Bangkok! Thailand!! Asia!!! What a thrill it is to be here.
I’m skipping the details of getting to Bangkok because the trip was not unlike what everyone from the West has to endure to get here: long.
Disembarking from the plane and walking to immigration was exciting in a way that I’d never experienced before. Maybe it was because I’d been awake for a day and a half but I felt exhilarated and emotional, my eyes tearing up at the sight of the Welcome to Thailand sign. A travel dream that started a decade ago was coming true.
After picking up our baggage we went about completing a couple of logistical tasks:
- I exchanged CAD cash at the K-Bank counter that’s located at baggage claim 21. They were giving good rates of 23.45 Baht to $1 CAD, with no added fees. I don’t think ScotiaBank would have done much better.
- I’d planned to get a SIM card for my secondary phone at one of the many vendors that are located throughout the baggage claim area but my phone turned out to be locked despite the pre-departure test that indicated otherwise. I’ll need to find a shop here that can unlock it for me so I can get a local SIM card. I bought an eSIM for my primary phone before the trip started through Holafly. This eSIM doesn’t give you a local Thai number but you get unlimited data for 30 days, for which I paid $60 USD.
Customs was a snap. Unless you have something to declare, you just walk through the gate.
A driver was waiting for us and drove us about 25 minutes to the hotel as the sun was rising over the city. I felt in sync seeing a new day dawn in the City of Angels, just as Bangkokians were too. We got into our hotel room at around 8am and realized that we entirely missed January 5th. It’s like the day never existed for us this year. We left on the 4th and went through a time vortex over the Pacific Ocean that propelled us into Asia on the 6th. Neat!
After getting settled into the room and cleaning up, we went out for our very first meal in Thailand. I chose Krua Khun Puk, a small open air restaurant located just a block from our hotel that serves authentic Thai food. The sights and sounds of the city were on full display as we waited for our meal: Beeping car horns, a chaotic blend of taxis and tuk-tuks, small sois (alleys) with scooter repair shops, beauty parlors, the sweet scent of cinnamon Indian biryani and a street vendor with an impossible array of dildos and vibrators for sale. Welcome to Bangkok, my friend.
For our meal we ordered some Thai classics:
- Som Tam – The famous green papaya salad, with chilies, tomatoes, green beans, peanuts and more… but “mai ao pla ra, krab” (“I don’t want fermented fish.”)
- Pad Thai with shrimp
- Panang Curry Pork with rice – “Spicy?,” she asked. “Nit noi,” I said. (A little bit, which by Thai standards would be medium spiciness in the West.)
- A coconut juice for each us, served in the coconut
It was an excellent meal! The heat was perfect: spicy enough that I had to blow my nose a few times, but easily managed with the rice and coconut to cool it down. The Panang was notable for its incredibly fresh lemongrass flavour. The Som Tam was the highlight for me since I’d never had it before. So fresh and fantastic! Total cost: 420 Baht, or about $16.75 CAD.
We’re both tired so we took a brief stroll around the block and went back to the hotel. I enjoyed a swim in the hotel pool and almost fell asleep in a chair while lounging poolside.
For dinner, we hit up one of Bangkok’s popular roof top restaurants. The views of the city were awesome and the food was excellent.
I’m not even sure how many hours I’ve been awake now but I’m ready for bed. We need to get rested for tomorrow’s adventures!
