I have a few days in Bangkok as my visa/work permit for Myanmar is processed. It's a city full of energy, colour and surprises. Here are a few of my first impressions during my week here in the city.

Firstly the climate - it's about 36-37 degrees with a high humidity and so the sweat pours off me even though I am doing nothing. The air conditioning in hotels, restaurants and taxis is a welcome relief from the heat. The afternoon often brings strikes of lightning, claps of thunder and a little rain to clear the air.

Secondly the colour - it's so bright and vibrant and I love the colourful features of life here. The flower stalls are amazing and the taxis add an extra splash of colour. They are blue, pink, orange, red, green, yellow and yellow/green and there are reputedly 50,000 in Bangkok. You certainly don't to wait for long to flag one down on the streets and on the meter, they are pretty cheap too.

Thirdly the street life - I am staying in the Sukhumvit area with lots of modern western hotels but also traditional Thai life on the streets. There are many food stalls and people eating out on the pavements. At nighttime, other sights come into view and I have been propositioned a few times as I walk along the streets, including by what I am pretty sure was a ladyboy. Bangkok justifies its reputation as a crazy uninhibited place.

Fourthly the buildings - old Bangkok is disappearing fast with huge skyscraper developments all over the city. It's a proper modern futuristic 21st century Asian city. There are still small khlongs (canals) running through the city but many are filthy with rubbish. I was astonished to see a huge reptile swimming in such water near Chinatown.
I enjoy the markets a lot and the inevitable result in getting lost amongst all the alleyways where everything looks the same.

Fifthly the people - Thailand is called 'the land of smiles' with every justification, and there is a feelgood factor about the place. I notice a lot of western men in their 50s to 70s with younger Thai women partners. They certainly appear to me to be punching above their weight - weight being the operative word in that respect!

Sixthly the culture - whilst I have been here, there has been a two day public holiday and the restaurants and bars do not sell alcohol in respect to the Lord Buddha. Bangkok is city which does not sleep and day time and nighttime reveal different energies and lifestyles.