Bangkok, Thailand in the Spring

My last few trips were to European countries, and on one of those trips to Istanbul, Turkey, I had the opportunity to cross over by ferry to Asia. I was with my travel buddy Lolade and we both agreed that we needed to take a proper trip to Asia. She was supposed to be on my trip to Vienna and Budapest, but couldn't make it at the last minute. So when she called me on one December day to discuss going to Asia, I was game.

We both agreed on Bangkok, but had different opinions on what second country to make a stop at, so we decided we would split after Bangkok. I also couldn't take a two-week long vacation like she could so it made sense to enjoy Bangkok and then split up.

I took off on a Korean Air flight from Houston to Korea's Incheon Airport where, 13 hours later, I met up with Lolade who flew in from Atlanta. Ever since I read a magazine article about how blacks in America are not keen on traveling, I have become somewhat obsessed with identifying as many black people as I can on international flights. There were none on my flight. Lolade said she had several on her flight, so I'm glad there's proof out there that black people travel. It wasn't long before we were cracking up endlessly as we waited for our connecting flight, drawing the attention of two Canadian men also traveling to Bangkok. I love traveling with Lolade cos she's very outgoing in striking up convos with strangers while I'd be planted on my seat if I was solo.

Meeting up with Lolade at Incheon Airport

We arrived in Thailand close to midnight and had a smooth entry save for the small hiccup with having to go back to Health Control because African passports need to be stamped with a satisfactory bill of health. We got to our hotel, the U Sukhumvit Hotel, after midnight and immediately hit the streets for some street food since restaurants were closed. We came during the Songkran Festival so there were still a few people with water guns spraying passers-by. But more on that later. Our hotel room looked really luxurious, particularly the bathroom with its overhead showers and a special feature affixed to the toilet that is clearly designated for one thing.

After filling our bellies with the hotel's buffet breakfast, the next morning, we hopped into a cab headed to the Grand Palace. Thailand is so affordable relative to the dollar so we wanted to avoid the heat (the humidity was on another level,) and the celebratory drench of water on us had we chosen to take a tuk tuk or some other mode of transportation. The cab was a much-needed luxury. As for the palace, I wish I could tell you amazing things about this tourist attraction like I've done at other locations, but my travel buddy and I were extremely confused by this site. For 500 baht, we got a confused, disorganized and boisterous spot that left us underwhelmed. I'm used to historic and religious tourist sites being treated as sacred places relatively void of commercialism. But not this Palace. Beautiful as the structures and statues were, it was noisy, chaotic, and with no clear direction on where to go. In fact, all of the places we toured had huge commercial action within the walls of the structure.

We left and caught a tuk tuk to the Wat Pho, wherein lies the Temple of the Reclining Buddha. Most, if not all temples in Bangkok pay homage to some kind of Buddha, but this one was different in its posture. Featuring a 43m long Buddha, coated in gold leaf and laying on its side, this was a break from the traditional Buddha postures.

The reclining Buddha, coated in gold, lies 43m long

 It was a short walk around the temple. And for 100 baht it was nice. The other temples and attractions around it were not appealing. The grounds were noisy, with a lot of commercial activity going on. I wasn't too pleased with this site.

Tourist praying in front of a Buddha

While people sell food and souvenirs nearby

We also indulged in a traditional Thai massage, which the massage school on its grounds are famous for. For 260 baht, you get a 30 min massage that's well worth it, especially after all the walking we had been doing. Just thinking about how seemingly every bone was cracked in my body is bringing back gleeful memories. Finally we took a short ferry for 3 baht to Wat Arun, the Temple of Dawn, which was closed at the time so we were able to get in for free and just walk the grounds, which didn't have much to see at that point.

We were quite tired when we got back, so we opted to eat dinner at the rooftop of the hotel where I had the lamb confit while chatting with three male traveling buddies from California. Another convo initiated by Lolade. We closed the night out with a swim in the rooftop pool, which stays open until 11pm.

Lamb confit

I love swimming underwater

The next day we booked a private trip to the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market through our hotel and were chauffeured the 90 minute drive to this popular tourist destination by Few Sirpong, who was also our tour guide. The concept of the floating market is so cool that even if you don't buy a thing, it's still worth the tour. There was so much traffic on the waterway, and we supposedly had a slow day thanks to the period being the New Year. We didn't buy anything on the advice of our driver who suggested getting it cheaper in Bangkok (where he says majority of the wares are brought from.) We also took a walking tour of the area then had an arranged lunch at a market food stall, which was part of our package. We concluded our trip with a ride atop an elephant. It wasn't as exciting as I expected, and before it was over we were feeling sorry for the elephants and our presumed exploitation of them. They all generally looked unkempt and worn out. Their stalls also looked dirty and my expectation of playing with an exotic looking elephant was a distant figment of my imagination. Lolade, on the other hand, actually got to play with elephants at one of her other stops.

Few Sirpong, our private tour driver

Enjoying lunch at the floating market

Riding an elephant

We had some time to spare before Few took us to our evening's entertainment, which was the perfect time to participate in the Songkran festival at Si Lom. This is a national festival that involves soaking each other in water. April is the hottest month in Thailand, so this festival was introduced to help people keep cool for about three days by soaking up in cold water. So if you are caught walking the streets, it is assumed you are fair game. Even people riding in bikes and tuk tuks weren't exempt. It was a lot of crazy fun getting soaked to our skins, but in light of the current drought in California, I couldn't help but wonder how much water is wasted during this period. In any case, here's how crazy the atmosphere was. It was absolutely fun even as we cringed when we were doused with ice cold water.

The packed train steps headed down to Si Lom for Songkran

My partner in crime getting a rare break from being soaked

Go ahead, lay it on me! This area was packed with thousands of people.

Later that evening, Few drove us to the Asiatique Riverfront Bazaar for a Lady Boy (aka drag queen) show at the Calypso restaurant, which included a reenactment performance of Lady Gaga's ode to Julie Andrews and Sound of Music at this year's Oscar's.

If you know anything about Thailand, it is probably how skilled they are in transforming transsexual men into beautiful women. Lolade and I kept trying to figure out who was possibly a woman, who was masquerading as a man masquerading as a transsexual get it?) They were that convincing. We stayed at the riverfront to partake in some retail therapy and have dinner at the Crostini Italian Restaurant, and didn't get back to our hotel until well after midnight.

Some of the show's performers taking pictures for a "tip"

Our last day in Bangkok, and we finally got to sleep in for a little bit. We scheduled a massage (another popular indulgence in these parts.) I rode a bike, Lolade walked. It was amazing!

Once again, we stopped by our hotel's rooftop for lunch, drinks and to lounge before our last event in the city. We were picked up for our dinner aboard the White Orchid River Cruise, which we boarded at the River City Mall.

Had a fun and amazing time aboard the White Orchid River Cruise

It was the perfect way to end our trip. Buffet was to die for and we met so many people from various parts of the world.  The entire experience was absolutely worth every penny we spent. We closed the night joining the cruise singer in a collection of songs. Sadly, the next day Lolade departed for Chiang Mai, then Phuket and eventually to Singapore. While I boarded my flight headed to Beijing, which you can read about in my next post.

Trip to Vienna & Budapest Day 5&6

My biggest reason for travel is sightseeing. The top of the Eiffel, Big Ben, La Sagrada Familia and Robben Island are just some of the most notable attractions I've been fortunate to visit. I also love touring and learning about historical sites. In fact, one of the biggest reasons I love South Africa is because the government (and in some cases private citizens) have done such a great job of documenting its history.

So when I heard about the Terra Gaza in Budapest, and saw so many recommendations to visit it on Trip Advisor, I knew I had to go, especially since it was a five-minute stroll from my hotel. It was my first stop on my last day in Budapest and... Here's a disclaimer, I do not wish to disrespect anyone who may have any connection to the museum or the history behind the museum's creation, but it was a disappointment. I expected a lot more than I got. Actually, I got nothing from it.

The Terra Gaza, aka House of Terror, was created in honor of victims of the Communist and the Nazi regimes in Hungary beginning in the 1940s. Even a quick search for information, including on its website here doesn't yield any historical information except to indicate when the museum was created. I paid 2000F (you can pay an additional1500F for an audio guide, but you get paper audio guides in each section,) and spent no longer than 90 minutes in it. The final 30 minutes was spent buying time before I left for my next stop. I left not getting a real grasp of how things were. Sure I got that millions were tortured, thousands murdered. But I didn't get a connection like I did at the various museums in South Africa detailing its history with Apartheid.

The word "TERROR" etched on the roof

Terra Gaza, aka House of Terror

Entrance to the museum

 I must have visited more than 10 such museums in Cape Town and Johannesburg and was drawn uniquely to each story. With the House of Terror, not only are you prohibited from taking pictures, which I don't really get because nothing inside is at risk of deteriorating under the glare of lights, but there isn't a clear indication of where to begin besides the gate keeper saying, "Go to second floor." I ended up seeing some parts of it out of sequence. In fact, I think the disallowing of pictures is so that no visual representation is out there to show how boring it was. Sure I had plenty of chances to take pictures, but I didn't care. It was just story after story of individuals' personal stories of being imprisoned or tortured, which upon entering a room you have no indication of when it started or how long it is without staying until it started over. Some rooms had three different videos playing simultaneously, but no video or pictures from the period. There was also no genuine continuity from room to the next, setting up the years as they went by. If I had visited this place any day besides my last day, I would have been upset. But since I had hours to kill before my 9 p.m. train back, I hung in there for about 90 minutes; the shortest time I've ever spent at a historical center.

My next stop was the Central Market Hall, which I had been looking forward to. I hoped to score so many local finds that I'd be struggling to make my maximum weight at the check-in counter. Sadly it turned out it was closed. It doesn't open on Sundays? Why? I blame myself for not doing my research and just assuming one of the most popular attractions in Budapest would be open year round. I walked down to a smaller mall close by, with a few stalls open. I came with some money hoping to walk away with a few unique things, but left the Antique Market in the Bálna empty.

Central Market Hall

Empty hallway of the market

I didn't even try the food at the antique market, which was mostly sweets and pastries. I was startled by a huge dog walking around the second floor of the mall unaccompanied. What is it about Europe and stray dogs? I saw a lot of of dogs strolling unattended throughout my stay, especially in Vienna, where every homeless person on the street seemed to have a dog; some two. If you know me, you know how scared I am of dogs, but something about the way everyone went about unperturbed, made me feel less concerned as well. Maybe dogs in Europe are not raised in the same beastly way they are in the U.S. Back to the mall...well no, there's nothing worth writing about anymore, except the very good singers, who sounded American, entertaining people on the first floor, coffee shop style. The guy was also a guitarist.

The Antique Market in the Bálna, which opens Sunday

Since the main thing I had planned today (shopping) was out of the picture, I wandered into a cave church at the bottom of Gellert Hill in a bid to kill time. There was a service going on so visitors weren't allowed into the main worship hall, but there was plenty to look at for free in the visitors area.

As I headed back to my hotel, I stumbled on a street market and scored a few things. After a quick stop at my hotel, I headed to the uber popular Széchenyi bath house. It was the perfect way to end my day, and my stay in Budapest. The heat emanating from the water...Uhmmm..no words to describe. But I couldn't help but feel awkward. I was the only black person in the entire bath house, and as soon as I stepped into the water, a lady took a picture of me. It could've been the ugly shower cap I had on my head though.

The hottest of three outdoor pools at the Széchenyi bath house

I became too conscious. And alone. I couldn't have wanted company anymore than during my hours there. Eventually an American couple from San Francisco came in with their two college-age daughters and we chatted for a bit. I actually forced myself into the conversation by telling them what else the place had to offer as the mother wondered out loud. Then right before I left, I spotted another black girl, who turned out to be Nigerian as well. No, we didn't chat, but I caught her accent when I ventured close enough to hear her educating her oyibo partner on Nigeria when they weren't sucking  on their faces.

Finally my trip was over. Stopped at a bar near my hotel to try the tourist-popular goulash soup. I didn't want to leave without seeing what the fuss was all about. It was alright. It's essentially cubed meats, potatoes and carrots in a broth. It was more potatoes than meat though, but it was OK.

And finally I was off, back to Vienna on the night train.

With one more day left, I was starting to feel the effect of touring in two countries. I could only manage one more place, which was the Belvedere Palace. What this palace lacks in its interior unlike, Schönbrunn Palace, it makes up for with its spectacular grounds. I didn't pay to tour inside because it's more of an art exhibit, but touring its grounds is free. And for free, this is what you get...

I had such a great trip, as you can probably tell from my detailed account. I was a bit skeptical about embarking on a solo trip, but I have to say it's the reason I was able to document so much. I have already booked my next trip, which at the moment is shaping up to be a partial solo trip. But I can't give that secret away yet. Thanks for stopping by to share my travel adventure with me.