Farang in Thailand.

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It has been a year since leaving home and it is time to head back. I looked and my ticket and noticed I had a stop in Bangkok, Thailand. Being completely ignorant of anything other than English speaking nations I thought it was about time I stepped out of that cocoon of safety.
I asked the travel agent if I was able to stay over, she said sure.  I read about Thailand in the Lonely Planet guide and noted that it was a cheap and interesting place to visit. Armed with my worldly savings of 1300 dollars, I had a five weeks visit and was home in time for Christmas.
Me, traveller in Thailand.
Bangkok was noisy, intimidating and exciting. It doesn't sleep and is heavily populated. I must say I was in for a real culture shock. Bangkok is hot, humid, noisy and crowded.

The language bore no semblance to English and the writing incomprehensible scribble. I was not in my comfort zone, especially coming from wintry England, being on my own and jet-lagged..
Monks.
The streets are wide and jammed with vehicles, dare you cross it: well somehow you managed. No sooner you cross than the revving herd of vehicles of all descriptions take off in a stampede.
Heavy Bangkok traffic waiting at pedestrian crossing.
I got on with  a couple of other travelers at the backpackers , one an Australian and the other English. They had traveled this part of the world before. I was wary though, as I have heard tales of people getting sucked into the seedy drug world. 
Travel buddies.
We were keen to watch a Thai boxing match and on hearing there was a match on tonight, we were off,. Jetlag: what's that ? The matches were exciting, fast and brutal. The fighters are unbelievably resilient and able to partake in more fights in a year than most western fighters.  

Having participated in a few martial arts, I have no idea how they stand the pain of shin to shin contact when they are kicking.  Somewhere in my cupboard I have a pair of brightly decorate boxing shorts I bought as a souvenier.
Kickboxing tournament.
When it comes with dealing with the street vendors who want to offload their wares, it is useful to have a friend or two to assist in negotiations or to escape a persistent vendor.
Street markets.
My new found buddies did like the more sordid part of town. Not willing to take an unwanted souvenir disease back home I abstained in any participation further than the viewing. We visited Patpong, the 'entertainment' district of town. Perhaps embarrassed or feeling endangered I elected to go back to the accommodation after a short time.

One comment  I'll make on this line though, this lady entertaining my friend was not seedy. She was very polite, and also showed us around town for a couple of days. Preconceptions, if I had any (more like reservations) were thrown out of the window. She has a family outside town that she supports and makes a living at not much compared to ours, at no more than a price of a beer or two.
Lady from the streets.
We traveled on the local transport using the 3 wheeled taxis called a tuktuk, rather like a motorbike blended with a rickshaw. These vehicles and their drivers are nut cases, weaving their way between vehicles providing the narrowest of spaces and even on the footpaths.

The river was navigated using the public ferries. The ferry was substantially cheaper than the tourist boats, but then they are much more crowded. The propulsion system is interesting with a dirty great motor attached to a steering rod and propeller shaft.
River taxi.
We visited the royal palace. To get there we traveled by one of these river taxis . That was an interesting exercise as not many of the taxi drivers spoke English. The tourist ones do and charge accordingly.

We found a local who could translate for us. He could only speak French, but our English friend had the lingo.;

It was quite funny when the Thai local also wanted to know if he was interested in some "extras"   in that he could be a boyfriend for our stay ! A polite thank you and we jumped on our taxi, with the hope that we end up in the right place.
River taxis.
Along the shore you get to see a lot. Monks for instance in their bright orange robes seemingly everywhere not doing a lot.
Monks standing on the river bank.
 Dwellings are built right on the murky waters of the Mekong river. I reckon that water hides a lot - maybe the odd body, more so though is effluent and chemical pollutants.
  Dwellings beside the river.
Ornate quirky buildings are a feature amongst the shanty dwellings. Royalty, officialdom and the rich of course have the best of the best.
Ornate building on the river bank.
The royal palace, like many palaces around the world was a sprawling, ornate building.
Royal palace.
Inside the grounds are interesting enough to keep your attention and have fun taking photos.
Royal palace statues.
The city, its noise, pollution, crowds. Stressed, I had to leave, four days was enough. On talking to my fellow backpackers they were heading to Chiang Mai. I looked it up in the Lonely Planet guidebook and saw that it was a quiet village up north on the banks of the Mekong. It used to be the hub for the 'Golden Triangle' ie drugs, but apparently it is now much safer. Sounds interesting to me, so before I knew it, I booked a ticket on the train to Chiang Mai.
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