Upon arriving in Bangkok we made it through customs without incident and went to the taxi stand. After my first ride in a thai taxi I decided that I liked thai driving. The lane markers seem to be regarded as suggestions, and im pretty certain the taxis were racing each other for fun at times.
Our first night we stayed at a free hostel. It was a very Hippyish place, and we were unfortunately sleeping there on a night that they were having a party. The music stopped at around 4 in the morning. The beds weren’t the most comfortable thing, but it was a place to sleep and that’s all I wanted to do at that time.
In the morning we showered and headed off to find our University. Upon arriving we found out that when the school is closed, they really lock down the campus. There were gates and guards at every entrance. We were informed that it would not be open untill Monday. Therefore we set out to find a new place to stay, a bit closer to campus than our first night. As we walked around we saw monks in their saffron robes going on their morning alms walk. The monks are not allowed to keep material positions such as money or food, so every morning they set out with bowls or bags, and people put food into them for the Monks to eat for the day.
As we ambled about, not quite sure were to go we luckily ran into a helpful thai man who put us on a TukTuk to the Tourism Authority of Thailand, who was able to get us a great deal on a room in a guesthouse. We stowed our bags there and started exploring the area around us. As it turns out many shops were also closed for the weekend, extending their New Years celebration. The streets are lined with vendors in this part of the town, selling everything from amulets to cheep food (We at lunch at a sidewalk restaurant. It cost 3 dollars for both me and Steve)
Right now the city is a tad bit overwhelming. The campus, with its walls and gates looks rather foreboding at the moment. I am definitely culture shocked at the moment. But then again, that’s what I came for.
After lunch we went to see some of the sights. Actually we just wandered around and then went on a tuktuk tour (more on that later). Most of these sights I think I shall have to revisit when I actually know some backstory on them, and I would probably find them more enjoyable.
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