Let the craziness begin...

Now it finally feels like I'm outside the country! 

To begin, the 8hr flight to Hong Kong was as enjoyable as possible considering the flight length.  I flew Cathay Pacific Airlines.  To my amusement, they only employ hot Asian chicks on their flights (I confirmed this when I experienced the same "quality" from Hong Kong to Bangkok), and they even had a section on the in-flight TV monitor where you could "learn more about the girls" including viewing several "sexy" pics of each ;p  I only researched this for your benefit, of course. 

I enjoyed two meals from Sydney to Hong Kong (Qantas only gave me two for the 15 hour flight from LA to Sydney), and one really great meal on the Hong Kong to Bangkok flight (some sort of seafood noodle dish + a croissant + fruit + yogurt + tea). 

As we descended into Hong Kong, it truly felt like the other side of the world.  I sat next to the window and watched the Hong Kong skyline open up as we approached the island that contained the airport (mountains flanked the entire coastline on one side, and the open sea / ocean on the other).  I'm not sure exactly how to describe it, but it definitely had an Eastern feel.

I had an hour or so layover in Hong Kong (our flight was late arriving), and then we were off to Bangkok via a 3 hour flight.  I gained 4 hours, so now I'm exactly 12 hours ahead of Austin.  The future is amazing!  ;p

After getting off the plane, it was madness.  #1:  I assumed that Thailand would use the same type of "character" writing that is used in Japan and China (not that I could've read it); instead, they use text that looks more middle eastern than anything else.  #2:  While I'm not a "giant" here, I'm taller than 80% of the people, which is definitely nothing I've ever experienced before -- except when I have my moustache and am driving my van around the playground.  hehe  #3:  Everything is ridiculously cheap here -- the exchange rate is amazing ($1 USD = 30 Thai BHT).  For example, from the airport to the city, which took three trains, it cost a total of 0.35 Thai BHT (about $0.02). 

The train / subway trip to the city was fine; I made my stops exactly as I had hoped.  People are actually very friendly, and willing to help the only cracker in the area (they didn't even ask me for money).  I'm staying between two of the three main red light districts, and stepping off the subway platform around 7pm with the sun descended was CRAZY!  People are everywhere, the city is dirty as hell, and traffic patterns make no sense -- all of which I LOVE!  I was trying to find my way around and got lost for another hour or so.  I'm on Soi 11 (Street 11), but Bangkok does this funny thing with their "soi's" in this area.  The number streets are in order, but only all odd or all even numbered streets are on either side of the main artery.  So, if you're on the wrong side of the street (as I was -- I was on the even side), you may do what I did and wander around, trying to figure out how the streets skipped my Soi 11.  It literally took me 45 minutes or so before I realized what was going on -- I'm not ashamed to admit it.  ;p

I finally made it to the right street around 8pm.  It was hot and crazy humid, so I was drenched in sweat.  I didn't take any pics at the time b/c I was just trying to find my way (don't worry, I have some from today).  Right before I got to the hotel, a cab driver came up to me and gave me his number -- he said that he would take me to the "good massage" places and they included "showers."  hehe; very intriguing (though I don't totally understand the "showers" comment)...This particular night, I was exhausted and just wanted to get to the hotel.   

Of course, it's supposed to rain my entire time here.  I'm starting to think I'm bringing destruction to every part of planet I am to visit -- floods north of Sydney before my arrival, and throughout the duration of my trip; Tokyo (enough said); Cairo (enough said); and now a week of rain in Bangkok...Whatever you do, don't travel to London, Athens, or Budapest anytime soon ;p

Earlier today, I had some street vendor food (AWESOME and CHEAP!) and went by the Vietnam embassy where I applied for my visa.  It's supposed to be available on Friday.  The scary thing is that they took my passport while they're processing my visa.  They gave me a receipt for it, but I'm visa-less until Friday.  Let's hope that doesn't present any problems the next couple of nights in the red light district...

At any rate, enjoy some pics...

                                  [This is what $50 a night gets you in Bangkok ;p]

                                           [Yea!  Fireworks for my arrival!]

[On any given street there are at least 10-15 of these food vendors.  I bought 10 of these puppies (yikes, they might have actually been puppy meat; sorry, poor choice of word) for $1.  They were delicious]

[This has been fairly typical of most streets -- and it was only around 2pm when I took this picture]

[Motorcycles and scooters are everywhere (they're used primarily as cab drivers here - though I did see a "Burger King" driver; not sure if they deliver here, but why the hell not??).  The motorcycle drivers are awesome; they hardly drive on the correct side of the road, and I saw one driving on the sidewalk, weaving in and out of people while a cop stood there and watched] 

                                  [Just to make some readers very happy]

Well, I'm off to get my first of what I'm guessing will be several Thai massages, and then off to Nana Plaza!