Bangkok Craziness
May 26, 2007
For those of you who hadn’t already guessed, Bangkok is really quite something. It is very possibly the most frenetic city I have ever been to, and a place that takes a little adjustment to get used to. I’ve met a number of people in my travels who wrote it off in the first day and then go around announcing to the world how terrible it is. I don’t think they really gave it a chance.
You can take any form of transportation imaginable in Bangkok. Bicycle, motorbike taxi, trishaw (nicknamed “tuk-tuks” like driving around on a golf cart), bus, car, train, boat. I enjoyed the bike taxis, although wouldn’t recommend them to the fainthearted. There’s something about weaving through and between cars in tar-melting heat that is somewhat invigorating (as long as you hold your breath from time to time to avoid the noxious fumes).
There are many sights to be seen, and the temples and grand palace are spectacular. One has to be a little wary of scam artists, and often upon arrival at a sight, you may be greeted by someone telling you that it’s closed, but their “friend” the tuk-tuk driver can take you to another temple and to the Tourism office (where you will be heartily ripped off). I almost fell for one of these scams before coming to my senses just in time. Con artists aside, the people are amazingly friendly and keen to interact, and I’ve had more happy moments getting lost in the streets and finding little markets unfrequented by tourists than irksome rip-offs.
Another things that made my stay really special is after one night in the infamous Kao San Road, backpacker central, in the dodgiest little room I have ever had the displeasure of sleeping in, I had the great fortune of being invited to stay at the lovely apartment of some friends of a friend (thank you Shon) in a pretty happening part of town. As with any city, getting a local experience will up it more than a few notches. They took me out for thai massage, delicious food, and even to see the lady-boys (kratoi) in their evening spendour. I have seen more gorgeous thai girls on th arms of unattractive middle-aged caucasian men than I ever imagined there were in the world. Buit then I’ve also seen many more beautiful kratoi around too. General rule in Bangkok: if the woman is too beautiful to believe, chances are she’s a he.
Being in the sex tourism capital of the world, I had to go out the the girlie shows. We headed off the a part of town calle Soi Cowboy. The street is simply teeming with stripclubs, and groups of matching girls outside each one, trying to lure the swarming tourists in. Once inside they are also different from any strip club I’ve been to. The decor is the same, but there are a lot more poles on the stage. Girls go up in groups or pairs and in between each number, a whole gaggle of them go up, dancing and giggling and being cute/sexy/silly. They really all look like they’re having fun rather than stoned out of their minds (something uncommon in Montreal, to say the least). There are proper shows: props include bananas, baby oil, ping pong balls, etc. Use your imagination. It’s weird but it all seemed a whole lot less degrading than it is back home. Also, as a girl myself, I seemed to have some sort of magnetic appeal. I have never had so much attention from so many beautiful girls at once (or been groped by as many). Quite the experience to say the least.
I am now in Ko Tao, one of the best diving spots in Thailand, where I’m going to do my certification before heading to Myanmar on the 1st.
