Friday, January 30, 2009
Asia, pt II: In which the Patrol survives Bangkok...
Ah, Bangkok. To say that this was possibly the most uncomfortable 24 hours in my life would not be an overstatement. Unfortunately, it was a very sober 24 hours, which probably made it all worse. Go figure.
This is really a story best told in two parts.
First, the filth. Oh God, the filth. I have never smelled a worse smell than the collective stench that permeates the Bangkok air. It is truly otherworldly. It is bad. Imagine the hot breath of Satan. Then realize that I wasn’t even over there in mid-summer. It was that bad.
This is the sidewalk. The booth to the right are set up so the back of the booth faces the street. Hence, you can’t get to the street except at corners and crosswalks. On the left are actually buildings and stores. The path to get through is one person wide. One Asian person wide. I was a bit to big for this, and it took me like 2 hours to make it anywhere on foot that day.
How gross is the water? Check out these river eels. They were very much alive and very squirmy in that bucket. About as fresh of a fish as you can get.
This is really a story best told in two parts.
First, the filth. Oh God, the filth. I have never smelled a worse smell than the collective stench that permeates the Bangkok air. It is truly otherworldly. It is bad. Imagine the hot breath of Satan. Then realize that I wasn’t even over there in mid-summer. It was that bad.
This is the sidewalk. The booth to the right are set up so the back of the booth faces the street. Hence, you can’t get to the street except at corners and crosswalks. On the left are actually buildings and stores. The path to get through is one person wide. One Asian person wide. I was a bit to big for this, and it took me like 2 hours to make it anywhere on foot that day.
How gross is the water? Check out these river eels. They were very much alive and very squirmy in that bucket. About as fresh of a fish as you can get.
Bangkok does have a pretty spiffy new rapid transit system. The problem is, there’s only two lines, neither one was located near where I was staying, and the attractions weren’t really nearby. Here’s a view from one of the elevated stations looking down at a row of shanty houses. The unfinished airport connection line is to the top right.
The next segment of my Bangkok experience was the various Buddhist temples I visited that day. I made the Buddha very happy with monetary donations, let me tell you.
Here are two big temples gilded with gold, and containing giant Buddha statues. They were rather impressive. Lots of people stop in and out for prayer and meditation, and the monasteries provide many, many places for quiet reflection.
These are the Buddha’s footprints, which are supposed to bring good luck. You can see all the coins lined up as an enticement.
Here’s two Buddha statues. One’s little, one’s really, really big. The big one is on the large temple form the photo above.
The highest point I made it to in the city was a 100 foot manmade mound with, yup, another Buddhist temple on it. I swear there were more temples there in Bangkok than there are Catholic churches in Italy. I got a decent view of the skyline, although you can tell it’s very far away from the older development that I spent most of my time in.
Here are two big temples gilded with gold, and containing giant Buddha statues. They were rather impressive. Lots of people stop in and out for prayer and meditation, and the monasteries provide many, many places for quiet reflection.
These are the Buddha’s footprints, which are supposed to bring good luck. You can see all the coins lined up as an enticement.
Here’s two Buddha statues. One’s little, one’s really, really big. The big one is on the large temple form the photo above.
The highest point I made it to in the city was a 100 foot manmade mound with, yup, another Buddhist temple on it. I swear there were more temples there in Bangkok than there are Catholic churches in Italy. I got a decent view of the skyline, although you can tell it’s very far away from the older development that I spent most of my time in.
This row of Buddhas lined the wall of one of the temples. There were an amazing number of these things.
This is the King of Thailand. If you make fun of him, you will be arrested. An Aussie writer was just imprisoned for setting foot in the country after writing a fictional book disparaging the royal family. Don’t smuggle weed in this joint, yo.
These last pictures are of the airport. This is where the recent protests were, where demonstrators helped to overthrow the current corrupt government. This airport was basically at the center of the controversy, as it drined billions form the economy and was the symbol for graft.
It is a damn nice airport. Futuristic as all get out, and it has the best Duty-Free selection I have ever witnessed in an airport. The last pic was amazing. The distances you can see down the hallways are staggering.
This is the King of Thailand. If you make fun of him, you will be arrested. An Aussie writer was just imprisoned for setting foot in the country after writing a fictional book disparaging the royal family. Don’t smuggle weed in this joint, yo.
These last pictures are of the airport. This is where the recent protests were, where demonstrators helped to overthrow the current corrupt government. This airport was basically at the center of the controversy, as it drined billions form the economy and was the symbol for graft.
It is a damn nice airport. Futuristic as all get out, and it has the best Duty-Free selection I have ever witnessed in an airport. The last pic was amazing. The distances you can see down the hallways are staggering.
That’s it for Bangkok. 24 hours, and I made it out. Thank God. Koh Samui, however, was awesome.
(Yes, I was solicited by all manner of people for all manner of sexual activities. No I didn't partake, and No, I don't want to talk about it. Bangkok makes Vegas look like the Vatican, truth.)
