Bangkok Pros and Cons

Sunrise in Bangkok, from my $17 a night hotel.

The other day, while waiting for a taxi (which never came), my friends and I were discussing the pros and cons of Bangkok.  They hate it.  I like it.  Here are some of our perspectives:

Cons:

• Weather.  I admit, I hate the hot, humid season in Bangkok.  And it is hot and humid most of the year.  January, though, is lovely.  Highs in the 80's-low 90's.  Beats the heck out of snow.

• Transportation.  Taxis are cheap and plentiful in Bangkok, so how can that be a "con"?  It is very common for taxis to stop but then refuse to take you.  Too far, don't want to take a certain road, don't want to make a u-turn, not in the mood.  Whatever.  Especially on weekend nights or when it is raining, getting a cab in Bangkok can be impossible.  And if you think calling a taxi to come to you will solve the problem?  No, it won't because they will frequently say they are minutes away, but never arrive.  Yes, BTS and MRT are great but limited in their coverage of the city.  One last knock on taxi drivers.  Most don't speak English, which isn't a problem if you have your destination address written in Thai but most also don't have a clue where anything is.  I used to stay near one of the major intersections in Bangkok (Asoke and Sukhumvit).  I've been there often enough that I could easily drive myself there from the airport.  But I had innumerable taxi drivers who didn't have a clue where it was.  Or how to get to the international airport, for that matter.  A small hotel on a residential alley?  Forget it.
• Sidewalks.  I don't mind walking.  It's good exercise and there's always something to see in Bangkok.  But the "sidewalks" on all but main roads are about 15 inches wide (not joking) and frequently blocked by garbage or motorbikes.  When you get on a "real" sidewalk on a main road and are strolling happily you have to beware of motorbikes flying up behind you.  On the sidewalk.  It is disconcerting and dangerous.  Oh, and did I mention that at night the sidewalks are generally blocked by food carts?  Beware - pedestrians do NOT have the right of way.
• People.  My friends argued that people in Bangkok (as with many large cities) are rude and unfriendly.  That hasn't been my experience for the most part but I do have issues with the vast number of 20 somethings who are so focused on their phones that they bump into everyone in front of them.
• Air quality.  My friends didn't mention this but I think it's an issue.  Better than large cities in China for sure, but still not great air quality, especially certain times of year.
• Prices.  My friends complained about the prices in Bangkok.  That's only because they've lived in Mandalay for several years.  Some time back in the high priced U.S.A. will remind them how good the prices in Bangkok are.  30 minute taxi ride for less than $10?  Try that in San Francisco.

And now...

Pros

You can buy the kinds of groceries you find in the USA but you will pay dearly for them.  Sometimes, it's worth it.

You can find delicious street food everywhere, from morning until late evening.  The largest variety is in the evenings.  It is easy to get a meal for less than $2.

•  Prices.  Are there cheaper cities in the world?  Yes.  Can you get bargains in Bangkok?  Yes.  If you stay in the heart of the tourist area (Sukhumvit), you'll be paying top dollar for hotels.  If you stay on Khao San Road you can find cheap but that doesn't necessarily translate to good value.  Plus you'll be surrounding by backpackers, many of whom seem to have been raised by wolves.  If you stay in areas like Chatuchak, you can get a clean, modern, quiet hotel with all the amenities for less than $20 a night. 
  
  Bangkok is a cosmopolitan city and you can get pretty much any kind of food you would like.  And you can find it on the street or in a high-end restaurant.  I don't believe that price equates to quality when it comes to food.  I've eaten some of the best meals of my life from street vendors for less than $2.  I've never gotten sick from street food in Bangkok.  If you want food from an American chain, be prepared to pay prices similar to what you'd pay at home.  And while I get the craving for something familiar from home, if you come to Bangkok and only eat KFC and McDonalds, you are missing out.  By the way, coffee has become very popular here. Starbucks is everywhere, charging Starbucks prices.  Or you can stop in at a local's place and get something as good (or better, in my opinion) for less than a dollar.  When it comes to groceries, you can get most of the items you'd find at a Kroger's or Publix at stores like Villa Market.  But you will pay dearly.  On the other hand, visit a small local grocery store and buy local products and you'll save a LOT.
  
  Things like massages, manicures, and hair cuts vary widely in price.  If you opt for salons in the fancy malls you'll pay U.S. prices.  If you opt for clean, friendly establishments where the locals go, you can easily find a massage for $6 an hour.  Haircut with includes a 30 minute head massage for $7.  The staff may not speak fluent English but it's really not necessary.

  

  My $7 hair cut. 

Check out the next post for more reasons I like Bangkok.

First Trip of 2017 - Getting to Bangkok

View of the Chatuchak district in Bangkok from my hotel window.

My first trip of the year started on New Year's Eve with a 12:15 p.m. flight from Orlando to Detroit.  Then on to Shanghai.  After an almost four hour layover in Shanghai, the last leg was a 5 1/2 hour flight to Bangkok.  Where I arrived at 2:30 a.m. on Monday, January 2, 2017. 

This was a trip I'd planned (and purchased a ticket for) before I received Kyle's Christmas gift.  On December 28, 2015, I attended the wedding of my friends Matt and Lori.  We taught together in Mandalay, Myanmar.  Lori is due to have their first baby on February 15, 2017.  She's having the baby at Bumrungrad Hospital in Bangkok.  Medical care there is far superior to medical care in Mandalay. Because Matt couldn't take time off school to be with her for the six weeks she's waiting in Bangkok to have the baby, I volunteered to keep her company.

I feel decidedly guilty when people say "Oh, you are such a saint to travel so far to be with your friend."  Nope, not really.  Have you been to Bangkok?  $6 massages.  Some of the best street food in the world.  Hardly a hardship to spend six weeks with a friend here.

The flights were mostly uneventful.  I say mostly because on the last leg, from Shanghai to Bangkok there was an incident.  I got up mid-flight to use the toilet.  As I made my way down the dark aisle, past sleeping passengers, I tripped over the legs of a young man who'd stretched out across the aisle.  I went down hard.  He was very annoyed that I woke him up when I fell over his legs.  I was very annoyed that I was bruised and not able to punch his lights out without getting arrested.

Unfortunately, once in Bangkok it took me over an hour to discover that my luggage was still in Shanghai.  The Sky Team staff explained that the four hour layover in Shanghai was too tight for my luggage to make it.  This was my fourth arrival in a row in Bangkok when my luggage didn't come out on the carousel with the other passengers' luggage.  I'm starting to feel picked on.

Delta mistakenly thought this was all I needed for six weeks in Bangkok.

Before I tell you about Bangkok I have another travel story.  In Shanghai the gate to my flight to Bangkok shared a seating area with a gate whose flight was leaving for Ho Chi Minh City.  I sat down and quickly noticed that the man sitting across from me was staring at my toes and commenting on them to the woman next to him.  He then started talking to the man sitting next to me about my toes.  That man began translating for me.  It seems the man across from me was intrigued because he thought my toes looked like the position that monks hold their hands in when they pray.  Because of that, he believed that I had been touched by Buddha and was both holy and lucky.  He went on to explain, through my interpreter that while I was having a good life now, my next life was blessed and would be even better.

This man said I had been touched by Buddha and predicted wonderful things for me.  BTW, I'd been traveling for over 24 hours when this photo was taken.

This was my interpreter.  He lives in Toronto and was going home to Vietnam to visit his family.

This discussion lasted for over an hour and a whole group of folks got involved.  All were fascinated and several asked if they could touch my hands, since clearly I was blessed.  I was happy that the man predicted good things for me.  I'd have been happier if he'd predicted that I was going to face plant on my next flight - would have saved me some bruises. 

The interaction did remind me of the fun and adventure of travel.  If you are open, you may meet amazing and diverse people and have a lot of fun.

Back on the Road - 2017 Will Be a Year of Travel

2016 was a year of nesting.  I slept in my own bed more nights in 2016 than in any of the years since I bought the house in 1994.  It was great.  I remodeled, relaxed and enjoyed a lot of "pajama days".  Those are the lazy days when you don't have to go out, can read as much as you want and basically be a sloth.  I LOVE pajama days.

2017 is going to be a different story, though.  I want to tell you about the most amazing Christmas gift I've ever received.

My dear friend Kyle, who I met when we both served in the Peace Corps in Samoa is now a flight attendant for United.  For Christmas he gave me a pass to fly on United during 2017.  Anywhere they fly.  As often as I'd like.  It's standby and I'll be paying the taxes but seriously, can you imagine a better gift for someone who loves to travel?  Some of the trips Kyle and I will take together.  Others, I'll be on my own.  I've already started my dream list of destinations.  World, here I come!  Thanks, Kyle.

Kyle Kincaid, my very generous friend who is enabling my travel habit.

What a Difference a Day Makes

My kitchen at 9:25 a.m. on Saturday, October 8, 2016.

I think this photo of my kitchen says it all.  Hurricane Matthew is gone and the sun is back.  I love seeing rainbows in my kitchen and am grateful they're back.  It's a stark contrast to the weather we've had for the last few days.

I've hauled all the patio furniture, etc. back where they belong.  The sun is helping to dry out the saturated ground.  It feels so good and is a reminder not to take my life for granted.  It feels wonderful to be able to breathe deeply, not worrying if the next minute will bring life-threatening winds or devastating rains.

It's not all sunshine and rainbows, though.  There are a few things in the aftermath of the storm that aren't so great.  Since it appears my roof is going to stay where it is, I was forced to finally clean the house.  While I was cleaning I heard a loud, constant sound from outside.  I stepped outdoors and realized it was the sound of weeds growing.  Apparently, now that I have the house clean, I'm going to have to spend a few hours soon pulling weeds before my house starts to look like Angkor Wat.

I took this photo in Angkor Watt in July, 2014.  I saw a weed today that looks a lot like these tree roots.

I'm joking, of course, about the downside of the storm being over.  Now I'm focused on what I need to get done in the week to come and planning to head to Ormond Beach (just north of Daytona Beach) a week from today.  That's assuming the resort will be open for business.

Buh Bye, Matthew!

Matthew has not completely left the building but he has packed his bags and is certainly on his way.  I've stopped listening to the news since there are too many widely divergent forecasts.  I know that while it is still stormy, the sky is brighter than it has been in more than 24 hours.

I lost power for a total of less than five minutes.  Thank you Duke Energy for the underground lines and good infrastructure.  Most of my friends lost power for hours.  One still has no power and based on previous experience, likely won't have it back in the near future.  I don't think she has such nice things to say about Duke Energy.

There is minor damage in my yard.  One panel in the fence is hanging by a thread but a couple of nails will fix that.  A few palm fronds are down which is no big deal.  I have a 10-12 foot Bird of Paradise that took a beating.  I think it will make it but I may have to trim it back by half.  My pool is looking decidedly pond-like but that will just take some chemicals.  Hopefully the large frog from the front yard won't take up residence before I get the chemicals in.

My county is still under a mandatory curfew until 7 a.m. tomorrow morning.  People are chomping at the bit but officials warn that after an early assessment there are downed trees blocking entire streets, traffic signals out and construction debris blocking roads.  I'd like to get out for a bit but have everything I need (and more) and am happy being home.

All in all, I'm feeling like the worst is over and it's time to get back to regular life.  Tomorrow I'll be hauling all my pool stuff back out and heading out to check things out.  I'll post photos of the aftermath of Matthew in the area.  Thanks for weathering the storm with me.

Horror in Haiti and Florida Update

I'm listening to the radio and watching the squalls of wind and rain that come and go.  They just announced that the death toll is at 478 now.  And more than 50,000 people are in immediate need of water, food and shelter.  Having lived on a small island in the South Pacific, my heart goes out to these people.  Even if help is on the way, logistically it takes time.  The news about Haiti puts our situation in Florida into perspective.  Thank God it was not as devastating here.

My "weather gauge leg" is back under water.  And the water is starting to look more like a pond than a pool.  I believe that takes my rain estimate to 9 inches from 7:00 p.m. Thursday to 10:00 a.m. Friday.

This is some of the standing water by the pool pump.  Only about an inch now.  At times its been over my ankles.

 I just came back in from fooling with the pump to lower the pool for the fourth time.  My "rain gauge" was under water again.  Since we're anticipating even heavier rains as the storm moves away from us, it looks like this will be an on-going process today.  In case you're worried about my attire, given that the sun is up now, I wore clothes.  Nothing fancy but I now have a designated "pool lowering, who cares if I get soaked" outfit.  It's a little number I had custom made in Myanmar.

The radio also reported the first fatality in Florida related to Matthew has been reported.  It seems a 58 year old woman in Port St. Lucie refused to evacuate.  During the storm she had a heart attack and 911 was called.  They refused to come out.  Government leaders in the state had announced repeatedly that if you ignored the evacuation and called for help they would not respond so as not to put first responders in unnecessary danger.

There seems to be a logistical problem now for Duke energy.  They've brought in extra crews/trucks in from outside the area.  Now that they're here they can't find anyplace to feed these guys.  I wish I could help but just don't have enough to feed over 30 guys.

And, you owe me a million dollars.  Just heard Marco Rubio who'd called in to get a little press time and defend himself.  "You can't overhype any storm."  He's doing an admirable job of defending his position prior to the storm.  Better safe than sorry.

And, as the bands roll through, the wind is getting worse and the rain is back.  I'm so grateful to be safe and comfortable in my house.

BTW, according to the radio, people are getting very antsy to get out of the house but the curfew is still on.  They said it might be lifted in a couple of hours since the worst of the wind was expected to pass within an hour.  15 minutes later they reported that as the far wall of the storm passes us tonight around midnight we'll have the worst wind and rain yet, expecting 100 MPH winds and 8-12 inches of rain. 

Hurricane Matthew - What Comes Next?

Still windy and rainy but the worst is hopefully past.

As I go through what appears to be the worst of the storm, I'm contemplating what comes next.  The good news is that I still have power and internet and unless there's a major change, should continue to have them.  The bad news is I fear what comes next.

Rain.  I assume I'll be heading out into the storm to lower the pool at least once more today, probably twice.  And, even though my pool guy dumped in a lot more chemicals this week, the pool is dealing with a lot of water and likely won't be quite clear for a few days.

Weeds.  I've let the weeds go a bit lately.  Cooler, dryer weather is coming and I'd rather be out yanking weeds then.  But with all this rain?  Those suckers are going to look like Sequoias in a heartbeat.

Ice Cream.  As everyone knows, during a hurricane calories do not count.  The storm is over, the diet is back on.  And, since I didn't lose power I have zero excuse to go after the ice cream.

Cleaning.  Because I have power, I can vacuum.  No excuse for just watching Netflix all day.  Damn.

Monday Morning Quarter-backing.  Governor Scott and other politicians urged 1 1/2 million people to evacuate.  I believe they were right.  All indicators were that the storm would be devastating.  In my opinion, better safe than sorry.  But I will bet you a million dollars that this will be fodder for the political campaigns.  I can already imagine Murphy's ads claiming Marco Rubio was a fear monger.  My county should be fun.  We're under a mandatory 25 hour curfew.  Yes, it is still stormy but other than the amount of rain, this isn't much worse than the kinds of storms we have on a regular basis.  Let the second-guessing begin.

When we were hit by a trifecta of strong hurricanes in 2004, we had little warning for the first and strongest, Charley.  People were unprepared and damage was in the billions.  I lost the roofs on two rental properties.  My own house was one of the only ones in my neighborhood that didn't lose the roof.  There was huge criticism of the media for not warning the area.  This year, the pendulum swung so far the other way it was frightening.

I think it is important for people to be prepared, and to do have time to do it.  But when a newscaster like Shepard Smith says things like "Your kids will die." that is irresponsible and reprehensible.  I believe it is far worse than yelling  "Fire!" in crowded theatre and should be not just criticized but prosecuted.

As I type this, every station in the Orlando area is doing team coverage.  Scrambling to show damage from the storm.  Photos from viewers showing minor damage but portraying it as something worse.  And, even as the storm passes, seemingly trying to amplify the danger we still face from the storm.

Instead, I think they should focus on the dangers of the aftermath of the storm.  Safe use of generators, not barbecuing in a closed area, care around downed wires, etc. 

But the thing I fear most after the storm?  The non-stop storm coverage will be replaced by constant Donald and Hillary.  Let the nastiness resume.