Bangkok
By Ross. Filed in Thialand |
All roads, as a backpacker in South East Asia, lead to Bangkok.
Backpackers flock to Bangkok’s Khao San Road, attracted by cheap accommodation and a mass of bars, street food, knock off clothes and pretty much every illegal DVD you could wish to buy. At night it turns into one massive party street with extra mobile bars brought in to compliment the already bustling bars.
I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with Bangkok and had never been able to make my mind up but I’ve firmly decided after this five-day stop: I love Bangkok; I hate the Khao San Road.
To me Khao San sums up the worst elements of backpackers/tourists from every country. Chavy British/Irish guys walking about with their football tops on and the mandatory white socks and trainers, Euro-trash / fat Germans, the stereo-typical Aussie male with his sleeveless vest or beer logo t-shirt and Israeli girls getting their hair braided and wearing cheese cloth trousers, going on and on about Thailand like they were the only people to have ever come here. Also, before I came to Khao San the American word “doucebag” is not a term I used because I was never sure what one looked like. A few days here and I can spot an American Doucebag a mile away!
There are however streets close to Khao San that offer a somewhat nicer experience. I stayed a few minutes away on Soi Rambutri which also offers a fairly nice nightlife, and the best street Pad Thai you will find. It costs a little bit more, but in return you will get to sleep at night, rather than sweat to death in a non air-conditioned room.
Sukhumvit is the other tourist area of Bangkok. Based a little more in the centre it caters for people on package holidays, or flash-packers that don’t want to have to deal with Khao San but do not want to pay to stay in the Hilton either. On the plus side it’s much cleaner and quieter than Khao San and you’re not likely to bump into guys called Stevo and Shane from Sydney.
The only draw back for me about Sukhumvit is this is the area all the sex tourists stay in to be close to the famous Soi Cowboy. So if the sight of a fat, bald, blinged up 60 something male walking around with a Thai girl half his size and a quarter his age makes you want to vomit, then this is not the area for you.
Sex tourists look exactly as you would imagine, and are easy to spot. They are not ashamed of what they are doing so you will frequently see the aforementioned males walking around Sukhumvit, proud as punch with their rented entertainment for the night. Whilst they are doing nothing illegal in Thailand, I would feel a whole lot better if their names were on a watch list somewhere in their home countries.
Sukhumvit is also located next to Bangkok’s excellent Sky train service, the roads here are very congested and it’s the quickest way to get around town. Just three stops down is the famous Siam Centre where you will find MBK, Bangkok’s premier shopping mall where you will find all the cool Thai teenagers and cool people like me at the weekend. MBK is a shopaholic’s dream with floor upon floor of cheap designer labels and electrical goods. It’s a good job my xmas presents had been deposited in my bank account a few days earlier! For those who are weak in the wallet Bangkok is not the place for you. Temptation is everywhere and I estimate after quite the shopping spree at MBK I must have spent easily 350gbp in four days, and this time I did not take advantage of the many cheap tailors on offer!
What I like about Bangkok, and what sums up what a great city it really is, is that every time I come here I find a new way to spend time. At this rate I will make an excellent tour guide for someone new to the city. This time it was the river taxi ride down the Chao Pharaya River. For a mere 11 baht you can sail down it passing all the major Bangkok landmarks at a nice pace, avoiding all the hustle and bustle of the roads. I also highly recommend stopping off for a drink at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel and seeing how the other half live before getting asked to leave for not obeying the dress code.
Bangkok really does have so much to do, great bars, clubs, shopping, amazing temples, riverboat rides, floating markets, Thai boxing and even the odd ping pong show if that’s what floats your boat. Bangkok is a fantastic city. You just have to look further than Khao San Rd to see it.
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