Bangkok

After a night of sleeping in the beautiful beach hut, occasionally being disturbed by the crabs scratching in my wall I woke up feeling fresh and ready for the journey ahead. After a bit of meditation and yoga (trying to stay in the habit) I helped the lady who ran the huts pick up rubbish from the beach for a while, it really upsets her, she said there was definitely a divide on the island and travellers who come to Ko Phanang for the full moon party generally have no respect. We did a good job though and she was happy for my help. Natasja came to pick me up on the scooter she had rented (she was still staying at the monetary for a while) and we rode to meet Rose (another girl from the retreat) for breakfast at a cool place Jana and I had found called JJ's. It was nice hanging out with them and chatting before I left to go to the mainland. The boat ride was great, I was sitting next to a nice guy called Steve from Canada, we had a good banter. He hasn't quite had the same peaceful experience on the island as me, he had managed to fall off his bike and then the next day get bitten by a dog! Not so lucky, it was funny, he was so wound up and stressed and considering going back home to his family and girlfriend, I was the complete opposite and after our chat he was a lot happier to go and see what Nepal had to offer for him. It was a shame as we didn't get to swap details as the boat was late and we all had to run for our busses.
We got a bus for a couple of hours to some in the middle of no where place and then after another couple of hours the night bus came. My excitement of my first night bus quickly subsided once I realised it was quite smelly and the seats didn't recline that much. I did however meet a couple of nice guys, once again sitting next to a Canadian called Ryan and his mate Charlie form the UK. They have been living in Thailand for a couple of years and it was pretty inspiring to imagine doing that . . .
It was nice to have the company of the guys when we arrived in Bangkok as I was a bit nervous of what the hecticness would be like, especially after the retreat! We found a guesthouse pretty easily considering it was 5am! Somebody had recommended me a good street for cheap places to stay just off the bottom of Khao San Road. I was told the cheapest room I would find would be 400B but the first place we went into did twin rooms with a fan for 240B and single for 190B! It wasn't the most attractive place but it was clean and there was no sign of bugs! The single room I had was hilarious, a tiny room with no windows, but there was electricity and a fan and the bathroom was just down the hall so I was happy. After a sleep I woke up starving and decided to see what all the hype was about for Khao San. It wasn't half as scary as I was warned. Yes there are lots of people asking you if you want bags, tattoos, bracelets etc but as soon as I learnt the Thai for 'No thank you' - 'Mai ow kaa' - (no idea how to spell it but thats how you say it!) with a smile they leave you be. The street is filled with market stalls with so many things, it was hard not to buy everything in sight! The only thing that kept me going was the sensible advice inside my head . . . 'Budget and no room in your bag!'. After having a wander and filling myself up with some nice street food I spent the afternoon and evening with Ryan and Charlie, having some beers and chats.
The next morning was really exciting as Ruby was arriving into Bangkok airport from home. We had arranged to travel together for a month. I took a minibus to the airport and after a lot of confusion as to where to go (the arrivals gates make no sense what so ever!) I managed to find the right spot and sure enough Ruby came through the gate! It was so nice to see her. We grabbed a taxi back. I had already checked out of my room and left my stuff with the boys, they were leaving that day so we took there twin room (Hello Kitty sheets and all!) After a freshen up and dropping Ruby's bits off in the room the four of us went for lunch at a place that had the craziest looking massive Buddha statue I have seen yet, he was more like one of the bad giants from the BFG! Charlie and Ryan left that afternoon. Ruby and I were tired but determined to stay up until a reasonable sleeping hour! We had some street food and headed to a bar a I thought it only right that Ruby should be welcomed to Thailand with a drink (or two) of Sang Som, an amazing rum, which works particularly well with sprite and lime! We had a very much needed good nights kip.
It was all go again the next day as friends that I had made from Phi Phi and Lanta Johnny and Georgy were in Bangkok for 12 hours!
It was such an amazing day with them. We had a nice breakfast where we were the night before which had a cool waterfall and pond. A coconut followed by Pad Thai was a fab way to start the day. We decided to walk a little towards the temples, we were all keen on going tho Wat Pho to see the reclining Buddah. A local guy stopped us and told us that it was closed and that we should get in his tuk tuk and go somewhere else . . . Massive scam, luckily we didn't fall for that one and carried on. We did however stop to ask a tuk tuk driver for directions after walking for a while more. This guy and his friend were the loveliest people! They told us how to get there (by walking) but also told us that we should go and see the river first and go to a local temple which has a 9 faced Buddha. We weren't sure at first but they assured us that they didn't want any money, just for us to have a good time and a different experience. They even told us where to get the cheap 'local price' river tour of 400B rather than the usual 1000B that tourists pay. We decided to risk it and go for it and it was the best decision! The four of us got a longtail boat to ourselves and after telling the boat driver that we wanted to see the 9 faced Buddha he gave us a little smile and nod and off we went. The river trip in itself was fantastic, we got to see a completely different side of Bangkok. A chilled lifestyle with locals living on stilt houses lining the mazes of rivers and canals that seemed endless. Everyone was friendly and waving. The temple was such a treat. Just as the friendly tuk tuk drivers had said there were no tourists what so ever and the statue of the 9 faced Buddha towered so high and so colourful. A local guy there took us into the temple to show us how beautiful it was. All in all it was a real treat that we really didn't expect it!
We were dropped off from the boat right next to Wat Pho which is where we wanted to go all along so it was ideal! This obviously was 100%more touristy but for a good reason. The reclining Buddha was breathtaking! It was amazing how big the Buddha was and so beautiful. The temple and grounds of Wot Pho were also stunning, it was a really special place but filled with tourists (like us!) I think we were spoilt with the 9 faced Buddha! We were very lucky as we decided to walk round the corner to get a cheaper tuk tuk and just as we thought we had made the wrong decision one pulled up . . . Just as it started tipping it down! The tuk tuks on Bangkok are different to the ones I had been in previously in Thailand, rather than the side car style ones the Bangkok ones have the bike in the centre, built into the cart, they are pretty funky and much faster!
Johnny and Georgy had a quick shower at ours and then we had a nice dinner and drink together on Khao San before they caught there bus to Laos. It was strange saying goodbye again but I'm sure our paths will cross again, either on this trip or in the future.
Ruby and I decided to have a night out on Khao San so to save some money we bought a bottle of Sang Som rum and entertained ourselves in our hello kitty room by dancing to 80's hits . . . very classy of course! We then headed out to a nice bar which had a guy playing some good tunes at an acoustic night. We took it into our hands to request the music :). Whilst we were in the bar we got chatting to some nice americans; Kevin, Julia and Kenny. We had a great time with them and ended up heading to a Thai club together and having a good ole boogie!
After the busy night we had a nice lie in we decided to go and see yet another side of Bangkok which was the skyscrapers and shopping malls. It was crazy how new and clean everything looked compared to what we had seen previously. The shopping centres were mad, super posh and massive! My highlight was finding the cheese counter on the 'food floor' I had 't seen 'real' cheese since Singapore! I was restrained though and didn't get any. We got some yummy sushi instead! One of the shopping centres had market stalls inside as well so that was fun wandering through. We walked a while down the Main Street taking all the posh hotels and buildings in and then grabbed a tuk tuk to China town, this was much to the drivers disappointment as it was rush hour and he kept on wanting to take us to his friends fish market as apparently china town was 'closed'! We stuck to our guns though and obviously it was a load of rubbish . . . China town was very much not closed! It was crazy!!! Tuk tuks and bikes streaming down the brightly lit road with tonnes of street food stalls and crazy shops selling all sorts of random meats, remedies and herbs and spices. After a wander we decided we were in the mood for duck and had a yummy meal sat on plastic chairs on the side of the road. It was yummy and great to watch all the goings on. That night it was early to bed, ready for our trip to Cambodia in the morning.