So we have now been in Bangkok for almost 4 weeks. Some things are very similar to Singapore; but most are different. In Thailand we have been blessed with on campus housing. As you enter campus there is a commercial building with a coffee shop/ book store, a music studio and laundry facilities on the first floor. Then the second thru fourth floors are studio and two bedroom apartments. We managed to get a two bedroom on the second floor. Noah has a bunk bed which he has enjoyed and has taken advantage of two beds by sleeping in both!
Like Singapore we have hawker eating! They do not call them hawkers but food stalls. We tend to order our food by pointing at pictures or getting a menu with English and Thai and pointing at the item we want. Like Singapore eating like this is very cheap. We can all eat for 100 Baht which is just over $3US. However eating Thai food is not something we want to do everyday. And buying American can cost quite a bit more at the grocery store. So we try to eat out the cheap Thai way but realize to get the comfort food we enjoy and crave we have to dish out some money.
Getting around – This is our next big obstacle. We have not been brave enough to get on a bus. The bus transportation is nothing like Singapore! So our mode of transport has been the taxi. And the taxi drivers do not speak English. So I can tell them where I want to go but if they ask me anything else I stare and shake my head and say I have no idea what you are saying. So far we have gotten where we wanted with no major problems. We have heard many horror stories including our own adventure the first time I visited my sister in Thailand when we were in the car accident. Our only taxi adventure so far has been a driver that I think was mad because we put 7 people in the car (3 were children) and proceed to take the long way home and drove 130kmph (80mph) on the highway. The other family in the car with us was more worried than we were. The taxi driver kept shouting something at us and of course none of us have any idea what he is shouting. Normally Thai’s whisper when they talk so we had clearly upset his guy in some fashion, just no idea how??!
We have got to do some tourist kind of things. We visited the Rattanakosin museum. Ratt. is the fourth Thai Kingdom and when the capital was moved to Bangkok. I think this statue is a demon (or represents one), so Noah has his mean face on. This black roofed building is "special" cause its the only metal roofed building remaining in the world. Is tin not a metal? There are still tin roofs in the world are there not?? And we got to visit the old floating market. Back when people lived on the water and travelled by water this market was huge. Now it is open only on the weekends and is a bit more touristy; but neat to see people cooking from their boats and selling to people walking the market.
More to come…
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