I wasn't sure what direction I should take after staying in Chiang Mai, I would have liked to try out the 4 day prayer in a temple thingy but I decided that wasn't for me. I had a look at some job sites and noticed that they were looking for a native english teacher close to Bangkok. This was good enough for me so I applied for a position,. They got back to me soon enough but they wanted an interview in person so I decided to go back down the country. I noticed that the place close to Bangkok was (relatively speaking) not that close but I was able to take a bus straight from Chiang Mai to this place called Korat (Initially, I thought the name of the place was Kolat but then I forgot the locals pronounce the 'r' as an 'l') otherwise known as Nakhonn Rachisima... On of the girls that was working at the hotel in C.M told me that she spent her university years at this town and that there were no foreigners living in this area (despite the fact that it's the 3rd most populous area in Thailand.) She was telling me that C.M was a much nicer proposition for her (Jobwise) so this filled me with some dread! Anyway, I had to find a bus which couls take me to Korat so I paid a visit to a tourist office where the guy kindly offered to help me talk to the job advertisers wife (She was Thai and her standard of English wasn't great. She explained the story to him and he told me to grab a red songtheuw to the bus station where I could grab a ticket from there. This was cool as the guy was getting nothing from it and he genuinelt wished me good luck .)
Anyway, I grabbed a bus from the local bus station and I was on my way for a 12 hour journey on a bus which played local Thai music on a loop for the full 12 hours!! Nicccccccccce, but they did give me free food which was cool. By the end of the 12 hours, I was able to recognise some of the songs....Is it true that all pop songs sound the same regardless of the words?
I arrived in Korat at 7a.m the following morning. I had to ring the lady as she told me she would collect me and drive me to the school. My phone actually stopped working (It stops woring on a certain date and after this date, you have to top it up again before it will work again) and i couldn't find a 7-11 to topup so i hd to use a public phone (I hadn't used one of those in A LONG,LONG time!) Anyway, when I got through to her, she told me the interview was cancelled. I was a bit annoyed as I traipsed halfway around the country for nothing (and halfway around Thailand is a hell of a lot bigger than halfway around Ireland!). Anyway, her husband interrupted her and told me to grab a tuktuk to the other bus termianl and then get a bus.I was caught between a rock and a hard place as I hate tuktuks but I had no choice as I was in a place that I had no clue where to turn!!! So, the tuktuk drove me to the bus stop and I hung around there with a scob on my face as I didn't know where to go next. Eventually,I got some credit on my phone and I got one of the locals to help me talk to the women who was arranging the interview. She was a very patient woman (she must have thought that I was a bit mad!) who told me to go to the local bus stop to go to 'Dan Kun Thot'. So, I waited there for 30 minutes and I was on my way.
The woman who had organised the interview with her husband said she would meet me at 'Dan Kun Thot' . I didn't realise that was 50km from Korat so this place was REALLY in the middle of nowhere. The womans husband intially told me that he wasn't able to meet me as he had to go to a meeting at another location.
Anyway, I jumped off the bus at DAN Kun Thot and 5 minutes later , i saw a woman get out of a tuk tuk telling me that her car broke down and to jump into the tuk tuk and the husband would drive me to the school. This didn't really create a great atmosphere with me but I had no real choice but to follow her. I met the husband 5 minutes later driving a car that looked like it was stolen from 'the streets from san francisco'. (remember, that show finshed in the 1970's) The guy kept telling me that this the REAL Thailand. I had no doubt that it was but at the same time, my respect for thse 2 lads was dropping quicker than a diver jumping off a 100 feet cliff.[Although the guy did have a cool new yoikkkaccent!]
As for the interview itself, the Thai woman accompanied me to the interview whereupon I was interviewed by the local thai- english teacher who happened to be a cool girl/woman. She lived on the campus for the last 10 years and was really helpful. She even gave me her number if I had any questions relating to the interview..
This had to be the first interview that I have tried without any shoes or socks. Actually, I had travelled from Chiang Mai in shorts and had thrown on trousers over the shorts so I must have looked 'a bit special'. The woman asked me if I had my C.V. I had but I had already given it to the Thai woman so I was a bit annoyed that she had not forwrded the details on. So, in essence, I ended up talking about my travels to a woman who couldn't really care less where I had been!! It was an 'interesting' hour to say the least! (Actually, at one point, I crossed my legs and noticed my feet were fairly dirty as they collect grime preety quicky here. Now, I understand why its a real no,no to show your feet to people on this side of the world!)
At the end of the hour, the man collected his wife and myself in the streets of san francisco car and said straight away that this place is too remote for you, yeah?? I asked him to drop me off in the town as I wanted to hang around the town befoe heading back to Bangkok, He offered to meet up with me when I was finished wandering about. That was cool but I wasn't too pushed. In any case, while I was loitering about the place, a guy came up to me and wanted to practise his english. He offered me a lift to the bus station and I Accepted as he seemed like a cool guy (to be honest, I am brutal at differenciating between cool people and sh1t people at this stage (or at any stage!) )
Anyway,here are a couple of pics of Dan Kun Thon (Apparently, it's a big place for monks!)
Local Wat
Van with multiple colours to indicate its coolness
Downtown Dan Kun Thon
The 2 dog obeying the green cross code
These symbolise life or the lack of a 'live' tiger in this location
Well, if they are not here, create them (no boubt a quote from yer man, God)
The bus to Bangkok took 4 hours. I arrived at the bus station there in the pouring rain. All I wanted to do was get to a hostel close to the centre and it didnt help that the tuktuk drivers were looking for extortionate amounts. Luckily enough, I walked around the back of the terminus and aw the local buses that were congregating there. I jumped on one and one hour later I was in the centre of Bangkok again.
So, what to do in Bangkok the second time around?
Bangkoks waterways, the hub of the city!
The markets line the roads along the waterways
Well, I knew Candy was on a whistle stop tour of Bangkok again in a few days but in the meantime, I wanted to pick up a few singlets (I think all of my clothes now consists of singlets and flipflops!!) So I was able to add to my collection od 'classy' t shirts at the market.
I paid a visit to the cinema and had a go at bargaining with the locals.(This is really important in South east asia!)
I found out
(a) that the local buses are the way forward!
and
(b) that I was scared sh1tless of bumping into a kid at the skating rink. I thought better of it and decided not to skate! By the way, If you ever have free time, go around the market close to the Siam malls. They are really cool.
I met up with Candy the following day and it was cool to hear how she she got on on her travels and that she was on her last leg (almost!) before heading home to Oz. I hope you found all those elephant boxers Candy! Remember, you need the yellow ones to complete the collection!
To be honest, I wasn't too much of a fan of Bangkok but it was nice to pass the time in a chilled out atmosphere before heading on to the 'thrill' of a bus to Poipet and further into Cambodia!
Actually, now that I think of it, one thing did freak me out on my return to Bangkok.... I walked past a guy on the street. That's no big deal except he was face down on the road and one of his flip flops was located 3 meters away from his foot and he looked in a bad way (He was a tourist and you never see tourists over here lying face first on the road. That only happens in Ireland and the U.K on a friday and Saturday night ), Anyway, I thought he was ill but I continud walking for 13 meters, My concience got the better of me and I walked back , I turned around again before I walked across the road and asked local guy what had happened. He said he was drunk and robbed by a guy.I asked him if he rang anyone but he looked at me as if I had 2 heads and then pointed towards the police office. I headed to the local police but they were useless (they saw I was in a bot of a panic and deliberately ignore me) so I went back on street .At that point, there was a policeman there and the guy had woken up. I was genuinely relieved even if I didn't know the guy.
I think it was time to move on.I chose Cambodia as I ....actually, to be honest, I am not really sure why I chose Cambodia but it was the closest to Bangkok so it seemed like a good idea. Maybe, it was due to Candys friend.. We had a good converstaion with her at one point where she seemed to be a bit of a well intentioned hippy (Are there any other kind?) She was in her 60's and travelled every summer and she seemed to be very airy fairy with talk about ghosts and spirits. I thought she was ok and she seemed to know quite a lot of the places that I had been to so it was nice to hear somebody else talk about these places!
My views on Thailand:
I have to say that Thailand grew on me. Initially, I did not know what to think as most people in Hat Yai and Songkhla did not seem to speak much english (Of course, that is my experiance and I have been known to be wrong before!) At the same time, it was really nice to be helped to the various hostels by well wishers like the woman from the public bus at Songkhla.She did not have to help me out but she went out of her busy day to find me the hostel. I wish she was fluent in english!
On the negative side, I really did not like the tuktuk drivers in Bangkok. Calling them 'pushy' would be an insult to the word 'pushy'. I did not like the way they would chat to you as if you were their best friend and then after realising that you had no interest in getting a tuktuk, they would
a.) completely ignore you
or
b.) insult you
or
c.) just walk away
On the silly side...I should stop trusting people who tell me their lifestory and then look for money. To be honest, Wat seemed like a good bloke but he did not seem to be struggling for money.
On the thrill side, all the sporty things that I tried (1 man canoeing, 2 man canoeing, white water rafting [twice] , elephant riding, cooking (yes, cooking is a sport :-) , scootering in the rain , snorkeling, diving) were pretty cool. I am glad I drove the scooter as I never knew how safe they were as long as I had my wits about me! At the same time, I am not sure if I would like to drive one in Bangkok but I think it would not be such a big deal.
On the jogging side of things, the jog around the old town in Chiang Mai was a site to behold but a word (or two) of warning. It might be a good idea to jog in the evening or early in the morning just to avoid the heat of the day..My clothes were ringing from the sweat after those jogs (Also, I learned to never play truth or dare with a tuktuk driver on the road while jogging. The guy came within a millisecond of making minced meat of me (My fault as he ownes the road!))
On the conscientious side of things, I was kind of shocked one day when I saw a guy face down on the path at 9.30 in the morning ,passed out. Normally, you might see people on the road but this seemed different as one of his shoes seemed to be thrown beside him and the other was on his other foot. Lots of people walked right passed him (myself included) before turning back. He eventually got some help but it made me wonder if this was a normal scene in Bangkok and the locals are immune it. Now, that I think of it, you might see quite a few people sprawled on the streets of Dublin on a friday or saturday night and most people would assume they are drunk....
I was not sure what to expect before I entered Thailand. All I ever heard was ladyboys and the ping pong show and not much else... As with most capitals , the atmosphere is more international so you have to get out of the capital and look around to see the real Thailand. The real Thailand seems to be quite conservative with the exception of the humour in their main program on t.v which consisted (from what I could gather) of men with goaties dressed as women and making silly faces. I think something was lost in the translation of the humour!
So, I travelled from the bottom of the country right up to the top and back down again...the transport system was cool...well, apart from the train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai which broke down after a few hours and arrived at its destination 6 hours later than planned. (which was a common enough occurance). Oh yeah, and the car which broke down in Chiang Mai while we were going to the river to attempt the white water rafting...and the car which broke down while coming back from the river kwai!!! Ah, you get the picture! Stuff breaks down quite a bit over here but I was in no rush so I did not mind at all.
Verdicts!
Hat Yai:
Nice food and markets. People applauded me when they saw me jog.cool! Their foot massage was so good, It made me think of taking a course! I bought an '80s style casio watch there and have since spent many seconds trying to get the stopwatch to stop at 1:00 seconds exactly...It's a tricky thing to do you know!
Songkhla:
Lots of things to visit but this can be seen within a couple of days. The beach was serene and I had no problems with the locals (with the exception of the stray monkeys who were eyeing up my food) and I never felt threatened while I was there. A nice place with cool local markets. I wish the locals could speak some english as this seemed like a cool place to me and from their reactions to me, they seemed a friendly buch of people.
Phuket:
I stayed at the backpackers hostel and to be honest, it seemed like a drinkers paradise.I didn't drink too much when I was here so I felt a bit out of the loop.
The chinese museum was interesting though.
I spent a few quiet days there. For the first time, I met a person and I seemed completely disinterested in what she had to say about anything. I did not feel too bad though as this was recipricated by her!! Imagine having a conversation where you could not be bothered finishing a sentance. Now, imagine the other person not even noticing..That was the sort of conversation we had! As for the place itself,It seemed quiet enough but I did not do enough to say how good r bad it was although I did hear a story from another backpacker stating that her wallet was stolen by the lady of her guesthouse.The wallet was found the next day with the credit card intact but the money was gone. Then, the lady told the woman to use an atm to get money out of the bank...eep!
PhiPhi:
The scenery was stunning. The amount of tourists to locals was not. It felt like I was in Europe (mixed in with a bit of China) but PhiPhi is a real party place , more designed for a younger crowd. The tours around the island and the diving were special though. I wonder if I can take sun cream orally at this stage. If so, I would have eaten many suncream tablets in PhiPhi! I like the way the guys pushing the trolleys (filled with various items that they want to sell) \cycling with no horn on their bike make the noise of a horn of a car (beep beep) when they try to pass you on the streets though! The first time I heard it, I thought it sounded a bit weird but I got used to the noise very quickly.
Krabi:
Krabi is quite a sleepy town in the rainy season. There isn't much going on so I tried quite a few tours from here. The 1 man canoeing tour was brilliant as well as the tour which contained elephant trekking,waterfall,white water rafting and food! The place itself was too sleepy and I might have been better off going to Ao Nang but I went on quite a few tours here so I didn't need to stay at a noisy area! The night market in this town is pretty cool though!
If you go joggin here, make sure to jog at night time as jogging in the daytime could damage your health and skin!
Bangkok:
Crazy place, the ping pong show was a lowlight. The calypso show is an oddity that was quite funny to be honest.[you can post up that photo of me with the ladyboys if you want Candy!] The ice skating (once I stopped hugging the rails (which was most of the time) ) was fun. I must try that again at some stage. The tuktuk drivers are another species entirely. The Khao San road wasn't as bad as I thought it would be and they have cheap Pad Thai there!It was nice to sit with local people and watch the olympics with them. I was glad that there was a woman who was able to sow the ...ahem...crotch in my jeans back together as they are my only pair!
If I ever need to buy a suit, the Khao San Road is the place to go. The only thing is...you have so many people shouting ,'you want to buy a suit sir?' , that you become inclined to say 'no' to everything. This is the worst marketing trick in the world but it seems to happen there!
The markets around The Siam malls are really nice though so if you ever go to Bangkok, that should be your first point of call.
If at all possible, try to stay away from tuktuk drivers as they come across as slimy ESPECIALLY the guy who mimicked the sound of a ping pong ball EVERY time I walked by him. Try to avoid the guys who are advertising a cheap tuktuk drive as they are on a commission (don't get too upset if they call you a loser as My friend from Chiang Mai (who I met in Krabi) told me that he was chastised as a loser by The Bangkok drivers due to his 'country' accent.)
The Muai Thai is expensive (2000 Baht) You can go and see it in Chiang Mai for 400 although the quaity might not be as good.
Chiang Mai:
Brilliant place, nice people both local and travelers. very chilled out vibe.The people seemed genuinely interested in seeing that you had a good time and the owner of the Chiang Mai Packers hotel was one interesting guy who commanded a ton of respect from anyone who talked to him.
There was lots to see and do here and it was nice to meet some locals (well, you're a good as a local Rose!) as well as some travelers along the way. The markets really added to the atmosphere (There many markets and thy were all cool)
My favourite town/city within Thailand.
The border run to Myanmar (Mae Sai):
Normally, this would have been a boring 4 hour journey to the place (Mae Sai) but the entrepraneur talked about anything and everything so It ended up being a philosophical journey! The stamp itself cost 500 Baht. Normally, it costs 10 dollars but 500 Baht is slightly more so they instist on 500 Baht. A similar thing happened on the Cambodian border but I wil leave that for another blog!
If you can avoid spending the hour across the border, avoid it as it is just a haven for tuktuk drivers to annoy you andyou have lots of decent shops on the Thai side where you can visit while you wait for your passport to be processed
Korat:
This was just a flying visit.Nakhon Rachisima (which is another name for Korat) seemed similar to Bangkok but without any foreign people. The locals (with the exception of the tuktuk guys) were quite helpful. I tried my couple of phrases that I know here 'sawadee kaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa' (hello)
and 'kran um krab' (thank you - when said by a man) but they looked at me with blank faces. I have to work on my intonations!
Dan Khun Thot:
Nice place but I feel that would be lost if I stayed here for any length of time as it felt very isolated from the rest of Thailand. The guy who organised the interview was correct when he said that this was the real Thailand though. The bus from Korat to Dan Khun Thot was an experience in itself as I genuinely didn't know when I arrived in the place until a nice woman turned around waved and shouted 'Dan Khun Thot' in my direction!
Anyway, onwards to Cambodia and that 'magical' border crossing at Poipet!!!
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