tuk tuk

Today wasn't a particularly exciting day, my chief goal being going to the post office to pick up a package. First I had to eat, so I walked around the Khao San Road area, which only has same-same-but-different farang restaurants. I get more annoyed with Khao San Road every day, so I went to the next street over and found a sidewalk vendor that some Thais were eating at, and using the pointing method ordered a super-spicy curry chicken and a Thai iced tea for 50 cents. Not only is this super-cheap (a meal at a restaurant is about $2.50, it's a good way to get away from the hordes of tourists.

Then it was time to begin my epic journey across town. Walking out of the tourist district is always annoying, since the exit is guarded by aggressive taxi and tuk tuk drivers "Where you going?" I started telling them I'm going to the moon, but they usually don't get the joke. But one guy did offer to take me to the moon for 10 Baht. This time I wanted to take a tuk tuk, just to do it once. What's a tuk tuk you ask? It's a little 3 wheeled rickshaw, powered by a noisy two-stroke engine (hence the name). They are open, so you are exposed to the heat, noise, and fumes of the streets. Not a particularly pleasant way to travel. Plus you have to fight with the driver to get him to take you without stopping at his friend's shop. I took the tuk tuk to a pier to take a river taxi, another less-than-stellar experience. The boats were packed with middle-aged package tourists, and the views from Bangkok's dirty river aren't exactly picturesque. In fact Bangkok in general isn't too picturesque. Nobody will accuse it of being a beautiful city.

After running the tuk tuk gauntlet surrounding the pier, the final leg of my journey was on foot. Nobody knows the term "post office," and it's not in my phrasebook, so I was on my own. Mission accomplished though. Afterwards I went to Starbucks to read my Thailand Lonely Planet in the package (problem, I now have six guidebooks). A Grande frapacino costs 80 Baht. This my only be $2, but consider that in relative terms. My room is 200 Baht. My lunch was 20 Baht. My dinner at a sit-down restaurant was 80 Baht. Starbucks is damn expensive.

My motivation to see Bangkok is low. Maybe I'll leave it until I get back. I'm eager to begin my train trip north since I read in the guidebook that part of the country is visited by only 2% of tourists.