Bangkok was a blast. I stepped off my bus at about 7:30 pm on Friday and was ready for action. Liz and I (we travelled together) went straight from the bus station to jump in a cab to take us to the closest BTS (monorail) station to make our way to our hotel where everyone was waiting for us to go out. Already, you could tell we were no longer in rural Thailand anymore. Cars were honking, our taxi got stuck in traffic, and we were swarmed by people getting on and off the train as we pushed our way on. Bright lights whipped past us as the BTS train gained speed in between stops. In about 15 long minutes and 1 transfer, we had made it to our hotel.
The girls all met up in my room before we headed out the first night
We had about 10 minutes to change our clothes before we were rushed out the door to start our first official evening in BKK. We went to a bar called Witches Tavern and met up with another group of PCer’s from the group that got to Thailand the year before us (122er’s). Since it was the day after Cinco de Mayo, I had some margaritas, some other people had a few tequila shots, and drinks were passed around. The evening had begun. Since I had not eaten since boarding the bus (we were provided a meal, water, and desert shortly after starting our bus ride), I was starving. I ordered a cheese burger and fries to go with my delicious margaritas. In all the shuffle of getting drinks for everyone, they forgot to make my burger, but an hour and a half later, I was eating one of the best burgers I have had since getting to Thailand. The only thing that could have made it better was if they threw on some bacon and BBQ sauce (YUM!).
Dom and me (sorry, horrible pic) and dancing at a clue in BKK
Some people had arrived the night before and already had a night on the town. They had gone to a club and met the owner who invited everyone to come back with them. So, we left Witches Tavern and made our way through the streets to the next stop on our adventure. I think it definitely can pay to be a foreigner in a city that likes American’s. We had a whole section of the club reserved for us and were provided with a bottle of whiskey that was served for us by our personal waiters. We danced, we laughed, and we let loose of all the tension that had built up from needed to be “on” all of the time at site. It was definitely a fun time.
The next day, Saturday, was nice and relaxing. A group of us found a place that served an American breakfast called Bourbon Street, and had a late brunch. We split up then and I ended up heading to a mall called MBK to check it out. The only way to describe it is massive. I believe the mall has eight levels with one store leading into another. It felt like the Christmas season in Seattle with how many people were packed into the small walkways in between stores. It was definitely overwhelming compared to my site. On the 5th floor I was able to find a small coffee shop with comfortable chairs. This is what I have dreamed about since coming to Thailand. A place where I could just sit a read for an hour or two. I ordered a drink, got out my Kindle and just sat there for an hour. I forgot about everything. I was in my own little world for a short time. It was wonderful. Before leaving the mall, I got a much needed hair cut and purchased a new shirt for the evenings festivities.
The criss-crossing escalators at MBK mall
Some of my friends had heard about a Mexican restaurant that had ladies night that night and would serve margaritas to ladies for free from 10pm-midnight. So, we planned on going out to dinner, getting ready and heading back out on the BTS for another fun night out. There was a little pizza joint right outside of our hotel, so we decided to stop there. I split a pasta dish and salami pizza with a friend. AMAZING!! I will definitely be hitting this place up again the next time I am in BKK. After changing we headed out and did some exploring of Bangkok before descending on the Mexican restaurant. We stayed there for 2 hours chatting, laughing, and of course, drinking our free drinks. Because we were all still tired from the previous evening, and a few of us had to wake up early to catch our buses the next day, we decided to head back to our hotel and hang out there. After hanging out for another couple of hours, my time in Bangkok was wrapping up. I headed off to bed and woke up the next morning in time to pack and head to the bus station.
Last night on the town before heading back to site
I would have to say it was a successful mini-holiday. A much needed time to re-energize, talk to friends out their experiences that they have had over the last month, and get ready for whatever is to come at us next.
Back home (Bangrakam):
I left my site on Friday believing that I would be viewing a rental house today to potentially move into. I had a lot of faith that this would be the house for me. This morning, about an hour ago, I was advised that this home was no longer available. I would not be able to move in there, and I will be staying with my host family through, at least, the remainder of this month. There is another man building some homes right now that will be completed next month sometime, so there is a chance that I will have a place in the near future.
This was a blow for me after this weekend. I was sure everything was on the right track. But, I have to remember to take a few deep breaths and remember that I can’t expect everything to work out perfectly. I have to remind myself that getting my own home is not my purpose for being here, and that I really do like the host family that I am staying with currently. I can get through this. I can adapt, and I can do this…this is just an obstacle that I need to find a way around.
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