When
the bus dropped us off at Khao San Road it was not five AM yet. It was dark and
wet and we had no idea where our hotel was. A taxi driver came to help us and
pointed into a shady soi. At that point, urine-smelling dark alleys did not
scare us any longer. At the end of the soi was our hotel. A Chinese-looking
receptionist showed us to our room. We took a nap before venturing into the
city.
We
spent the day hopping in and out the metro and exploring the incredible
shopping malls. Shopping malls usually give me headaches, but the richness and
variety in Bangkok are irresistible. We sat for lunch at a vegetarian Indian
restaurant in front of Nana station. There we met Alejandro, a friend of my friend
Laura, whom I met in DC many years ago. We all had tea and visited yet another
mall. This last mall is in fact pretty enjoyable. It is called Terminal 21 and
each floor represents a famous city (London, Tokyo, Rome, etc.) The floor of
San Francisco has a huge Golden Gate Bridge and Istanbul’s colorful glass lamps
and pebble floors.
Terminal 21
Lujan
and I came back to enjoy chaotic Khao San Road. This place is the convergence
of the backpackers of South East Asia. It is loud and cheerful and the perfect
place to not mingle with the locals. Experiencing it was a long-due dream of
ours. It is never too late.
Again,
we slept very little since our flight to Phuket left early in the morning.
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