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6/19 9:30am Day 3

I had trouble understanding the internet cafe and accidentally paid for 2 hours of internet use (about $1.20) so I thought I use that time to go into a bit more detail. Bangkok really is wonderful. It is crowded and polluted and noisy, but it is wonderful. Everywhere we go, it smells like a Thai food restaurant (spicy with a hint of fish) and there are new things to look at around each corner. We are staying right off of Kao San Road – which is apparently a very touristy area, but we discovered that if you wander the city at 7am, tourists are scarce. They are even more scarce walking the busy roads. We can’t go half a block without a tuk tuk (picture a 3 wheeled taxi) trying to convince us to let him take us somewhere. Adam and I are committed to walking. The Grand Palace is only about a mile away, and while the heat is threatening to consume us, we actually get a much better feel for the city walking than we ever could riding in a tuk tuk. Everything is open 24 hours but it felt just as hot to me at 1am last night as it does now. There are towering buildings that are threatening to collapse at any moment right next to beautiful new temples. Our hotel – a beautiful building – is flanked on either side by what looks to me to be a building whose sole purpose is to hold old newspapers and something that looks like it might once have been a gas station. I feel kinda like I’ve stepped into a dream land (it doesn’t help that I’m jet lagged). Everywhere I turn is something new – a blue haired dog, $5 massages, tropical fish proudly displayed on the side of the road, pink taxis, orange robed monks, and beautiful temples. I’m trying to convince Adam that we should go to Chang Mai in a few days to explore the northern tribes. The only other plans that we have set in stone is our visit to Koh Samui – an island down south where there is supposed to be excellent scuba diving. I think I have babbled enough for now. Its time to go see if we can get some money.