One week in Bangkok

Southeast Asia! Next two months we'll be going clockwise starting from Bangkok, through north Thailand, Laos, all the way down Vietnam, Cambodia, then back to Bangkok for our flight home.

I'm so happy Bangkok is bookending our time here. It's my favorite big city of our trip. Modern, clean, cheap, bouncing with life and activity, great food. I've already eaten Pad Thai 9 times in our first week here.

We stayed a week while our passports were at the Vietnamese embassy for visas. What a week! Stayed in a super-modern hostel that looked like something from an interior design magazine.

Priscilla's Uncle lives here, so we spent some time with his family. Visited a floating market, took a river boat trip, shopped at an orchid farm, and ate at the best Pad Thai place in Bangkok.

The Grand Palace is undoubtedly Bangkok's star tourist attraction. The official residence of the Thai Monarchy (although the current King and Queen usually reside elsewhere) for three hundred years. A beautiful maze of golden buildings, Ramayana murals, and statues, all crawling with tourist groups. The complex contains Wat Phra Kaeo, the holiest Buddhist shrine in Thailand, home to the famous Emerald Buddha (actually jade). Also numerous museums covering the restoration of palace buildings, the royal regalia, coins, weapons, and an excellent museum on the Queen and Princess.

Next to the palace is Wat Pho temple, with giant stupas and an enormous 50m-long reclining Buddha.

Bangkok has dozens of museums, although we only hit a few. The National Museum could use some work, but included an outstanding collection of royal funeral chariots.

Far more interesting was the Siam Museum; an interactive look at Thai history and what it means to be Thai.

Also enjoyed the Jim Thompson house, the swanky former home of a Delawarean/former spy/silk baron who revived Thailand's silk industry in the 50s. His material was featured in "The King and I" and he famously disappeared in the late 60s.

I also played in a Magic prerelease event at a local game store. I was the only non-Thai and everyone seemed like students from the university next door. Announcements were in Thai and everyone chatted in Thai, so I didn't really know what was going on, but the cards were in English and all the players knew at least a little English. They'd post the pairings and the shopkeeper made sure my opponent found me.

We have walked all over the city, saw art galleries, malls, markets, a Japanese festival, ate Carolina BBQ, found a hair stylist convention, went to a jazz bar; it's really hard to be bored in Bangkok. You have to be trying.

Our last night in Bangkok we saw an excellent Thai movie: "Freelance" or "Heart Attack" (two different English titles for some reason). A workaholic freelance graphic designer works too hard and starts having health problems, but struggles to follow his attractive doctor's strict orders. Really funny, great characters.

-Peter