Day 1: Jet Lag Don't Take Me Now
It's currently 6 am here in Bangkok and I've been up for a couple hours. Thanks, jet lag :/
So after missing my connecting flight from Chicago to Tokyo, I somehow got on a flight to a different airport in Tokyo and arrived in Bangkok at 4 am local time. It's so surreal to be here. I still can't believe I'm halfway across the planet. Aunt Tara picked me up from the airport (or rather her and her driver, Khun Bangyid, picked me up) and she's been trying to give me a crash course on all things Thai before we start going out and doing things.
Thailand is a constitutional monarchy, but a few years ago there was a military coup so the prime minister is actually a military general. Tuesday was actually the four year anniversary of the coup and there were 2000 protesters who tried to walk from the university to the government house. They want to make sure the prime minister will hold elections in November, instead of pushing the date to February 2019 like he wants to.
In October 2016, the king, Rama IX, passed away, which sent the country into year-long mourning. His son, King Rama X, is the current king. His picture is displayed outside buildings and on the street; the few I've seen are huge portrait-type things.
Most of the country - something like 99% - is Buddhist. However, there are a lot of Animist and Hindu traditions practiced alongside Buddhism. We drove past a couple of Wats (Buddhist temples), which are absolutely beautiful. Even though it was completely dark when they picked me up from the airport, you could tell when we passed a Wat because it glittered. They literally glitter; it's like seeing something out of a movie. It's obvious that the Thai put a lot more effort than we do in the US into making their surroundings beautiful.
Outside almost every business, home, school, etc. is a spirit house. They're like little house-looking structures (almost like a dollhouse size) that you lay offerings for the spirits on to ask for good luck, etc. and to appease the spirits who might be staying there. My aunt and uncle have one in their house; they don't use it, but sometimes their housekeeper/chef Khun Meow will leave offerings there.
Yesterday, Tara took me out to lunch at the River Tree House Restaurant. When we got to the side street that it's on, we took a motorcycle with a sidecar thing (sort of like this) to the actual restaurant. It's right on the banks of the Chao Phraya River and we got a table right next to the water. It's rainy season here, so it had already rained pretty hard and the river was a little flooded, but it was beautiful anyway. I got a coke there and was surprise because Thai coke is MUCH sweeter than US coke (which isn't a bad thing, just surprising). When we got our menus I realized that I probably should have looked into Thai cuisine a little more, but luckily Tara knows what she's doing and ordered us some food. Everything in Thailand is served for the table, even if everyone orders an entree for themself. I really like that concept, especially since I want to try a little bit of everything while I'm here. Tara ordered us pomelo salad (made with pomelo, a fruit that's popular here and it similar to grapefruit), cashew nut chicken, and green curry. I liked it all! The curry was a bit spicy but was so good, and the cashew nut chicken was similar to something you could find at an Asian restaurant in the US. The fruit was good, too, but it's a more acquired taste I think.
After lunch, we got a home massage, which is apparently a completely normal and fairly inexpensive thing to do here. After a thirteen hour flight and a six hour one after that, the massage felt like heaven. It was supposed to be more like just a foot/leg massage, but they did our arms, shoulders, and cracked our backs too. If this is how every day is, I might just move here.
So after missing my connecting flight from Chicago to Tokyo, I somehow got on a flight to a different airport in Tokyo and arrived in Bangkok at 4 am local time. It's so surreal to be here. I still can't believe I'm halfway across the planet. Aunt Tara picked me up from the airport (or rather her and her driver, Khun Bangyid, picked me up) and she's been trying to give me a crash course on all things Thai before we start going out and doing things.
Thailand is a constitutional monarchy, but a few years ago there was a military coup so the prime minister is actually a military general. Tuesday was actually the four year anniversary of the coup and there were 2000 protesters who tried to walk from the university to the government house. They want to make sure the prime minister will hold elections in November, instead of pushing the date to February 2019 like he wants to.
In October 2016, the king, Rama IX, passed away, which sent the country into year-long mourning. His son, King Rama X, is the current king. His picture is displayed outside buildings and on the street; the few I've seen are huge portrait-type things.
Most of the country - something like 99% - is Buddhist. However, there are a lot of Animist and Hindu traditions practiced alongside Buddhism. We drove past a couple of Wats (Buddhist temples), which are absolutely beautiful. Even though it was completely dark when they picked me up from the airport, you could tell when we passed a Wat because it glittered. They literally glitter; it's like seeing something out of a movie. It's obvious that the Thai put a lot more effort than we do in the US into making their surroundings beautiful.
Outside almost every business, home, school, etc. is a spirit house. They're like little house-looking structures (almost like a dollhouse size) that you lay offerings for the spirits on to ask for good luck, etc. and to appease the spirits who might be staying there. My aunt and uncle have one in their house; they don't use it, but sometimes their housekeeper/chef Khun Meow will leave offerings there.
This is the spirit house in Jeremy and Tara's house.
Yesterday, Tara took me out to lunch at the River Tree House Restaurant. When we got to the side street that it's on, we took a motorcycle with a sidecar thing (sort of like this) to the actual restaurant. It's right on the banks of the Chao Phraya River and we got a table right next to the water. It's rainy season here, so it had already rained pretty hard and the river was a little flooded, but it was beautiful anyway. I got a coke there and was surprise because Thai coke is MUCH sweeter than US coke (which isn't a bad thing, just surprising). When we got our menus I realized that I probably should have looked into Thai cuisine a little more, but luckily Tara knows what she's doing and ordered us some food. Everything in Thailand is served for the table, even if everyone orders an entree for themself. I really like that concept, especially since I want to try a little bit of everything while I'm here. Tara ordered us pomelo salad (made with pomelo, a fruit that's popular here and it similar to grapefruit), cashew nut chicken, and green curry. I liked it all! The curry was a bit spicy but was so good, and the cashew nut chicken was similar to something you could find at an Asian restaurant in the US. The fruit was good, too, but it's a more acquired taste I think.
The Chao Phraya River.
Me standing on the walkway to get into the restaurant. I can't believe how much greenery and blooming plants there are here!
After lunch, we got a home massage, which is apparently a completely normal and fairly inexpensive thing to do here. After a thirteen hour flight and a six hour one after that, the massage felt like heaven. It was supposed to be more like just a foot/leg massage, but they did our arms, shoulders, and cracked our backs too. If this is how every day is, I might just move here.
This is a huge snail outside of the house.
Brady's birthday was a little while ago, so they have a bunch of leftover candy, including some cool Thai KitKats (which are, coincidentally my favorite candy).
I glad you are having this experience.
ReplyDeleteHow neat! The spirit houses are fascinating. That snail and the vegetation seem beautiful. I enjoyed your post, and learning about the nice post-flight massage...I might have to start working those into my travel plans....
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