And Once Again . . . Why I Like Bangkok

Here I am, staying in a nice guesthouse with a view of the canal where foodstands are set up and huge carp cause constant movement in the canal.  While I was watching from my balcony, though, a huge monitor lizard swam by, pulled itself out of the water and sunned himself on a wall! 



In the evening, I went to the Fort by the Chao Phraya River because I read it was a great place to people watch.  That was definitely true!  People were all over the park watching the river and waiting for the sun to set, but also engaged in activities.  The photo shows 3 people practicing their juggling skills: two men with pins, a man with two ropes with balls (umm - on the ropes)  and a young woman with this bar that is meant to have fire on the ends.  She needs to get much better before she uses the fire!  At 6:00 exactly, everyone stopped EVERYTHING while the speakers played the salute to the King  . . . . . and then they commenced their activities after the music ended. 

I have tried to attach a video but was unable.  Too bad because it sort of captured a bit of the strangeness that makes me like this place.  So trying to re-create - Sun is setting, a large barge is being towed upriver, people are sitting and chatting all over the park and there are speakers playing some very nice Thai music with speaker and electrical cords running all over the park and down the stairs.  It was very 'atmospheric' and lovely, but would NEVER happen in the U.S.!  (Tripping hazard among other things.)
A bit of an add-on:  I went there tonight.- my last night in Bangkok to watch the sunset and, in addition to the usual array of jugglers, dancers, yoga groups, young couples, there was an aerobics class for elderly citizens!  (I know - I should have joined in!). It was great!  Then after the sunset headed to Rambuttri Road for dinner where people tried to sell me everything from frog noisemakers to fake tattoo sleeves and to roasted scorpions and a cool laser that made sparkly lights on the ground!  Ah, ya gotta love Bangkok!

 

Ko Lanta and Khao Sok

The Mangroves

The Fish Farm in the Mangroves

Lanta ended up being an okay place; not my favorite beach but okay.  A wrong choice in accommodations has a big impact and, while it was an inconvenience not staying on the beach, I got plenty of beach time.  There is really an interesting mix of folks there with a large Muslim population.  Everyone gets around on motorbikes or tuk-tuks and it's not unusual to see a woman in traditional Muslim clothing (fully covered from head to toe) driving a motorbike in 90+ degree weather.  I don't know how they can do it.  I sweat just standing still in shorts!  You also see tuk-tuks full of young men in traditional clothing on their way to school?/worship?  It was different than anywhere else I've been in Thailand and I liked that aspect of it.

I found a great Thai/Pizza restaurant that I frequented with great food and the 72 year old cook coming out to ask me if I liked the food.  The manager was a guy in his 60’s with a constant smile and who ran around constantly trying to tend all the tables, selling gas to motorbikes in between.  My last meal there, the cook hugged me and the manager said he would miss me! 

Koh Rok was definitely my favorite part of Koh Lanta, but the half-day kayak trip through the mangroves was also pretty cool.  I loved my guide.  He was 19 and kept asking me, “You okay?”  He said I was strong because I paddled for two hours, but really we spent a fair amount of time playing with the monkeys on the shore.  He would laugh and say, “Look, the snorkeling monkeys.” Because they did stay under water for a long time and were really good swimmers!  They were cute and not aggressive – a good thing in monkeys!

Then on to Khao Sok.  I visited Khao Sok last year and loved it and I STILL love it and hope to go back again someday.  It’s a beautiful place with great jungle noises, including gibbons in the morning off in the distance. 

The smells are also amazing as are the birds, insects and some funny little tree-hopping chipmunk looking things. 

A Tree at Sunset

A Canoe Trip on the Sok River

The View from my Room

Another Karst View While Canoeing

A Hike in the Jungle

This morning I was awakened by monkeys jumping on my roof to get to the bananas near my room.  Fortunately, these also were nice monkeys with no interest in me. 

Monkey in the Park

Monkey in the Mangroves

Monkey by My Room

On the minibus to Surat Thani I met an interesting fellow from Scotland and we talked most of the way.  He’s traveling for 3 months total, has another month to go and is headed for North Thailand.  He works as a freelance nurse so can take off chunks of time he said.  One of what I think is the most difficult things (and at the same time best things) about traveling is that you meet people with whom you really connect, but it’s brief and that’s just the way it is.  No one expects that you’ll keep in touch or ever see that person again, but they make an impression that stays with you.  I’m now on the overnight train waiting for its departure back to Bangkok and winding down my trip.  It’s been a good one.  I’ve had some great experiences, met some incredible people, been to some amazing places and I am ready to head home.