Food, Food everywhere and not a bite to eat.
Day two Bangkok:I woke up early as I planned to catch the 9:30am tour of the National Museum. History, art and all that. After walking a few streets I stopped to check my map. A fellow approached me and explained that not only was I walking in the wrong direction but the museum was closed for its' anniversary. Huh? It seems the prince was visiting the museum and it was closed for him until 2pm.~~
We interrupt this update for an update. I'm writing this in an out of the way restaurant drinking tea and waiting for the house band to start playing. There are one or two non-Thai faces but they all seem local. It's a pleasure to get away from being a tourist.
~~
So this fellow, a primary school English teacher, suggested that I see a few sites instead. He was helpful and wrote down the place names in Thai. I hopped a motorized tricycle for 20 Bhat (divide by 40 for USD) to see the lot. After site number one my driver tells me he'll take me to a silk factory - "It's on the way." I can see where this is heading but as I'm in no hurry, I agree. When he pulls up in front of a Men's wear store with big letters proclaiming "Diplomats Welcome" and other such stuff in English I convince him I am not even going to step inside. I don't care how cheap the suit might be or how much his family needs the commission, I am not hauling it around the mountains for two months. We moved on to site number two. After site number two, Dong (my Thai driver) asks about my travel arrangements. I look at my watch and figure that it's an experience being taken for a ride in Bangkok.
I received better service in that travel agent's office than... ever. It was that good. I was "wai"-ed in and wai-ed out, a chair was drawn up for me and a glass of water poured. When I left without buying I was escorted out and the lady told Dong that there would be no commission for him. Sad face. Onward!! "Maybe an export store?" By now I'd had enough of riding in the back of a motorcycle-pickup truck crossbred. I dictated the last of my stops, paid when we arrived and said Kawp Kuhn Kahp*. Dong was not pleased.
It's now close to 11pm. I'm off to bed. Next time: P.I.T. - The school of the first engineer!
~~The band is playing Imagine.
*Thank you sir.
posted by YS @ 3:10 לפנה״צ
A blog is a writer clearing junk out of his head by bouncing around the room of chipmunks that we call society.
8 Comments:
Maybe you should have given him a bigger tip...
by the way--where do you live in Israel? (don't worry, I'm not going to drop by and surprise you. I don't even know your name).
Also--I was under the impression you were studying in Australia--are you just traveling around the world?
I was studying in Australia and am now traveling a bit on my way home.
Please tell me you don't live in a West Bank settlement...or an East Jerusalem settlement...
First explain why it matters.
BTW, I'll be gone till thursday
Why it matters...do you mean would it make a difference in terms of my opinion of you? Depends on how old you are. If you're under 21 or so, presumably living in a settlement would not have been your decision. If you're on your own, then living in a settlement would be your decision. I would be disappointed to learn that you were an independent adult and living in a settlement. You seem like a thoughtful person, interested in the world; it would be odd to imagine you violating other people's rights and living in a segregated community.
By the way, when you get a chance, you should check out the Palestinian embroidery pictures on Imaan's blog at
http://living-in-gaza.blogspot.com
an example of Palestiniann culture...
A lot of Israelis travel in Thailand as you know (they even have Chabad schlicuim in Bangkok and rural Thai areas). An Israeli friend of mine was in Thailand and a cab driver asked him how many Israelis there are and the guy said "six-million" and they guy said no way "there are six million here in Thailand alone!
I am hearing a lot of hebrew. It's nice to get a feeling of home and security but I also enjoy getting away from the Israeli world sometimes.
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