E phatlaladitšwe: 29.12.2017
Finally made it, I'm in Thailand! 🇹🇭👋🏻
I took this plane from Beijing to Bangkok. Since I was sitting by the window, I had a breathtaking view including a sunset.
I sat next to a Chinese woman on the flight who spoke very little English. Shortly before landing, we were handed papers to fill out for entry into Thailand. Name, passport number, hotel address, and so on. I expected that, as I had done more research on my trip than my master's thesis 😄🙈
But suddenly there was a field for "Visa Number" and I was confused because I hadn't applied for a visa, as Germans get it directly upon arrival. So I asked my seatmate what she fills in that field. She just pulled out a paper from her bag that said "Visa Application". I was really scared for a moment 😳 I thought I had been misinformed and went through all worst-case scenarios in my head, from having to pay a fine to being sent back home or even getting imprisoned 😂
But when I arrived, I just went to the passport control without further ado. There they told me that only certain countries need this application, including China 😅 so I did everything right. Phew, what a relief!
After passport control, I grabbed my backpack, bought a Thai SIM card so I have internet everywhere, and then went to the taxi stand, where a friendly Thai taxi driver took me straight to the hostel, right in front of the door 🤗 So far, everyone here has been very nice and helpful.
Despite being exhausted, I didn't get much sleep, partly because of jet lag and partly because this city never seems to sleep. So around 2:30 am I took a shower and went outside again. Bangkok reminds me a lot of Kuala Lumpur, power lines above the street, people walking on the road because the sidewalks are full of stands, humid summer air. I bought something to drink and then managed to sleep until 10 am with earplugs.
Here are some impressions of my day so far. I'm leaving the sights for today and just letting the city soak in a bit before taking a night bus and a speedboat to the island of Koh Tao this evening. I'll explore Bangkok more in detail at the end of my visit to Thailand! 😊