When I finally emerged from the plane, the close hot air hit me like a ton of bricks. It seemed to suffocate me and leave no room to breathe. After long queues and an hour-and-a-half taxi ride to our hotel in Chinatown, we were finally in Thailand. You also enjoyed one day in Bangkok.
One Day In Bangkok:
Bangkok the heat (comparable to those swelteringly hot days in Johannesburg), coupled with jet lag, left me lazy and unwilling to do anything strenuous. Unbeknownst to my husband and me at the time, our very first tuk-tuk driver ripped us off badly. He initially wanted to charge us 200 baht each to get to the river, which was only five minutes away.
Coupled With Jet Lag:
We hailed him down to about 170 baht and later discovered that we should have never paid more than 60 baht for a transfer around the city unless it was far out. Irritated and still feeling like zombies, we went to the deserted jetty. A wooden boat was put towards us, and the owner asked if we wanted to explore the river. When he said it was 800 baht, we swiftly declined, and a few minutes later, we were glad to find out that we’d made the right choice when the public ferry was only 15 baht.
Wat Arun:
We hopped off at Wat Arun temple beside the river and paid a deposit to get a shawl to cover my shoulders and a sarong for my legs. A statue of a gold laughing Buddha greeted visitors at the bottom, and followers said their prayers before entering. I climbed several stairs with intricate ceramic mosaics on the walls and looked up. The center of the temple towered into the sky, and I was surprised at the sheer steepness of it. The steps were steep, and we had to climb them one by one while holding onto the rails and never looking down.
The sheer exhilaration and fear of being so high with not much below me was terrifying, and I breathed a sigh of relief once my shaky legs were on solid ground. This viewpoint permitted us to look out onto the other side of the river and to see the immaculate gardens below. Buddhist monks walked beside the manicured bushes, and school children posed beside the temple walls.
Khao San Road:
With only a few hours left to explore destinations of the city, we stopped at the renowned Khao San Road. We decided to rest our weary feet and visit one of Bangkok the many massage places along the route. To keep cool, my husband shaved his head, and we followed our masseuse upstairs to a room filled with mattresses on the floor. The aches and knots of being cramped in an airplane seat were being worked with her strong hands. We made our way past vendors selling headphones, sarongs, juice stands, fake MAC make-up, and jewelry and tried to avoid the persistent tour operators.
Chinatown:
Once back in Chinatown, it seemed this part of town was only waking up. Women cleaned meat on the sidewalk and washed dishes right beside it. Bags filled with refuse filled the street and, coupled with the open drains and humidity, left the air with the most hideous scents. Before we knew it, a waitress ushered us to a plastic chair at a seafood restaurant on the sidewalk. Crabs tied with string lay on the table beside us, and a cockroach scuttled beneath my feet. With that, I lost my appetite. It was a good thing I was leaving this dirty, big city the next day.
Lauren Manuel is a writer for the South Africa travel site SA-Venues.com, where you can book your Knysna Accommodation directly with the establishments. Lauren and her husband enjoy surfing and spending their time outdoors.