Well, I’m safe and sound in Bangkok, but not before arriving with a throbbing migraine from the 8-hour red-eye flight from Perth that started at 2 AM. Fortunately, I had one last migraine pill in my carry-on luggage and went straight to a men’s room on arrival to pop it down my gullet. Unfortunately, it decided to pop down the sink drain instead. $7.50 down the drain (literally). Fortunately, I had more migraine medication in my checked baggage, but that took a little longer to get to (after the additional headaches of immigration, baggage claim, and customs).
Once I got to my guesthouse, they acted like they had no record of my reservation—even though I made it six weeks ago. I followed all their website instructions to the “T”: had it confirmed, and then re-confirmed by e-mail both Saturday and Sunday and re-confirmed again by phone on Monday (two days before my arrival). Oh well, they came up with a room for me anyway. I guess I shouldn’t complain for $10 a night.
I spent a few hours napping this afternoon, trying to catch up on my lost sleep from the flight. Then I spent several hours dizzily wandering the streets and shopping centres of downtown Bangkok. Tonight I had a nice, yummy double meal of Pad Thai (cooked before my very eyes) and barbecued chicken and coconut-flavoured rice for a whopping US$2.41!
I’m currently blogging this from the top floor of a giant shopping mall called Siam Square. They have huge movie theatres here that offer deluxe viewing packages (recliner seats, free eats, etc). King Kong piqued my interest, but it doesn’t look like it opens for another week. I’ve heard you’re required to stand and pledge allegiance to the King of Thailand (aka the King of Siam) before all movies here. That, in itself, could be interesting.
At this point, however, I’m just looking forward to a good night’s sleep….
