It is day two in fascinating, albeit still developing and disorienting Bangkok. First day was spent a The Mother of All Markets Chatuchak weekend markets, in part because the city itself is a city of consumerism and temples (come 400+) but mainly because they are only held on weekends and we might not get to spend another weekend here. I was amazed and pleasantly surprised at the unique beautiful hand crafts of the locals and promptly stocked up on a few “essentials” that Vanuatu simply failed to provide: leather laptop and camera bags and a sexy as hell pair of sandals.  Had a chance to sample some local food, of which there is an overwhelming variety and nearly went home with the most cute pet imaginable – a sort of tiny stripped squirrel but Will said that the quarantine will never let me take it back across the border so, sulking, I had to let it go. On the way back Will consumed some deep fried grass hoppers followed by some worms, which apparently “didn’t taste like much” but I nevertheless refused to give it a go. The day ended with a Thai massage – first ever for me. It is interesting and very revitalizing after a full day walking about but the pain factor is going to keep me away from having another one for a while I think.

Day two was chock a block full of events and sightseeing: the Grand Palace(we managed to pick some special day when it was FULL, I mean really FULL of people due to some death anniversary – nothing but people everywhere, just crazy), the Standing Buddha (40m!), the Happy Buddha (open only 1 day out of the year and we got to see it!), the private silk and suit merchants (suppliers to Armani – you can become their customer by invitation only, today was last day of “open to public” promotion), first time Tuk-Tuk riding, a riot (although it was  at the end of the street and not happening around us, a riot is a riot still), speed boat down Mae Nam Chao Phraya river and some Nana district strolling to end the day. All that was accompanied by a variety of exotic local food, a Hello Kitty balloon and lots of snapshots (as always).

Today was the first day for me to feel truly blessed and to experience what many travel books write about – if you just let go and let things happen, you attract some amazing people and circumstances that make your adventures unforgettable. This Thai lady started talking to me in front of a small temple offering to come it and take a picture, I sort of declined intent on ignoring her, not sure how to react to this eager hospitality… “Perhaps hoping for the temple donation”, said by cynical brain. But shortly after she entered the temple, she emerged and again urged us to go in, then started talking to us, one word lead to another and here she is writing and making marks on our map drawing out our itinerary for the day, trying to explain as best she could where to go and what to see and why we must hurry since it’s the last (or the only) day to see such and such. She then hailed a random Tuk-Tuk off the street, which turned out to be the cheapest transport around – only 50 Bhat/hr to take you anywhere and wait for you while you do your sightseeing. Having told the driver where to take us step by step and having made sure he didn’t overcharge us as clueless tourists, she was off with a wave of her hand and a friendly smile. We saw everything except for the Marble temple which we had to miss because the road was blocked by the riot (which just looked like a large group of people peacefully confronting a row of policemen).

The day ended with a river taxi down the main Bangkok river (a gondola like boat but with a diesel car engine attached to the back) which gave plenty of sights to take in and photograph. Then getting off at a train station next to ours we walked by through the Nana district which is known for its sex industry. We happily avoided any seedy places by sticking to the main road, only once taking a turn as I discovered a “Down Under” Aussie bar and wanted to have a quick look at the public and the interior. All is well that ends well and we weren’t hassled at all, all we got was some stares and pointing and laughing at my pink Hello Kitty balloon which hopefully brightened up their evening.