Bangkok, Thailand

We took a weekend getaway to Bangkok back in November. But I never updated our blog or posted any photos until now. I blame facebook.

I blame facebook for making it easy to update my current status without actually writing anything of substance. Facebook gives me a superficial feeling similar to writing a blog, when really all I've done was written "Eric is at work again."

Our trip to Bangkok was just a couple of weeks just before anti-government the protestors took over the parliament offices and shut down the international airport. In Thailand, there is some form of politically-inspired violence almost every day. But we felt safe the entire time we were there; in fact, we were looking forward to seeing the Thai political process in action. Unfortunately, we never saw any demonstrations or other political activity while we were there.

Our Singaporean colleagues warned us away from Thailand because of protests, demonstrations, and general ongoing political strife. But Singaporeans are squeamishly uncomfortable with any sort of political speech, so we didn't give their concerns much credence.

Coming from Santa Cruz, California, political protests don't faze us. To the contrary, I was looking forward some meaningful political strife. Most of what you see in Santa Cruz, is pointless posturing over intangible concepts, trivial slights, or other random thought occurs to you on the way to a city council meeting.

In the US, our political grievances are mundane compared to the problems of the rest of the world. We hold peaceful elections every 4 years. Even when the popular vote selects a different president, we allow power to transfer peacefully from one president to another until we correct our mistake. We might grumble under a failed presidency that misunderestimates the economic and political temperament of the nation, but we'll wait patiently for new elections to lawfully replace the current administration.

In Thailand, they ignore elections altogether. They do keep a roughly 4-year cycle, but instead of electing a new government every 4 years, they have a coup (or at least an attempted coup) on average every 4 years. When the Thai ruling party misunderestimates their nation, they are physically removed from offices with much shouting and gesturing.

So it was after work on a Friday in November that we flew to Thailand. It was a short trip from Singapore, and a perfect weekend getaway. But you have to be prepared for a murky Monday morning after maximizing your weekend in Bangkok.

We stayed in Bangkok's Chinatown area.

If you've ever visited San Francisco, you probably think of Chinatown as a diverse tourist-friendly neighborhood combining a genuine ethnic enclave with bustling commercial kitsch.

Not Bangkok's Chinatown. This is not so tourist friendly. More enclave than kitsch. Nearly all of the sights we wanted to see are located out of Chinatown area. And Bangkok traffic makes getting in or out of Chinatown a serious hassle.

So, we avoided the traffic and mostly walked out of Chinatown. Our first stop was Khaosan Road. This neighborhood is a big hangout for the international backpacking set (western 20-somethings on trust fund walkabout before starting that big investment banking career). Not that there's anything wrong with that; if there is one group of people who really know how to party, it's definitely those folks. And they have the time and resources to devote themselves wholeheartedly to the calling.

Whatever its reputation for partying at night, Khaosan Road is not very happening during the day. So, while the party boys and girls were still sleeping, we did some touristy shopping and availed ourselves of the local Starbucks for reliable coffee and internet access. We found some good Thai food and some local beer.

We spent most of our days in Bangkok just wandering around by foot or taking the sky train. We also took the water taxi along the river, from one side of Bangkok to the other. In the evenings, we switched to regular taxis and tuk-tuk rickshaws.

When we were in Mumbai, India, the taxis were expensive and you had to negotiate the prices in advance, while the tuk-tuks were metered and cheap. In Bangkok it was the opposite, so we mostly stuck to taxis, but we still enjoyed a couple of short tuk-tuk rides.

We were also warned that some dishonest drivers may try to divert us from our intended destination. You'll end up in their friend's store or some other place where they get kickbacks from the shop-owner. We did not have that experience from any of our drivers.

But we were offered some unsolicited "help" from a concerned pedestrian who told us that the shopping area we were looking for was closed for holidays. He volunteered to direct us to another shopping area. We declined. We found our destination ourselves. Yes, it was open for business.

Since this was our first trip to Bangkok, we found that walking around and taking public transportation is the best way to explore a new city. We followed the river and small canals. We walked the main streets and small alleyways. We went to the parks and commercial districts. We watched people working and playing.

At night, we went back to Khaosan Road for cocktails and dancing. We found the dance clubs kept the music playing right up to the end of the evening.

When I say "right up to the end of the evening", I mean that literally. Back in the US, the bars and clubs give you some sort of warning before closing time. They announce "last call", they start playing slow songs, or flicking the lights, etc. In Bangkok, the DJ keeps things spinning loud and fast right up until the very last minute the bar is permitted to be open. On that exact moment, they abruptly shut everything down with no cooling-off period. One moment, you're dancing. The next, you're squinting under sharp house lights and being herded towards the door.

But it wasn't all drinking and dancing. There was also lots of eating. When you go to Thailand you have to have as much Thai food as you can.

Being westerners with sensitive stomachs, we can't drink the water or eat the street food without getting sick. I managed to stay fine all weekend, but I was feeling a little ill on the flight home. Deanna knows a co-worker who enjoys the street food so much that she eats everything and just plans for being sick. She arranges her vacation so she gets sick on her timeline.

I can't say for sure if my queasiness on the return flight was due to the food, the drink, the dancing, or the lack of sleep. Whatever the cause, though it's the proper way to be sent home from Bangkok: tired, hung-over, and happy.