Sukhothai: Day 2

On our only full day in Sukhothai, we started out with a tour through a local village. We rode on motorized tuk-tuks, starting from our hotel. This meant that we did some driving on the main roads, sometimes down the shoulder of the wrong side. We ended up in a village where the main occupation is farming. We had to pull over a few times to let herds of cattle pass.

The people seemed excited about our presence. They loved waving and yelling "hi!" from their homes or their cars. We stopped and chatted with a few little boys who were practicing their English. All they knew was "What is your name?" and "How old are you?" Our first stop on our village tour was at the oldest house which, despite the fact that it had a thatched roof and was on soggy stilts, was over 100 years old. The woman inside of it was almost the same age.

Even though the woman couldn't see or hear very well, we all got out and traipsed through her home. I felt bad until I saw our guide hand her a pretty lofty wad of Baht (Thai currency) and realized she was probably more than happy to have us there. We also stopped at a home that raised roosters for cock fighting. I was really disturbed by this stop, but cock fighting is a popular sport in Thailand and raising roosters for it can be a profitable business. I saw the champions in their cages and a few that looked like they lost one too many fights.

Following our emotionally upsetting cock fighting excursion (luckily we didn't actually see any fights), we went to a local trappers house to see how they would trap local vermin for food. We saw traps for eels, rats, fish, frogs, and snakes. All of which can be found in rice fields and are considered food to the local people. A few of my tour mates were put off from eating meat for a few days upon discovering that these were potential meat options in Thailand. The local guide gave us a hilarious display demonstrating how the traps worked. He didn't know very much English so he would flamboyantly act out how the animal would become caught in the trap involving a lot of flailing and screaming and then yell, "No Come Back!". He was hysterical and got a generous tip.

After our visit to the local village we tuk-tuked back to our hotel and prepared for the second half of our day on bikes through Sukhothai Historical Park.

Sukhothai

Our journey to Sukhothai was 6 hours by charter bus. When we got to the bus station the only food choice we really had was KFC unless we decided to buy a meal coupon and use it to purchase a mystery meal at one of the nearby stalls. I can be adventurous, but I don't want to destroy my vacation with a questionable meal. I got to sit next to Kitti for the whole ride over. He would always lean over and point out each temple or abandoned building we passed and talk about it. The bus showed a movie during the first half of our trip. You did not get to choose if you wanted to watch it or not. They blared the sound for the movie so loud that you couldn't sleep or listen to your own headphones, you just had to sit there and stare at the movie trying to make out what was happening in Thai. It had lots of graphic violence, attacks against women, and slapstick comedy. Oh Thailand. The guide thought the movie was hilarious, so I was obviously missing out by not understanding the Thai language.

Half way through we stopped at a rest stop. Imagine a rundown gas station bathroom. Now imagine it in the middle of nowhere Asia. Oh. My. God. There were two holes and a spray hose. The floor was soaking wet. No toilet paper. No hand soap. There was not enough hand-sanitizer in the world to rectify that experience. Luckily I had toilet paper in my purse which I had to hold balanced on my knees since there was no hook to put it on and the floor was not an acceptable option.

Sukhothai is beautiful. Our hotel was beautiful. All of the rooms where connected to outdoor walkways so we could see the view of the pool. The only issue with that was the we were also very exposed to nature, lots of mosquitoes and geckos. In our room. That night we had dinner at the hotel again while we watched Thai people and tourists alike sing some karaoke to 70s American soft rock.

The Tour Begins!

Day one of our tour, we explore Bangkok. We kicked it off with a very unique cultural experience. Riding the public bus.

Oh yes, those are wooden floors. The woman next to me kept bowing her head as we passed by every temple and Buddha along the way. I worried that I was being offensive for not bowing my head at them. We got off at Wat Pho. It is one of the largest temples in Bangkok and has one of the largest reclining Buddhas.

We also had the opportunity to watch some chanting monks. I believe they were having a ceremony for a new arrival. Kitti informed us that every Buddhist male must be a monk for 3 months at the age of 20.

As we were exiting this temple and putting our shoes back on, another orange-clad monk walked past us and his phone began to play a very loud instrumental version of happy birthday. Maybe it was appropriate since everyday is like your birthday in Buddhism...but he probably just enjoyed the tune.

After Wat Pho we took a ride through the canals of Bangkok. I saw rampant poverty in the homes along the canals. Bangkok is split into two parts, old Bangkok which is full of old shacks, and new Bangkok which appears to be filled with medical buildings. The boat ride was very bumpy because we were moving very fast and I managed to get some of the dark brown canal water in my mouth. So far I'm still alive. We saw a giant monitor lizard sitting on a wall during our trip. Can you imagine having one of those things wander into your house?

We also bought some stale bread and fed it to the giant fish in the canal. I was concerned that they would try to eat fingers as well, but luckily they didn't turn out to be the kind with teeth.

After that we took a trip through the flower markets in the streets of Bangkok which sold a lot more than flowers and smelled...unique. When we got back to the hotel we caught a van to take us to the chartered bus station where we will catch a bus out to Sukhothai!

Meeting my Group

On my first full day in Bangkok I met my tour group. First I met my roommate who showed up shortly after noon. She is from Germany, but speaks English quite well. She had already spent the last two weeks in Thailand on a different tour and spending time with her sister who was traveling as well. She looked tired. Neither of us were sure what to do in Bangkok so we spent almost the whole day in the room with the exception of going downstairs for food. I attempted to wander the streets, but I was at a stand still when it came to crossing the road. On all sides the hotel was surrounded by busy streets with no stop signs or cross walks that I could see. I stood at an intersection for awhile trying to understand how it worked, but I ended up giving up and walking back to the hotel. Luckily, there was a 7-11 I could get to without crossing any streets. Although, in Thailand, every street block is pretty much going to have a 7-11. I took a look out the window for the first time during day light and discovered that we weren't exactly in the heart of downtown. As far as I could tell, we were in the middle of a low income neighborhood with the city off in the distance.

I preferred the view at night time.

My tour guide's name is Kittisak. He told us that its easier for us to call him Kitti. He described this by saying "Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty!" to demonstrate how to say his name. There are 15 of us total. 6 from the US, 1 from Germany, 4 from London, 2 from Mexico, and 2 from Switzerland. Everyone spoke English really well except for the mother in the Swiss mother/daughter team, who had her daughter translate for her. We were supposed to go to Chinatown to have a Chinese dinner, but it began to rain and Kitti said we would have to cancel. Kitti seems to have a deep fear of rain. Again, I'm not sure how this is possible in a place that has a six month long monsoon season. We ended up eating at the hotel. The hotel had a lot of American food options, but as I would come to learn, some traditional American foods such as spaghetti and cheeseburgers are not exactly the same when made in Thailand. Anything with cheese is a gamble because cheese just isn't a traditional part of Thai cooking. Luckily, being my first day, I was ready for some Pad Thai. It was good, but in all honesty, I liked the taste of the Pad Thai from my favorite Thai restaurant in Seattle better. I was still very excited to try the food in Thailand, but I'm not sure that eating in a hotel that caters to Western tourists was the best first experience. That night I was so tired I went to bed almost directly after dinner, we had to get up early in the morning for our first day of the tour.

Arriving in Bangkok

More than 21 hours after I departed from Seattle, I landed in Bangkok at 1:45am July 1st. I was incredibly relieved that so far everywhere I'd been there were signs in English.

There was a massive thunderstorm with pouring rain when I arrived. This was the first sign that bringing only a backpack was a good choice. Everyone's checked luggage was delayed for almost 2 hours because of the rain. I'm not sure why, but so far in Thailand everything shuts down when it rains. Considering that it has rained everyday since I've arrived, this seems a little bit over-reactive.

Somehow, even at 2am, customs took FOREVER and I picked the slow line. I didn't get through until nearly 3am and was almost positive that at this point the driver that I arranged to take me to the hotel wouldn't be there. I found the Association of Thai Travel Agents booth where I was supposed to meet my ride and didn't see anyone. Upon closer examination, there was someone there, and they were sleeping across two chairs that were pushed under the desk. After yelling "Hello!" repeatedly he woke up looking very upset that I disturbed his slumber, and when I told him that I was looking for my transfer, he told me to go to the booth on the other side of the airport and then fell right back to sleep. Amazingly, I found my driver. He was waiting for me and another girl who was going on a different Gap Adventures trip but who was on my same flight. We waited but she never showed so we drove to the hotel. This was my first experience with Thai driving. Lanes and speed limits are a very mild suggestion. My driver informed me that his name was something that sounded like "Meatboo" and that it meant "number 1" in English. This was about all the English he knew.

When I got to the hotel I was so tired and cranky. My driver spoke with the desk to tell them about the lost girl as I patiently waited to get to my room. Finally they gave me a key but told me I would have to check out at 11am, and then check back in for my next night. When I got to my room none of the lights or air conditioning worked. I was about to start crying like an overtired baby, but I managed to feel around in the dark and discover a device on the wall that had a slit on the top perfect for my card so I threw it in there.

This was my first experience with the energy-saving practice I would find in every single hotel throughout the trip. I don't know why they don't do this in the US. All I can imagine is a bunch of whiny US tourists complaining that the temperature of there room wasn't perfect after being out all day without the air conditioning on. Service above the environment in America. I instantly collapsed on my bed. I needed to SLEEP.

Leaving for Thailand

I woke up at 7am on June 29th so that I could end up in Thailand at 11:20pm on June 30th. I like to be prepared. Flying Delta was a much better experience than I've ever had on any other airlines. It might also be because it was an international flight. When I discovered the in-flight entertainment options I spent more than an hour trying to determine whether or not clicking play would result in a secret charge on my credit card. I ended up becoming so bored that I didn't care what they charged me and hit play to watch the Adjustment Bureau. Thank god they didn't charge me because I would have been extremely pissed to pay to watch that god-awful movie. I ended up watching the silent and edited version of Black Swan on the screen next to me for most of it. Even without sound it was more interesting.


I was deeply dismayed to discover that when you put hundreds of people in a tube in the sky for 10 hours and give them the option of continuous sunlight or not, they choose not. We were in a cave for 10 hours straight while the sun stayed up they entire flight. I was in the lucky circumstance of having an empty seat next to me so I had control over the window and didn't have to harass someone every time I had to pee. I attempted to peek out my window to see what was below but it cast a vast and unbearably bright light across the plane and I'm pretty sure I could hear all the people begin to sizzle and hiss.

Japan has a serious issue with airport air conditioning. Everyone was fanning themselves, and this includes Japanese people who are more used to this weather than I am. Our flight was delayed due to mechanical maintenance which took 2 and a half hours. I ended up napping to try to move as little as possible in the heat. I would have explored the airport more, but they herd everyone through a special connecting international flight alley, and if you leave you have to go through customs and all that fun stuff. I didn't know how much time I would have. The flight to Bangkok from Tokyo was not as fun. There were only two screens for the whole back of the plane, and they forced us to watch "Little Fockers" three times in a row. Luckily I slept through most of it. I had chicken and pasta for my third dinner of the trip and then promptly fell asleep for the next 6 hours.