Bangkok- Day One

I finally arrived in Bangkok at about 1am local time on Saturday night. The 5 hour flight from Seoul was pretty smooth as I had a whole row of 5 seats to myself and literally laid out and slept almost the entire trip. When I got to Bangkok, I actually felt somewhat awake despite having been travelling for over 24 hours. Probably adrenaline. I checked in to my guesthouse, Baan Chantra. Baan Chantra is a traditional Thai house that was renovated by a family about 1 1/2 years ago. It is a family run place with two sisters and a brother in law doing all of the work. They are incredibly friendly and hospitable. They have been very helpful in my short time here. It is in a great location very near to lots of the main attractions, but just far enough to not be caught in the middle of it all and get a quiet night.

Upon checking in, I walked down the street to a little hole in the wall that the lady at the guesthouse recommended. I grabbed a beer and a yummy plate of noodles with beef. This set me back a whopping 75BHT, slightly more than $2. Exchange rate is about 35-1. Dirt cheap and very tasty. Hit the spot as I was pretty hungry. Headed back to the guesthouse to try and get a good nights sleep and get on the local schedule.

Went to sleep and woke up ready to go at 8am. Originally, I had planned to just take it easy and not do too much. Had some coffee and breakfast and went out for a day seeing some of the sights in Bangkok. First, I took about a 2o minute walk and headed to the National Art Gallery and than to Wat Phra Kaew (a massive Buddhist temple) and the Grand Palace. On the way there, I met several people travelling from Indonesia, who I ended up touring the sights with.

We stopped for lunch afterwards in this little hole in the wall. After having difficulty understanding the people there and no menu, we figure out there were three options. Fish stomach soup?????????, rice chicken (chicken with rice) and some kind of spring roll thing with meats and veggies. Decided to have the spring roll dish which was extremely delicious. Didn't have the courage for the fish stomach soup, but it actually looked good.

After that, it was on to Wat Pho (Temple of The Reclining Buddha.) A temple complex which is known for it's massive reclining buddha. Have to see it to understand.

After that, it was on to Wat Pho, which is The Temple of The Reclining Buddha. A massive buddha reclining. Hard to explain. Guess you have to see it to understand. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wat_Pho After that, I was exhausted and headed back for a nap before heading out to dinner and the Patang Night Market. One of the many markets.

So much for an easy relaxing day.

Almost There... In Seoul, S. Korea

Well. The first leg of the trip is out of the way. The 14 hour and 41 minute direct flight from Seoul. I had been dreading this flight, but it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. Watched a couple of movies on the Korean air video on demand system, started reading a book, and slept for a little bit. Luckily, the row of four seats only had two of us so we had room to spread out. Guy sitting next to me was on his way home to Bangladesh after spending time in the US on a church mission trip. Here are some interesting facts about Bangladesh that he shared. It is the size of Iowa and has 150 million people and is the most densely populated country in the world. As long as the flight was, I could have listened to the entire history of Bangladesh.

I am sitting here with a 3 hour layover before hopping a 5 hour flight to Bangkok. This is the hardest part as I am just ready to be there and get settled in. It is 7pm here on Saturday. Probably about 5 in the morning back home. That feels weird. A day or two and I will be right on schedule. I arrive in to Bangkok at close to midnight and plan to head right to sleep.

Things will get more interesting.

Southeast Asia Here I Come

It's that time again to head off and explore another part of the world. This time it's off to Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia for a little more than two weeks. It all begins with a dreadful day of travelling that will take me close to 24 hours to arrive at my final destination of Bangkok, Thailand. I depart Atlanta on Friday for a 15 hour direct flight to Seoul, S. Korea. I cringed just typing that. Than I have a connection for another 5 hour flight to finally arrive in Bangkok at close to midnight on Sunday.

That is when the fun begins. I will than spend the next couple of days exploring what Bangkok has to offer and hopefully getting some fantastic deals on custom made suits and shirts. After a couple of days in Bangkok, I head to Northern Thailand for a few days. I will be staying in Chiang Mai before heading off on a hike in to the mountains and a visit to the hilltribes. The hilltribes are a ethnic minorities who live in the Northern part of Thailand. They have maintained their simple way of life for thousands of years. I am extremely excited about visiting them as this will be a completely unique and interesting cultural experience.

After spending a few days in Northern Thailand, I head back to Bangkok for one night before flying out to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam where I will join a tour with 15 people with a company called Gap Adventures. They come highly recommended as friends of mine have travelled with them to Africa and South America. The tour will include Vietnam, Cambodia and finish in Thailand. One of the things I am most looking forward to is Angkor Wat (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angkor_Wat.

Here is my itinerary for the tour:

Day 1- Ho Chi Minh City
Day 2- Chau Doc Travel through the Mekong Delta to the town of Chau Doc where there is time to take in the local culture and experience life on the river.
Day 3-4- Phnom Penh Explore Phnom Penh, beginning with the National Museum and adjacent complex of the Silver Pagoda and Royal Palace. After 1975, when Pol Pot and his henchmen grabbed power, Cambodia was thrown into an abyss of unspeakable violence and mass-murder. Millions of Cambodians perished during this time. Witness to this genocide are the Killing fields of Choeung Ek and the Tuol Sleng prison.
Day 5-7 Siem Reap/Angkor Wat Explore Angkor, the former capital of the Khmer kingdom and one of the wonders of the archeological world. Rediscovered at the end of the last century by French explorers this vast ruined city is becoming one of the most popular sites in Southeast Asia. Over 2 days, visit some of the highlights of this ancient capital, like the magnificent temple of Angkor Wat, the enigmatic Bayon within the walled city Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm, Preah Khan and Banteay Srei.
Day 8-9 Bangkok Head through the countryside of Cambodia to the modern kingdom of Thailand.

It should be a very exciting and unique trip. It will be unlike anything I have ever done before and I am so ready to get it started.

I will do my best to update the blog as much as possible. Personally, I enjoy it as it serves as a personal journal to help document my experiences.