Bangkok

If there is a city among all Asian capitals that you should not miss visiting- this is Bangkok! Yes, Bangkok, that huge, buzy, smelly and noisy and crowded type of anarchy that happens to be the capital of one of the most beautiful countries I have seen. It is not particularly attractive but its special as it makes you really feel the spirit of Asia. For me it was the first absolutely Asian experience so far. Hugeness. 10 million people. Scorching heat in the beginning of November. Real Buddhism. Extreme poverty. Extreme wealth.. Bangkok has got it all. The ultimate never-ending negotiating of taxi prices is the thing to get you started. For somebody who has been only to Hong Kong and Macau, it’s an adventure. In Macau taxis use the meter. In Bangkok they use the art of barter. Tuk Tuk’s are the best way to get around (wait for the visuals - comming soon)- its like half a car, half a motor, it’s small, compact, fast and fun as you are basically siting outside while being driven around town. From one temple to the other, from China Town to the Siam square. There is so much to see and do and everything is scattered around the map. The temples are magical – even though when I enter and see all those people praying to the golden Buddha I don’t know what to do with myself and I just stand still and try to formulate a wish (but somehow at this very moment in the temple I feel absolutely content withmy life and everything around me). Buddhist temples are unique. The Temple of the Sun - my favourite (again –soon I will get the pics), The Reclining Buddha- spectacular. The grandeur of the Grand Palace and the rest – so much light, quietness, simpleness and experience at once. (Of course if you exclude the millions of tourists who feel the same way around you.)

Night life in Bangkok is like night life in Amsterdam. The resemblance is sticking. When you come to Amsterdam you need to fill up your head with jelly, get involved in a weird type of entertainment mostly involving sexual themes and you are supposed to end up at some weird place. In Bangkok – same same but different (I will dedicate a post to this phrase as it is becoming part of my Asian life by the minute). Shit-facing options –all over the place, prostitution- abundnant, good music- everywhere, annoying touristsl to be found in each of the venues offering all of the above. There is rave and rock and punk and jazz and whatever you want and the Thai are so kind to invite to to a local gig. And this is how I ended up on a touist-free sidestreet, chatting with a local band and just hanging out with a beer in my hand. Just like those high-scool years.

I don’t want to talk about the food because it will never be enough. Sweet, sour, steamed, fresh, with peanuts, extra spice, rice, rice rice, no meet (Buddha!!!), spring rolls, papaya salad, loads of noodles everywhere. May be one of the healthiest cuisines I have had. Slurping hot spicy soup in the 35 degrees in Weekend Market (officially the biggest market in word visited by hundreds of thousands of people each weekend) is what can really make you feel local. Sweating and slurping, slurping and sweating I managed to discover finally the secret of eating soup with chopsticks. Yeah. That’s right with chopsticks. Walking around the market in the heat, bargaining for flipflops, checking out scarfs, meeting random locals and enjoying a freshly squeezed pine apple juice with a Buddha smiling on every corner – glourious days in Asia!

You just want to stand still, open your sences as wide as possible and absorb as there is so much of it all – music, scent, sights you haven’t seen, tastes you may never try again. I wanted to take them all with me. Too bad you can’t take pictures of scents; you can’t record the feshness of the healthy Thai meal. They stay with you though, carefully placed in the emotional album collecting everything worth collecting. Just like the one-hour Thai massage I will may be remember forever. Exquisite!

topics omitted from the discussion: trasnformers, trasformer flight attendants, Khao San Road, prices, ultra cool T-shirts, the floathing market, Thai punk music