for the most part, I walked for a few hours through lots of different sections of the city.  Went through China town, which is massive and alive.  While there I made friends with a 60 yr old Thai guy, a history teacher from Chang Mai who struck up a conversation with me.  We talked a while, and when we parted he asked me to go to his house for dinner and meet his family when I'm up in Chang Mai (I'll be there sometime soon).  If that'll happen, I don't know but it was an interesting and educational interaction either way.  I then went to check out the Grand Palace, the most famous royal residence in the Bangkok.  While there I also went to a couple more wats, one of which houses the Emerald Budda, one of the most sacred sites in Thailand.  Also a big tourist draw.  Tonight I'm taking it easy, and I think I'll leave the city tomorow.  I think I'm gonna head north in the directions on Chang Mai, but I'm not sure where yet.  The further south you go right now the heat and humidity grows exponentially, so I'm gonna do some exploring in the north first.  Hop over the border into Laos by April 13 when my first visa here in thailand expires....

Me and a python.
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So Bangkok has been fun.  A good start to a long trip.  Interesting sights, sounds, and smells I've enjoyed myself.  Speaking of smells, wherever you walk there are street vendors selling all different sorts of food: meat and veggies, soup, noodles, rice, curry, fruit.  I just walking down the street til something smells good, and that's where I find lunch.  The Thai have a saying that translates to "food for fun" and they are constantly snacking.  I love it, it's right up my ally.

My Birthday crew, pre-Patpong.
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Well, til next time, take care and much love to all

Evan

ps.  Click on the "View more photos" link to see a couple more.  I guess the sight only puts up so many with the actual text... enjoy!