Thailand Day 2

Jet lagged and running on very little sleep, we dragged ourselves out of bed and checked out of the hotel at noon. The Bangkok smog and heat hit us immediately — 28°C with heavy humidity — but that was part of the city’s charm (so I've been told).

Declan spent a month in this country last year, and he text and suggested we head to Banglamphu Market, so we set off on foot. Not long into our walk, we were approached by the inevitable tuk-tuk driver. With a big smile and the usual line — “Hello my friend, where are you from?” — he tried to strike up a deal. We knew his game but decided to play along when he suggested visiting a Buddhist temple.

Once inside the souped up tuk-tuk, the script continued. Another man appeared at the temple, pretending he was on his way to his daughter’s wedding. He chatted away about how suits in Bangkok were the best in the world, made for Armani, and how we could get great deals if we wanted. Tim saw him for who he was right away and cut him off; me, I thought he was just being chatty. It was classic theatre — entertaining in its own way, but definitely a hustle.

The driver then tried steering us towards a Clothes shop, we politely, but steadfastly refused. Then on to the so-called Tourist Information Centre, a well-worn trick designed to funnel tourists into overpriced tours and shops. Recognising the scam, we again politely refused to play along and instead paid him a modest 50 baht for the ride.

Later, Tim suggested something far more authentic: watching a Muay Thai boxing tournament. Earlier in the day we had passed the arena, so it felt like fate. We bought tickets (not cheap), found a nearby hotel, and headed to the fight.

The atmosphere was electric. The drums, the chants, the raw energy of the crowd — it was an unforgettable experience. The tournament was brutal, beautiful, mesmerising and absolutely exhilarating. We left the arena drunk and exhausted but buzzing. (Beer was £5 a pint - VERY expensive for Thailand).

I realised I had booked the wrong hotel, it was a good half an hour walk away. And walk we did! That's no bother - it was simply fate that the mistaken booking was situated on Khaosan Road - the world-famous, vibrant, and bustling street, widely known as the "Backpacker Capital of the World." Though it is only a short street, it is the epicenter of budget travel, offering a unique blend of nightlife, shopping, and a distinct, carefree international atmosphere.

We checked in, stashed our passport in the celing in the bathroom (no safe in the room) and then continued our quest to drink silly amounts of beer (now £1.95 a pint), eat street food, watch music, watch people of all creeds, colours, sexes, and species and soak up the absolutely mental atmosphere. Before we knew it the night had gone and it was daylight!

Thailand Day 1

Mally kindly took me to the Llandudno Junction at 6:15 a.m. in return for borrowing my car for the week. I met Tim, and together we took the train to Manchester Airport. By noon, we were on our flight to Mumbai.

The flight was long, though I managed to sleep quite a bit, albeit intermittently. I couldn’t help feeling self-conscious about my smelly trainers tucked underneath the seat in front of me, but I decided they deserved one last hurrah—they’ve served me well, and besides, it was a long flight.

Our plane landed about an hour late, leaving us roughly ninety minutes to make our transfer. Unfortunately, the Indian immigration process was a nightmare. The officials seemed to have absolutely no clue how to do their jobs, and had we not pushed and cajoled our way to the front of the queue, I fear we’d still be standing there today.

We just managed to catch our onward flight to Bangkok, and thankfully immigration there was far more efficient—automated and straightforward. After clearing it, we negotiated our way onto the train and randomly picked an area to explore.

That decision dropped us in a more residential part of town. We wandered through people’s backyards and along narrow alleyways, edging past an open sewer. Not the most picturesque welcome. At that point, I’d had enough. We flagged down a taxi, haggled with the driver, and ended up dropped right in the middle of Bangkok’s city centre, not quite where we intended when we used the description 'nightlife' to him.

Welcome to Bangkok! This was the swankier part of town, a world away from the alleys we had just trudged through. We finally walked into a proper hotel, booked ourselves a room for about £25, and, in need of a beer, headed out into the night. The area is considered very high-end and is sometimes described as Bangkok's "Ginza." It features luxury condos, high-end hotels, and sophisticated shopping precincts, so 'a pub' was gonna be pretty hard to find. 

Thankfully, I had downloaded the Saily eSim, which is an absolute must for travellers. Google told us The Beer Republic was a short walk away. By Thai standards, a pint of Leffe wasn't cheap - £3 - Ha ha, look at me, almost complaining about paying a mere £3 for a delicious pint of Leffe Blond!! It was so nice that Tim and I ordered it a further five times along with some incredible local cuisine. All the while The Chocolate Cosmos played their indie covers to aid digestion (particularly enjoyed The Cure's Boys Don't Cry). Drunk, we headed back to the hotel having not slept properly for 36 hours.

The Chocolate Cosmos