Bangkok.

June 28, 2018.

66 hours after leaving San Francisco on Monday, with a blissfully long layover in beautiful Zurich on the way, we finally arrived to Bangkok. Of course by the time we arrived at 7am it was way too early to check into our hostel, so we got after it and started exploring the early morning vacant markets along the streets, completely sleep deprived and in the same clothes we had been wearing for almost three days. We made the initial stop to barter for some Thai pants from a street vendor for a whopping $3– because naturally, I figured some bright, patterned Thai pants would make my 5’9 blonde self blend in with the millions of short, dark-haired Thai people. However, I think it actually made Marley and I stand out even more—though being shorter and part Japanese definitely helps her blend in more than I do.

Bangkok is truly something else. The aroma of sewage mixed with ethnic food sits stagnantly in the hot, humid air. Street vendors line every street and alley, selling food that looks anywhere from good to extremely questionable. Prices of everything are unbeatably cheap, a delicious meal anywhere from $1 to $5. Tuk-Tuks and motorcycles zip through the streets at ridiculous speeds...cutting off huge tour buses in their path and somehow avoiding accidents that seem entirely inevitable. Marley and I hopped on one Tuk-Tuk, in what can only be described as a rickety go-cart, with a driver that just kept laughing and saying “wooooop!” as he whipped around busy roundabouts at speeds that almost threw us straight out of the side of the vehicle. But what a rush. 

It is a city where the only rule seems to be that there are no rules. I constantly wondered what the many police I saw occupied their time with, when the chaos around us ensued in a completely accepted and normalized manner. 

Less than 24 hours before, I was watching a man at the Zurich train station pick out some dirt with a screwdriver between the cracks of the pristine outdoor stone ground on the platform—and here in Bangkok I glance down the trash filled alleys with fish for sale on the street. The difference in wealth and standards of living between these two countries is extraordinarily apparent. 

Despite the chaotic hustle and bustle and interesting stench, Bangkok truly does offer a unique culture. We stopped in one of the most incredible palaces, Wat Pho, which represents the beautiful history of Thai culture. Buildings are vibrantly colored with the most intricate details, and in one of the buildings a HUGE sculpture of Buddha over 150 feet long filled the room. Whether at this palace or even walking through the crowded streets with Thai food and calls from men trying trying to get you to take their Tuk Tuk, it was fascinating to be immersed in an Asian culture so different from not only my own, but from the much more similar European countries I have spent time in.

Running on our reserve fuel—we got a delicious authentic Thai lunch (Pad Thai and curry) and followed it with two massages—a 30 minute foot massage for $3 and a full Thai massage that cost less than $12 for an hour. And let me tell you...it was the best damn massage I have ever had. I felt like I was in a circus act though, she kept twisting my body into pretzel positions and used all of her force to get out the knots in my back from lugging a backpack around. At one point, I was laying on my stomach and I tilted my head to look up at this 100 pound little Thai woman walking all up and down my back, digging her heels into my legs and lower back. I felt so great afterwards that I gave her a hug—which I took as unconventional, given her surprised but smiling reaction.

Strolling through Bangkok for one last time tonight before we leave for Chiang Mai tomorrow, I appreciated the endless amount of activity and diverse people to look at. Marley and I were fascinated watching people go about their daily lives, and I tried to imagine how it would be growing up in a city like this. The same planet, but a seemingly different world over here—it certainly makes me appreciate the little luxuries we take for granted.