I left this morning from Kanchanaburi to Bangkok on the same bus I took there although somehow it cost 10 baht more and took an hour longer lol. Anyway the ride was uneventful and I did get to bangkok in one piece through the crazy traffic around noon so I shouldn't complain. Once there went to my trusty guesthouse and checked in to the really carefree staff who unlike most places don't recognize that you've been there before. Getting my bags off me is a relief and I go find myself some food. On my way walking down Khao San Rd, the epicenter and heart of SE Asia's young backpacker scene I realize I have never actually talked about in length or photographed the place. This is probably due to my aversion to it as it contains just about anything and everything that makes me uncomfortable in a place. Huge crowds, drunk crowds, loud crowds, drugs... you get the point. While the area is amazing for those looking to let loose it just makes me walk faster. I think this is a clear sign of how boring I can be but...

    After eating I head back down the road stopping at some t-shirt stalls along the way just browsing. The shopping on this road is killer and thats about the only thing I like about it. Back at the front, I see a large crowd marching down the road sporting signs trying to ban alcohol from the area. All the students doing it were laughing and not even sure they were serious but if they were it deserves a real good laugh. It's like trying to ban french fries from McDonalds. The street is the area's and the local governments cash crop and thats not ever going to change until tourists stop coming which is not anytime soon. It did make me smile though.

    After my short tour and visiting the shops I decided to go to the mall and pick up some socks and a few things I needed. I absolutely love the MBK and normally I hate malls but this place is just too damn great! Any excuse to get something I go here... Theres socks at the 7/11 - So what I'll get them at the mall. So I spend maybe 2 hours there but an hour getting there. The traffic at 5pm is as bad here if not worse than anything I've ever been in. Plus you add the maniac driving in there and oh boy.

    So after my time at the MBK it was dark and by the time my taxi dropped me off at Khao San rd I just wanted to eat and go lay down. I did have to go through the road again as its blocked off at night so my taxi drops me here. The guesthouse is maybe 10 minutes walk from here but getting through the masses makes it much longer. At night the place comes to life 100x more. Its a mob scene with hardly any thai's in sight. There are so many interesting sights though like people advertising foot massages from biting fish, to bars that try to get young kids by advertising they don't card lol. I decided to video the walk basically just for this blog but glad I did. There was alot going on with bar girls standing outside there respective bars trying to lure you in, music playing everywhere, people selling fake diploma's and passports to a guy on a crazy bike with all too many colors going on....

    The video is in 2 parts as it was quite a long walk. Its a nice stroll through the above mentioned plus all the food stalls, trinkets and t-shirt vendors... well the video tells it better.

   Really not a bad day at all. Probably going to spend two more days here using the internet and uploading pictures and walking around town before crossing into Malaysia before the visa runs out. Pesky visa's.....

    Probably not the most exciting week but for me I think a much needed one. After 7 days of just treating myself like I was living here and taking it easy I'm on my way back to bangkok and most likely to Malaysia for a little bit. The routine has been so different to anything else over the past 3 months and change as to be almost unrecognizable to me. Just waking up, grabbing something to eat and watching TV all day felt so far from what had become reality.  It seemed jsut about everything was telling me to do just what I was however as when trying to go to the safari park midway through over 2 days, I managed to get there without a camera once and turn around, miss the bus the second time. The guy directing the bus stop tried telling me it " got in an accident and I should take a taxi " when I saw it pass me which annoyed me. Regardless I tried agaion the next day only to have there actually be no bus pickup that day and just gave up. It was time to just go with the flow and just use the tme here to chill out. I feel refreshed though, and whatever the next week, month, whatever holds I'm ready to go about it with fresh energy.

 

    Weebly is being a pain in the butt not letting me post or comment latley but its fixed now at least for posts. Just been relaxing anyway and just lazily spending time at the guesthouse watching movies and eating. I did get a cool new bamboo bed which definately beats a mattress on the floor like the first night. I am so getting bed if I ever get my own place one day ( Crowds laugh in the backround ). Its really great with giant pieces of bamboo making up the entire thing. Probably $100 here over $1000 back home. 

    It's been refreshing to do nothing for a few days actually and starting to get rid of some of the run down feeling from so much moving and activity. Really getting to know this town with all its places to eat and go having so much time to just observe.

    I am planning on going to the safari tommorow so really wanted to have it up and operating so I can get all those pictures up. :-P The leopard really got me wanting to go, and really I want to be able to get close to a giraffe. Wish me luck tomorrow.

    Leaving bangkok early but really in no rush since Kanchanaburi is a happening place for locals also and buses leave for here from 5am to 10:30pm every half hour. So knowing how impossible it is to be late for the bus, I slept in a bit before heading to the station around 10am. The first taxi I got in seemed nice enough but then refused to use the meter telling me there was a " traffic jam " and would take a long time so it was 200 baht. Bullshit. So I got out and before I could even flag down another one a guy asked me where I was going, I told him in Thai, Sai Tai Mai which is the southern station since there are 3 bus stations here. He sent one of his taxi's and got the meter going and set off. The fare there ended up being 91 baht, and we hit zero traffic along the way. Gotta love it.

   At the station I chilled out a bit and again in no rush had an breakfast/lunch there. The ticket was only 75 baht for the 2+ hour trip, and I know that last time it was 100 but who knows. Took a few minutes for the bus to arrive but was soon on with my new bags underneath which I was weary of putting under since they were new. The journey went by fast as 2 hours is 5 minutes time it seems after dealing with so many longer rides. Being back here was nice, and I split a ride into town with a dutch couple from the bus. They wanted to keep looking so I got off before them at a place I stayed before. When Ice, the lady who runs the place saw me she was really excited I came back here and that " I didn't forget them ". Her daughter on the other hand asked me who I was at first, the beard just made that much a difference. I was nice to be back here as the family at this 2 room only guesthouse really makes you feel at home. Unfortunately the room had to be cleaned and it took hours while I walked around to clean up from the guest who just left.

    I got settled in later and after resting a while I got ready and went out to meet Ice for dinner. We got on the bike and drove to a small bar and restaurant to eat and relax a bit. I was really nice to go out and just chat away. We caught up on things and we took bets whether or not her boyfriend Stuart who I met last time would recognize me tomorrow. It always throws me off when I eat with someone here as your always expected to foot the bill. The average local here wouldn't eat at the restaurants as there too pricy so anything besides street food your paying lol. Things went well and had a good time before going back and crashing as I was tired from the contant moving of the past few days.

    In the morning, after getting woken up by someone knocking at my door thinking it was where they could find Ice about the other room, I went fr\or a walk around town and picked up some phone cards and made a small round of calls. Catching up is always nice. If you end up reading this, Ernie you reaction to me calling was the best. Getting back feeling really hot I went into Ice's attached internet shop for the  A/C and surfed a while before eating some noodle soup she was nice enough to have her daughter pick up while she was out. After I got a ride back to near the river kwai bridge to see the old friend again. Before getting there however, I came across a most amazing thing. A young Leopard sitting on a table with his handler jumping on some ladies lap. I had to get in on this, and so soon after I was right there where she was. Unlike the lazy tigers from last year who I found out where like that from abuse, this guy was full of energy and from a conservation park where you could go and play with anthing from giraffes to elephants all hands on and for a good cause. It was all fun and games until he decided to jump and my back and leap into air using me as a springboard. I laughed after and so did the crowd watching, but for a split second I thought my neck was getting torn out......

    Talking to the handler afterwards, he gave me a pamplet about the Safari Park Open Zoo Conservation Center ( What a long name ) which I just might go too. He actually mentions Tiger Temple in his pitch about the place saying the animals here are very much awake and full of life. Its definately a case of a place being a bit pricy but you need it to be that way. When its cheap, you end up with abused animals rather than a place with the actual funds needed to care for them. Before leaving I watched a very lucky guy get to bottle feed the young fellow which was one of the most priceless things I've seen to date and play around with an aempty water bottle. Truly a great time.

    After the great leopard adventure, I made my way to the bridge walking up and down before stopping where I posed for pictures before and asking someone to take one for me. It was really interesting because a little less than 3 months ago I stood here with a bunch of stubble on my face, the birth of what was to become the great mop. Made for some really great before and after shots though!

               After (1)                            Before                               After (2)

    Heading out I looked down the long railway and watched a man walk down the ride which for whatever reason I found nice. I was hungry so ate riverside before getting a ride back to the room and then internet shop to get the leopard on here while I was still excited about seeing him. Decided to take it easy and stay here a week really taking in the place, enjoying time with the family I'm staying with and in the end also save some money in the long run. It's going to be nice and really I think a much needed stay.

    So after sleeping in the next morning I walked around a bit before flagging down one of the million Toyota Camry cabs, I guess they know how long camrys last as there literally the only car cabs use. Getting I ask him if he uses the meter and he does so I get in and start the trip to the mall. The meter starts at 35 Baht ($1) and goes up by 2 baht every minute and .1 kilometer making it probably the cheapest cab fares in the world. However, most cabbies here make up for this by charging foreigners off the meter at crazy rates which most, including me, fall victim for a few times before learning the lesson.

    Traffic is brutal as always and was probably 20 minutes before I pulled in even though its barely 2 miles away. I really love being in the\is place, 7 floors of anything and everything. I grab lunch here before starting my small shopping for a new backpack and a few needed things. I walk for maybe 4 hours through everything here having a good old time grabbing myself much needed sneakers and a bunch of pairs of $3 shorts and t-shirts to replace the few that I have worn to shreds over the past 3 months. It was fun, but everything I got was needed, My giant orange top loader bag and all.

    Back in town, I walked around the main shopping road near my room which basically was a shorter way when I passed a backpack that caught my eye. I of coarse loved it which kinda made me a little upset I didn't wait but then it hit me. This is Thailand. I told the lady selling the bag that I had just baught the one on my back for 600 baht and the sticker price was 900 baht but I talked the lady down. After some haggling I got here to take the bag I just bought and give me 600 baht store credit and she put it on the shelf for 900 baht.I then purchased this bag and a matching shoulder bag for not much more....

    The bags great and be converted into a diuffle bag which  strap. Very large and the material is thick and sturdy. Back at the room and Ioaded all my things, new and old with ease and wasy very happy with it all. There was one broken button, but you get what you pay for here. Its a cheaper version of a most likely very expensive bag back home. Nothing much else happened after being back besides eating and walking around before heading to bed watching a movie. A very productive day though. Off to Kanchanaburi in the AM.

   ( Also for some reason my responses to comments are not posting, so I would love to still have your comments but for moment I am unable to respond.. If you need a response use the email contact form )

    The two days in Phnom Penh went by fast but were really relaxing sitting around with the other guests eating and watching movies in the lobbyish room. I did go out to the market to pick up a few things, mainly a few pairs of shorts to change my very small wardrobe up a bit lol. I was glad to have stayed here a bit though, I haven't given myself enough time to just be lazy and go with the flow.....

    So after two days resting in Phnom Penh, I decided to on a really spontaneous move to go to Bangkok for a few days and then head to Malaysia to mix things up for a bit. I'm hoping the vastly different culture in Malaysia will be very refreshing and boost my interest in the place. So off I was on my long distance ride to Bangkok. The trip started off easy enough getting a ride to the bus with 2 others from the guesthouse going just over the border but on the same bus. The ticket counter at the small bus station was filled with people who looked at everyones tickets like they were bricks, having no clue what to make of them for some reason. But eventually we got on and took our seats for the long ride.

    The bus went straight west and passed some really great countryside although I did pass out for much of it. We made one pit stop to eat about 3 hours in which was perfect timing and gave me time to stretch and leave my seat. Picked up some pastries that were there and some fruit before getting back on and waiting to go. The next 3 hours to the border went by slowly as I was awake most of it, passing by some nature reserves where forest treks take place in places they say tigers still roam. I'll leave it for the next guy, wild tigers aren't the same as ones said to be tamed or from a zoo. So about 6 hours in we reach the Thai border and we all get off the bus and walk to the checkpoint to get stamped out of Cambodia. Unlike leaving Laos, I didn't have to pay to leave which was nice lol. I then walked into no mans land, the 2 minute walk before getting to the Thai border checkpoint. I receive my arrival card and fill it out before getting in the line to be stamped into Thailand. Its so great getting in a simple line with no visa and still knowing that your going to get in. If only people could enter the states that way.... When I was up, I handed the passport to the immigration personnel and a minute later return a smile as I get it back stamped in for 2 weeks since I had no visa. Simple.

    Once inside, I see my backpack sitting on the side of the road near some shops with everyone elses. Turns out the bus can't cross the border and we get into minivans from here breaking up into groups depending on destination. Having my ticket already I get right into a bangkok bound one and wait about 15 minutes for it to fill up before leaving. The bags kinda threw me a little since I though it was the bus all the way, plus I had asked if we needed to bring the bags and was told no only to have someone looking for a tip for carrying my bag after crossing. Oh well, with the van getting going I knew it was only a matter of time until Bangkok. A big matter of time though, as the van had to make a stop to pick someone up, change drivers etc. Although he had the van acting like a daytona 500 racer, we still didn't get to Bangkok until 8pm, 12 hours total. Then we hit dead stopped traffic for another hour where I got to listen to thai radio's english channel. Some really funny stuff was said on there, like how the government has a special police force out for valentines day coming up making sure teens don't do naughty things in public. Conservative place on the surface, so looks like anything more than pecks is going to get police attention...

    So around 9pm I emerge from the van near Khao san Rd., and walk to my usual place here. Getting there however without any Thai baht leaves me looking stupid, and I leave to go change money but everything bank wise is closed. Luckily there was one money changer near all the bars and hippies smoking it up open until 10pm and I just made it. Not sure what would have happened if I didn't get the money changed, but sitting in a bar until sunrise when I could was probably the likely event. So I went back to the guesthouse this time with something to pay him with and threw my bags down before going across the road to a Pizza Hut newly put in, and ordered my self a treat to watch a movie before bed. I really indulged and it felt so good.... Laying down watching Blades Of Glory with Hawaiian pizza dripping everywhere sipping soda and eating cheezy bread on the side, feels like being back home. Not sure what the morning holds, but probably the big 7 storey mall to pick up a new backpack since my bags starting to go. Gotta say all the damage they take out here I'm impressed it lasted 3 months. Luckily for me the huge top loader backpacks that sell for $300+ in the states can be had here for $20 :-P.  Well have to see in the morning....

    Feels so bare to have a pictureless post this long, naked even. But night buses and borders don't leave much to photo, or at least not that you don't risk getting arrested for taking :-)