The first days in Bangkok

[by Franzi] The first morning we slept in and then had the first time to really look at our room and our hostel. The hostel is open, which means that on one side of the 'lobby' there is no outside wall, so you can walk straight out. Only the reception area has walls all around and is air-conditioned. Our room is on the third floor of the hostel, and the corridor is also open. At the beginning of the corridor, you come up from the open lobby, whose ceiling extends to the top floor, and at the end of the corridor, there is a small balcony with doors that are always open. Due to the open construction, you can already feel the heat here when you leave the room. You then enter the room with a room card, which is then inserted into a designated card holder so that the lights and power in the room work. Our room was already seen in the last blog entry as a first impression. The room is quite large and bright, has a large double bed and a large desk. Our bathroom is also spacious and has a wide shower. However, the towels are not hung in the bathrooms but outside in the room on a rod, which is a bit strange at first, so we hung a small towel in the bathroom. The window from the room to the bathroom is a bit strange at first, but you get used to it. The view through our large window in the room is not very interesting. Another building is directly in front of it, which is a bit older and unoccupied. All in all, we are very happy with the room and the hostel, everything is super clean and the staff are all really nice.

After we took a closer look at the hostel, we went to the lobby for breakfast, super tasty, although not really Thai, because there were sandwiches.

Without a plan of where we were going or what we were doing, shortly afterwards we headed into the big Bangkok, we just walked through the city to get a little impression. Bangkok is huge! Hot and stuffy, very chaotic, loud, and smelly. The traffic here is insane. Everyone walks and drives as they please. To cross the road, which is sometimes four lanes, you just walk on, according to the motto 'they will stop'. It's really strange to just do that, just walk on a road where everyone just drives as they please. I will probably never get used to it, and it takes a bit of courage and overcoming for me every time, luckily I am not alone. The important thing is not to stop and to keep going at a constant pace so that your own movements remain predictable and the rest of the traffic can adjust accordingly.

While walking the streets of Bangkok near Wat Phra Kaew and the Grand Palace, we were spoken to a few times because I was wearing shorts, which is not allowed in the temples. Here you have to wear clothing that covers your knees and shoulders. So we got some tips from locals and took a tuk-tuk to Wat Intharawihan (entrance fee: 40 Baht = 1.03€). Our first temple we visited. You can probably say: Buddhas everywhere! There were so many Buddhas, old and new, whether made of gold, wood, or covered in gold leaf... But you can find Buddhas not only in this temple, there are also shops on every street corner selling Buddhas. Back to the temple: the main attraction was the standing golden Buddha. It is 32m high. It was impressive to stand in front of it, but unfortunately, it was packed in a scaffolding, so we couldn't see it properly.

Our tuk-tuk driver was waiting for us there, before getting in we negotiated a price with him (150 Baht = 3.87€), which you should always do, otherwise, the price will be outrageously high. We got some tips from the locals beforehand: take the yellow tuk-tuks, not the green ones, or take the tuk-tuks with a white license plate, not a yellow one; but always negotiate the price beforehand! I have now found out what the difference between the license plates is: a yellow license plate means that the drivers have not yet paid off their tuk-tuk, and a white license plate means that the drivers have paid off everything and own the tuk-tuk. I have not yet figured out the difference between yellow and green tuk-tuks, so we just took a blue tuk-tuk for now. An experience in itself when the driver weaves through traffic.

But back to our day: after visiting the temple, the tuk-tuk driver took us to an official tourist office, where we got many helpful tips for our stay in Thailand, and we booked our onward journey to Chiang Mai, so stay tuned! We didn't have enough cash with us to pay on-site, so we went with the lady from the tourist office to a nearby ATM, where we withdrew money for the first time. You should never accept the stated exchange rate, but refuse it and settle the amount in the local currency, so you get the local exchange rate.

Our nice tuk-tuk driver then took us back to our hostel.

After a short break, we tried Thai food for the first time. We went to a small restaurant where Jonas had fried rice with egg and chicken, and I had noodles with chicken, vegetables, and soy sauce. We both had a smoothie, which tasted intensely like pineapple or strawberry, unlike the single fruit at home (all together 260 Baht = 6.70€). We bought a crepe from a street food stand for dessert, with three different toppings, it was very cheap (25 Baht = 64 cents), but super tasty. When we arrived at the hostel, we wrote on the blog and browsed through the travel guide a bit.

In the evening, we were drawn outside again: at another street food stand, we got a skewer with chicken and one with pork (together 25 Baht = 64 cents), both were in a sweet and sour marinade and super tasty, I could have eaten more of it, not because I was hungry, but because it was so delicious! The day was coming to an end, and we gradually made our way back to the hostel and went to sleep.

The next morning started very rainy, there was already a tropical shower during breakfast, so we decided to stay in the hostel for a while, that's when part of this blog post was created. After the shower stopped, and it became dry again, we went out to Wat Saket (entrance fee: 50 Baht = 1.29€), also known as the 'Golden Mountain'. It is one of the oldest Buddhist temples in Bangkok. A temple that stands on an artificial mountain. It is 344 steps to climb up. On the way up and down, you can find many Buddhas, bells, and even small waterfalls. When we reached the top of the temple, there were many small bells that danced and rang in the wind. You could climb up to a viewpoint, admire the huge golden bell, and enjoy the fantastic view over Bangkok. On the way down, we encountered a problem that we will have a few more times here: Jonas is too tall! He has to be very careful with his head at some doors and stairs, but also at some awnings on the roadside.

With the entrance ticket to Wat Saket, we were also able to visit the rest of the temple complex, which we did afterwards.

We walked a few more blocks to take a tuk-tuk (50 Baht = 1.29€) to Wat Pho (entrance fee: 100 Baht = 2.85€). Wat Pho is one of the most famous temples in Bangkok. There you can find the largest reclining Buddha, the largest collection of Buddhas, and it is the oldest center for Thai medicine and Thai massage. A large part of the buildings on the temple complex was adorned with gold and decorated with mosaics. The right clothing and behavior were not missing here, otherwise, we were admonished and had to put on something or sit properly (feet must not point towards the Buddha).

Actually, we wanted to go to Wat Arun afterwards, but due to the rain this morning, it was so muggy that we decided to go back to the hostel and look for food on the way. Lost in the many small wide streets, we ate rice with chicken (40 Baht = 1.03€) at a small street food stand, it was super tasty. We sat literally on the street on stools at a table. On the way closer to the hostel, we noticed a stall where a man was baking fresh pancakes (10 Baht per piece = 25 cents). We each got one with an egg. The pancake batter was sweet, combined with the egg, it was a bit strange at first, but really delicious. Neither I nor Jonas had ever eaten something like this before, but we have decided to try more of it because that's exactly what makes Thailand special.

We happened to come across an intersection that looked familiar to us, so we could find our way to the hostel. Once we arrived, we fell completely exhausted into bed.

According to the weather forecast, there will be thunder showers tomorrow. We hope this is not true because tomorrow we still want to do something, and in the evening our stay in Bangkok is already over, and we will continue by night bus to Chiang Mai.

Jonas and Franzi

P.S. In this blog post, we uploaded more photos than are included in the blog. So you can take a look at the additional photos by clicking on the 'expand' photos on top or clicking on 'Photos' on the main page.