Landed!...First Impressions of Bangkok

Hi folks!



I made it!



After the first take-off from SFO, we were diverted to Vancouver due to engine trouble (not the most relaxing thing to hear the pilot announce - casually at that!). that set me back one day but it was spent dozing in a gorgeous comfy bed in a great hotel in Vancouver, watching some (good quality) Canadian tv and lounging.



I finally boarded the plane that was to deliver me to Asia at 1am and we took off at 2am. Cathay Pacific know how to treat the customers - already I had a very good idea of how courteous, friendly and genuine Asians are according to my interactions with staff on board and with fellow passengers.



By the time I arrived in Hong Kong, I already had a friend in Vietnam, a friend in Guang Zhou in China (who gave me her phone # and an offer of a place to stay!) as well as a friend in Chiang Mai in Thailand (with phone # too) - believe me, I would like to think all these people were touched by my with, charm and repartee in order to be so generous but I have to admit it is simply the Asian way - we Westerners have no idea about what 'civilisation' is!



The drive into the HI Sukhumvit hostel by bus was astounding - what a mixture of evidence of greedy western economics and the beauty (albeit comparative poverty) of Thai living. I was treated to 27 miles of highway which was peppered by the most gargantuan billboards I have ever seen in my life - most were an estimated 60 feet high by 400 feet wide. The largest was an estimated 100 feet high by 700 wide.....unbelievable.....for Samsung. Contrasting with these ugly behemoths were traditional Thai dwellings (soon to be erased to make way for venture capitalists who finance hotel chains like the Marriott, HOliday Inn, et c no doubt...) surrounded by marsh land. A stronger contrast I can't imagine.

The food here has been amazing so far - most of it purchased on the street from vendors (shriek! the USA consulate would have a mickey fit if they knew!). I should be dead by now according to their travel advisories, having eaten from the street vendors!

I was out on Sukhumvit this morning hunting for breakfast - I bought a handful of tiny bananas for 20 cents (US), a half pound of oranges for one dollar and a bag of sticky rice buns doused in soy sauce, fish sauce, chilli and dried shrimp for 50 cents. Much of the food sold by street vendors comes in a little clear plastic bag and can be accompanied by a variety of tiny little bags of various dressings/ additions to the meal. Not the most environmentally friendly but this is of course a disposable society just like our own.

there is a huge photography exhibition going on called Earth from Above until the end of Sept. I'll probably try to get to that and also keep my eye out for other environmental interests.

Ciao for now~!