Thailand-Day 1-Shanghai to Bangkok

Starting with this post, and continuing for quite some while, my blog will take the form of a travelogue. This is, of course, because I have been traveling for quite awhile. I can’t say enough how much I love the fact that my “job” allows me to travel so much and see places all around Asia. After a frigid, frigid wait early in the morning in Shanghai, I made it (via Hong Kong) to Bangkok in the afternoon. I was successfully able to get from the airport to the northern bus terminal, and call my buddy John Thao to tell him that I’d be arriving the next morning. Now, Bangkok is pretty easy to get around, as it sees lots of tourists. The real highlight was riding on the back of a moto-taxi to the bus station…weaving in and out of very crowded Bangkok traffic. I was able to do enough pointing to get dinner at the somewhat confusing northern bus station cafeteria (apparently I had to buy some vouchers). I was a little shocked at how busy the bus station (one of three in Bangkok) was at 20:00 on a Thursday night, but after looking at the map and seeing that Bangkok is not only the biggest and most important city, but also the center of its transportation network, it makes more sense.

I took the bus from Bangkok to Khon Kaen, the city in northeastern Thailand where John works. I was a bit concerned when the bus didn’t leave until 45 minutes after scheduled, but figured that as Thailand borders both Vietnam and Laos, I would assume that their laid back cultural trends came from Thai culture/or vice versa, thus didn’t worry too much. The bus ride was pretty comfort

able, as the bus was air-conditioned (actually chilly) and my seat was very wide and reclined a fair amount. The six plus hour trip ended at 3:45, and John was sitting there patiently waiting. We grabbed a tuk-tuk to his place and hit the hay. From what I could see through the bus windows, bus stations, and streets of Bangkok, Thai people love eating. And, with their food, who wouldn’t. I know everyone has to eat, but one of my first impressions was ubiquitous snacking.

One thing that I felt immediately after getting away from the airport was what I call English guilt. Being American gives us a very useful skill-speaking English. Of course, I only realize this when I am trying to figure out which window to buy my ticket to Khon Kaen. Or when trying to figure out the cafeteria’s coupon payment system. I understand that for these workers, and almost everyone else I encountered in Thailand, that English is the international language of business-and tourism, and in Thailand that is important. But, I still feel a bit guilty when I’m in another country and they are speaking to me in English, not me even trying to use their language. It’s the way it is, and I don’t pretend that I am doing them some favor by mispronouncing thank you in their tongue, but I can’t help but feel a bit guilty-and lucky too.

**Remember, you can find the complete albums of all my photos in my Picasa gallery-linked to the upper right