11th January (Day Thirty Seven)

Went to Thailand today!

This was the second time that I have visited Thailand, and I was very excited at the prospect of spending some time on the beautiful sandy Thai beaches, before returning to the U.K.

Most of the morning I spent with Ken and Freddie just reading and planning what to do when I arrived at Bangkok airport and where I was going to stay that night. Last year, I had stayed at a small guest house called the 'Merry V', and although I did not care where I stayed, I knew that this place would be clean and cheap. Another reason was that I had told Rick (from Canada), that if he was in Bangkok to leave a message for me at the 'Merry V', I thought that it would be great to meet up with him again. At 2.00pm, with my back-pack on my back (only much, much lighter!),

I said goodbye to Ken, Freddie, Arron, Asher and Zack for the last time, and headed for Kai Tak airport, Hong Kong. My flight was not until 5.20pm, so once I was at the airport I had plenty of time to look around and watch the aircraft making the treacherous approach onto the run-way. Each aircraft comes over the mountains and flies low over the sky-scrapers of Hong Kong, before making a very sharp right hand turn onto the run-way. I think this manoeuvre is more to avoid flying over China's airspace but also I assumed the terrain had a lot to do with it. Watching the larger Boeing 747's come in certainly looked exciting and one day I would love to sit on the flight-deck and watch the landing from the pilots view.

The flight to Bangkok the capital of Thailand was on Qantas Airways and, as usual, the standard of service was excellent with plenty of free drink and good food. The distance from Hong Kong to Bangkok is one thousand seven hundred and eleven kilometres and the plane arrived on the runway at 7.05pm local time. The next task was to clear customs and then get a taxi to Banglumphu, which is where the Khao San Road is situated. As the majority of the back-packer style of accommodation is here, it would be a good place to start looking.

The custom procedures took for ever! We did not get through the other side until 10.30pm which was almost three and a half hours, which I thought was pathetic and not a very good start to everyone's holiday as some had kids who were very tired and wanted to go to sleep. Once through the other side, I spotted a young couple and enquired if they were going to the Khao San Road, and if so would they want to share a taxi with me and help cut the cost. They agreed and so we headed to the taxi station which was just inside the exit at the airport. First you have to purchase your ticket from the taxi desk, then go outside and take the taxi at the front of the queue. This is to stop the visitor being ripped off by the taxi drivers, as you pay no more money to the driver, I suppose he has to claim the fare back from the taxi station at a later date.

The two I shared the taxi with turned out to be really nice, they had just arrived from Singapore and like me, they too had suffered long delays at the hands of the Customs Officers. The lad's name was Hannan and he came from Israel, and the girl's name was Karen and she was Singapore-Chinese but spoke very little English. Hannan visited Thailand on a regular basis and already had a guest house booked and said there would be room for me there if I wanted to stay with them. I accepted as it would be a lot easier than hunting for somewhere to sleep at such a late hour. The journey to Banglumphu took one and a quarter hours, and once we arrived at the '7 Holders' guest house it was obvious that they knew Hannan as they were very pleased to see him again. We were shown to a room with five beds in, of which two were already taken, dumped our bags and headed out for a beer. It was Karen's first time out of Singapore and I had a feeling she was going to be in for a shock when she saw how the Thai's lived compared to the people of Singapore. Hannan suggested we should head to Pat-Pong which was the red light district of Bangkok, but is also where there was guaranteed to be lots going on with street markets and many bars open, so that is where we went. At Pat-Pong it was the same as ever with the place over-run with prostitutes trying to find a client, and at the entrance to the bars, there was always at least one person trying to convince us we should go into their bar, claiming that the show inside would be more bizarre than the next. We went into a couple of bars and they were just as bizarre and strange as ever, I cannot but help feel sorry for the prostitutes as they have to endure the dirty old men groping them. I wondered what their wives would have to say, if they were ever to find out? After an absolutely exhausting day, I finally flopped into bed about 2.30am.

12th January (Day Thirty Eight)

Thailand.

Early history

The history dates back to the 13th century when the first kingdom was established in Thailand which was then known as Siam. The name "Siam" remained until the 1940's when, of course, it was renamed Thailand. The first known inhabitants came from a mixture of India, Burma and China, and it was in China's Yúnnán and Sichuãn provinces, where a distinctly Thai state started to form in a place called Nan Chao. Nan Chao maintained close relations with imperial China and all was well until the Mongols, under Kublai Khan, invaded and conquered Nan Chao in 1253. The Thai's migrated  Southwards to escape this war, and first began to settle in parts of Laos and Northern Thailand. They slowly infiltrated South-East Asia in small groups, merging and harmonizing with the people that they met along the way. Some of these people became mercenaries for the Khmer armies in the early 12th century (now known as Cambodia), and evidence of this can be found in the Angor Wat in Cambodia. The Thai's were called 'Syams' by the Khmers, which referred to their skin colour as it was darker than theirs and this may be the reason that the Thai kingdom eventually became known as Siam.

Ayuthaya period

The Thai kings of Ayuthaya (an area of Siam), became very powerful in the 14th and 15th centuries, and took over former strongholds of the Khmers and moved east until Angor (in Cambodia) was defeated in 1431. The result of this was that the Thai monarch gained absolute authority and assumed the name Devaraja (God king). In the early 16th century Ayuthaya was receiving European visitors and a Portuguese embassy was established in 1511. The Portuguese were closely followed by the Dutch in 1605, the English in 1612, the Danes in 1621 and the French in 1662. Ayuthaya was the wealthiest city in the whole of Asia and, according to the history books, London at this time was just a small village by comparison. During 1675-1688 a Greek, called Constantine Phaulkon, became a very high ranking official in Siam under King Narai. He kept out the Dutch and English but allowed the French to station six hundred troops in the Kingdom. Fearing a take-over the Thais expelled the French troops and executed Constantine, then Siam sealed itself off from the rest of the world for the next one hundred and fifty years.

Chakri Dynasty.

General Chao Phya Chakri came to power and was crowned in 1782 under the title Rama I. He moved the royal capital to Bangkok and ruled as first king of the Chakri dynasty, the present king of Thailand is Rama IX, and it has been prophesied that this dynasty will have nine kings. The country began the slow process of development through to the reign of Rama IV, commonly known as King Mongkut, when he began to loosen up the the trade restrictions with the rest of the world. He established Siam's first printing press and developed a school system along the lines of the European system.

His son, King Chulalongkorn, Rama V (1868-1910), continued his Father's reforms and the Thais further benefited from relations with the USA as well as all the European nations. During this period railways were constructed and a civil service established. From his death in 1910, up until the end of World War II, the succession of Kings continued until, in 1946, King Ananda was assassinated and power was taken by Phibul Songkhram, a key military leader. The military remained in power and today the politics remain volatile with fifteen successful or attempted coups since 1932 (an average of almost three per decade).

The present king of Thailand Rama IX is held in very high regard today, and great respect is given to the royal family.

By 6.30am everyone in the room appeared to be up, or at least awake, and it was time to meet the others with whom we were sharing the room, (They had been asleep when we got in last night). Everyone decided that as it was early we should go and visit the floating market at Thonburi, which takes place every morning from around 7.00am (or so we thought), it was where the locals sell their produce, all from small boats on one canal. The canal is called Khlong Dao Kanong and is, of course, visited by boats which can be hired from along the river although the price is quite high these days, due to the increased interest from the tourists. We were all a little bit disappointed with the market as today it has become something of a tourist trap, and any case, the actual market takes place at 5.30-6.30am, so we had missed it!

We ended up spending about two hours sight-seeing on a long-tail boat, which was a great way to start my first full day in Thailand, and it is the only way to see life in the Khlongs (canals). The entire cost was 150B (£2.00), and was worth it. The people that live along the khlongs use the water for washing and just about everything else. It was not uncommon to see people washing themselves and children swimming in the water, while just a short way further on we saw a bloated dead dog floating along!

Once I had returned to Bangkok and Banglumphu, I went to the Merry 'V'' guest house to see if Rick had made it there and left a note for me, as we had arranged previously. Once inside the guest house I soon found a note with my name on pinned to the notice board, It was of course from Rick and Erick who were staying at another guest house not too far away. I immediately went around to see them and it was great to chat about our adventures since the last time we had met. I arranged to meet Rick later that night as I had lots to do that day, including getting all my photographs developed.

Last year, when I was in Bangkok, I found a very good and reliable photography shop on the Khao San Road which is where all the cheap back-packer accommodation is found. The shop was offering a free enlargement with every film developed, and as I had around twenty, I thought it would work out very well, and would make the pictures more interesting. I got the impression from Rick that he was fed up travelling with Erick, who was a rather boisterous American, and he suggested we should go off somewhere together and he would part company with Erick but still remain on good good terms if possible! I had already decided to travel south and visit some of the islands and spend a relaxing week or so on a beach and Rick said he would come with me as I already had the route planned out and had researched where to go and how much it would cost.

I spent the rest of the day walking around Bangkok taking yet more pictures of the many temples (Wat) that are found all over Thailand. The largest complex of Wats is at the Grand Palace which is magnificent to walk around and photograph.

Wat Saket (The Golden Mount)

Wat Saket was one of my favourite temples due to the great views over Bangkok that are possible to be seen from the top. The hill was man made by King Rama III and the present structure was built by his son King Rama V who, as well as adding the structure, also housed a Buddha relic given to him by the British government. The concrete walls were added during WW II to prevent the hill from eroding away. Admission to the Wat is free, apart from the final approach where the admission is 5B. All around the Wat are the accommodation where the monks live and go to school. It is a very tranquil place to visit at any time, and each time that I have visited Thailand, I have always made an effort to go to Wat Saket.

At 9.30pm that evening, Rick called for me and I took him to Pat-Pong for his first time, and coming from a fairly religious and spiritual background, I thought he managed to overcome the shock of the Pat-Pong 'cabaret' quite well. I had to laugh when we were approached by the prostitutes on one occasion, the secret is to ignore them and they leave you alone. However Rick, being inquisitive, attracted them straight away, and they thought they would make some money out of him. Soon, he had condoms flowing out of his shirt pockets and all around the bar as they teased him, then he looked straight at me with a shocked look on his face and asked,"Is that your hand Neil?" (Ha,Ha) His face was a picture!

The girls soon realised that we were not there to use them, and we started to chat with them the best we could, and actually had a half decent conversation. The only rule of the club is that you have to have a beer in front of you, and as long as you do not take any photographs you can watch the girls perform their striptease, and try to entice the tourist to take them home for the night. Each girl wears a badge with a number on, and rather like ordering a Chinese meal, you ask the 'Madam' for the girl, and pay the bar a fee and the girl is yours! Then you have to arrange a fee with the girl for whatever you require of her. Some of the girls were very young, you could tell by the way they had not yet developed, some looked around twelve years old although it is hard to tell. Some of the young prostitutes are sold by their families to the clubs so that they can earn money and then send it back to their families. It is estimated that today around 80% are infected with the HIV virus and most have 'Full blown AIDS'! This is mostly due to the fact that the Thai's refuse to wear condoms, and are prepared to pay more, which of course the girls will accept without too much thought of the consequences.

Outside in the street of Pat-Pong one and two there is a large market every night selling everything from fake Gucci watches, leather handbags, music cassettes (pirate copies of course!), videos, books, and just about everything you could imagine. One of the delicacies is deep fried grasshoppers which are sold by the bag, and fried in chilli they are not too bad if you ignore what it is that your eating!

It was another late night and Rick and I arrived home in the early hours of the morning.

13th January (Day Thirty Nine)

Rick and I had breakfast at 9.00am and I told him all about my plans for Thailand and where I wanted to travel to in the South. There are three islands all near to each other called, Ko Samui, Ko Pha-Ngan and Ko Tao, and are easily accessible via boats from the mainland. I had figured there were two ways of getting to the port, either by bus, which was the cheapest, but, the Lonely Planet guides warned, the more dangerous. Or by train which was slightly more expensive due to the fact that there would be a bed for the night, and there was a restaurant car so we could have a meal during the journey. I told Rick that I definitely wanted to take the safer route and go by train and he was in total agreement with me. The buses travel through the night on unlit roads, and you can never be too sure if the drivers are qualified or not. One case recently publicised in the news alleged that a coach had crashed, when the driver had let his son take the wheel so he could have a sleep! Anyway whether one opts for the bus or the train, they both arrive at the port within an hour of each other so that the passengers can catch the same boat, so time wise there was no advantage to what form of transport you choose.

Having decided that we were to travel by train, the next problem was to avoid being ripped off by the unscrupulous travel agents that take money and do not book the train seats. We decided to try the travel agents in the Khao San Road and picked one that appeared to be genuine and by 10.30am we had our seats booked for later that evening. The cost for the return train journey from Bangkok to Surat Thani (the place where you board the ferry), and the ferry journey to Ko Pha Ngan was 918B (£20.00).

With the journey booked, we decided to go and do some sight seeing around Bangkok. The main place that we wanted to visit was The Grand Palace where the King of Thailand used to live.

The Grand Palace & Wat Phra Kaew.

The temples are very sacred places to the Thai's and so to visit them you first must ensure that you are suitably dressed and always be aware of the Thai's who are worshipping inside the Bot, (the main chapel ).

Wat Phra Kaew (temple of the jewel holy image) is situated adjacent to the Grand Palace and is set amongst a huge collection of temples of varying architecture due to the fact that temples have been added, during the different reigns of the Rama's. The land was consecrated in 1782, the first year of Bangkok rule, and most of the style is from the Ratanakosin period, and is very colourful with extensive murals depicting scenes form the period. The murals were painted during the reign of Rama III (1824-50) and have gone through extensive restorations since then. The latest one was completed in 1982 the Bangkok/Chakri bicentennial.

The temple of the Emerald Buddha is at the heart of the temple complex and is considered to be the most sacred object in Thailand. Photography is banned in the Bot where the Emerald Buddha is situated high above the heads of the worshippers within a glass cage. A feeling of mystery surrounds the statue and I was compelled to just sit and stare at it for some time. The Buddha is just sixty to seventy five centimetres high and is actually made from jasper which is a type of jade. It is dressed in one of three robes depending on the season. The robes are changed at the beginning of each season by the King of Thailand personally.

It is not known where the statue first originated, or who sculptured it but it first appeared in the history books in the 15th century in Chiang Rai in the north of the country. It is said that the statue was covered in plaster and gold leaf when in Chiang Rai and during a storm it had to be transported to safety where it was dropped, causing the plaster to crack and fall off in places, thus uncovering the Emerald Buddha within. It next appeared in Lampang where it stayed for thirty two years until it was brought to Chiang Mai, also in the north. Laotion invaders took the image in the mid-16th century and returned to Laos with it where it then remained for the next two hundred years.

Then King Taksin of Thailand waged war with Laos and the image was returned once more to Thailand, to what was then the capital, Thonburi. Later, during the Chakri Dynasty, the image was moved to it is present resting place when Rama I made Bangkok the capital.

The Grand Palace today is only used by the King for ceremonial occasions and his residence is Chitlada Palace in the northern part of the city, but the grounds of the palace are a great place to visit even though they are just a walls width from the pollution of the Bangkok streets!

Another beautiful wat is Wat Tramit (the temple of the Golden Buddha). The attraction is an impressive three metre high five and a half tonne, solid gold Buddha image. It too was discovered in exactly the same way as the Emerald Buddha, when, whilst it was being moved by a crane, it was dropped and the plaster exterior fell away revealing the gold Buddha beneath. The theory is that the plaster had been added to hide the image from the invading Burmese armies during the Ayuthaya period. The temple itself dates back to the 13th century.  

Getting Around Bangkok.

The Tuk-Tuk is one of the main forms of transport that I have tended to use for shorter distances. These three wheeled taxis sound more like a chain saw but they are able to manoeuvre around in heavy traffic and so get there a little bit quicker than a  conventional taxi.

There have been instances of Tuk-Tuk drivers robbing their passengers at night but they are, on the whole, generally pleasant and good humoured. Most take great pride in their machines and decorate them with extra lights, flags and mirrors. One that I travelled in actually had a TV for the passengers to watch. The cassette/radio is of course standard and is usually on full blast throughout the journey.

The only problems that I have encountered is that the Tuk-Tuk drivers obtain fuel coupons for delivering people to various shops, often jewellery or tailor stores, so you often have a bit of a fight trying to convince the drivers that you wish to go direct to the destination that   you requested.

The day flew by and I managed to make a quick phone call to Michelle from a telephone office in the Khao San Road, then it was back to the 7 Holders guest house to get packed and head to the railway station to catch the train.

Rick had told Erick that he wanted to part company and that he was going down south with me for a break before going back to Canada. I felt a little bit guilty that Rick was leaving Erick, but I felt worse when Rick told me that Erick was also going south that evening, only via the bus. That it meant that we would all meet up at the pier in the morning.

We took a Tuk-Tuk to the railway station and tried to find out just which train was ours, a problem that we had become accustomed to in China! By 6.30pm we were on the train and, with the sun setting over the city, it left Bangkok's Thonburi station on time.

The train network is run by the the Thai government and, compared to my experiences in China, it was surprisingly good. The windows were very big and, due to the heat, they were always open which meant it was great for taking photographs and, of course, just sitting there and watching the country go by. The scenery is always better than that of the bus as the trains regularly pass small Thai villages, farmland, and old temples etc. There are decent cheap meals served on board with as much beer as you can drink, essential to help you sleep in the heat!

The seats were good and very comfortable with a small table between the facing seats, where we were served our meals. Once on the train we were offered a complementary glass of orange juice by the conductor, WOW! what a difference to China!

The two seats that faced each other turned into a bed, while up above our heads was a second bed that came down on hinges. Once in place, a curtain was hung between the bunk and the passageway so that we could sleep in peace. Above each bed was a private reading light and a small net pouch to put personal smaller items in, while my back-pack could be safely chained to the overhead racks. There was a lovely cool breeze blowing through the carriage all night long due to the fact the windows were open, however, this meant there was considerably more noise than I had become used to on the Chinese trains. I did not sleep that well during the journey but what the heck, it wasn't as if I had to go to work in the morning, was it ?!

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