About a week ago I decided that I would join The Girls for a little Asia trip. Why not? I’m unemployed with nothing lined up, except the possible prospect of teaching English in Hong Kong, and it seems I am currently unwanted…
The last week has been hectic to say the least – getting jabs was one of the most stressful factors, and admittedly I did not get all the ones recommended.
Many shopping trips to ASDA, Winfields, and Blacks followed, as did a little drive to sort out my visa. This trip is costing me a small fortune already.
Bangkok Airport turned out to be a bit of a nightmare in itself! After waiting in the customs queue for about 40 minutes, I was turned away as I failed to produce my arrival card. I had clearly been asleep when the cabin crew were handing them out on the plane and they hadn’t left one visible for when I woke up. Excellent.
Another 40 minutes later and I was finally at baggage collection. The carousel had stopped. My bag wasn’t there. And when I started to tell those at the Customer Service desk, I was greeted with blank looks and an awkward smile. The language barrier was proving to be a problem. To cut a long, overly-dramatic story short, which involves me having a panic attack, my bag was found, under the Business Class sign… next to the carousel.
It was a long six-hours, waiting for the girls to arrive from Abu Dhabi and I think I developed a bit of a complex after being laughed at and pointed at for such a long time… I knew I should have dyed my hair! But finally, I greeted five weary girls and we headed to the train station.
Our first glimpse at the crazy traffic of Asia was when we stepped off the train at Phaya Thai, and attempted to flag down a taxi. Three came at once. We split into two three’s and Lucy, Rosie and I found ourselves asking the taxi driver to “follow that car”. He didn’t, and our group was immediately split up. We hoped that we would be reunited in one piece on Khoasam Road, though none of us could be too sure… road safety doesn’t seem to exist here.
By recommendation, we chose to check in at D&D hostel, resisting the constant grabbing and those trying to persuade us to buy their goods, food, or look at rooms in various other hostels. D&D is a slightly more expensive guesthouse, but centrally located with a nice rooftop pool
And the rest is history.
From Oceans With Love 