Bangkok. Bangkok. Bangkok

I don’t even know how to talk about this place.

Heat. Humidity. Heat. Humidity. Grime. Traffic

I don’t think it’s a place I’ll revisit. That’s for sure

We arrived in the afternoon and it was hot. We had to walk a bit to our hotel, and by the time we reached there, my back was drenched with sweat (beautiful imagery). Luckily our hotel was freezing cold and we were able to take a shower before heading out for the evening

We used the Bangkok air metro to take us further east on Sukhumvit road. The Bangkok above ground metro is really nice, but unfortunately it does not go everywhere.

We got off at Ekkamai and got some street noodles. This was possibly the best street noodles

I got number 3

After, we walked into what felt like a residential area until we found ourselves at Mikkeller Bangkok. Beer was okay. Food was good. We were here for a bit before heading back.

Next, we walked through Soi Cowboy, a street known for its ladyboy shows, strippers, and hookers. It was surprisingly a lot tamer than imagined, but we also only walked through. We didn’t go into one of the places.

The next day, we woke up early and took the canal boat down to the heart of Bangkok tourism, the palaces. But it was hot. It was 40C at 10 am. By the time we got into the grand place, there were many more people and the heat from people made it feel like 45C. After quickly doing a walkthrough, all I could think was “GET OUT OF HERE”

So we did. We walked to the pier and took a river boat Banglamphu. It’s actually how shocking how dirty the Bangkok river was. Food, trash, clothes, all just piling up in the river.

Once at Banglamphu, I bought a new dress to slip into as the one I was wearing was too hot (even though it was linen). We ate and wandered a bit. Eventually we walked to the canal boat and went back to the metro line

The person who grabs your cash for fare and hands you a ticket on these boats are a bit impressive. While on a speeding boat, there able to walk up and down the side of the boat, grab people’s money, provide them change, and give them a receipt ticket.

Once we got on the metro, we went to the other Mikkeller, ari. This had a more Thai feel than the other location, and food was only Thai (other was American).

After eating and drinking, we headed towards the Muay Thai stadium by the airport at 8 pm

We got on the bus shortly after, and got stuck in Bangkok traffic. At times, we were at a complete stop and people walking outside were walking faster than our bus. The bus was hot. I felt a sweat droplet slide from the back of my neck, down my back, and all the way to my calf. It was an experience I have had and I never want to have again

Finally, 1 hour later, we made it. We got off the bus. It felt so good to be free.

We walked to the stadium and we were shocked when we arrive at 915 pm.

The fight had started at 430 and was ending in 10 mins.

Great. We’ve gone so far to see nothing. I FELT SWEAT TRAVEL THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF MY BODY. I DID THAT FOR NOTHING

luckily, I told the bouncer of the situation and how we were leaving the next day. So he let us in for free. Ring side.

We got to watch the final fight and it was pretty cool. I wouldn’t say as cool as the one we saw in Chiang Mai. Maybe mostly because this was in an actually arena and the other one was a makeshift arena with live music playing during the fight

After the fight, the bouncer asked if we wanted to take pictures with the fighters since we missed everything. Super nice guy. After we said no, he got us to the front of the taxi line and on our way back home before anyone else

Guys. That guy deserves an award. Took what felt like a shitty experience and turned it around

The next day, we just went to the Siam Paragorn, a giant mall with a giant food court. I would highly recommend skipping all of the restaurants and going into the grocery store, as they offer freshly cooked food there

They even had a section called “pick your meat and we’ll cook it”, where you could select exactly what you wanted

And that was it. We got back on the metro to the airport and got in a plane back to shanghai. Overall, thailand was a great trip. I had a lot of fun in the beginning, and would definitely go to another Thai beach or island.

I just doubt seeing myself ever in Bangkok again. I don’t do heat