Bangkok, Thailand

Bangkok, Thailand. Crazy, loud, food smelling, polluted, friendly, hustlin', intense Bangkok. Corinna put it best, 'you'll learn to love and hate Bangkok'. Indeed I have. Juli and I arrived late in the evening and took a shuttle to KO Sahn Road and wandered through the chaotic touristy restaurant/guest house lined streets and stumbled into our guest house. By then it was about 5am Australia time, but neither of us could sleep well. Excited and nervous and hungry and jet lagged in reverse, it was god awful.
But the next morning we got some brekkie and some delicious fresh squeezed orange juice and wandered. We got picked up by a tuk tuk driver who took us on a bit of a ride, literally. Whizzing out of control and around motorbikes and bicycles and trucks and buses we flew. We went and saw an enormous golden Buddha and another Buddha, then he took us to a factory to try to get us to by hand made clothes. This might surprise many but I don't really have much need for a business suit, now or in my future, so I wouldn't be had. Juli however did desire one and had herself measured for a hand tailored business suit.(For Business Time I presume)
Then tuk tuk charlie threw us into yet another unknown sitch, a tourist agency where some guy for hours tried to book our entire se asia trip for us. We did enjoy his help in planning it out, although we wouldn't do it. Too expensive and not really my style to have every minute pre planned. We did get some free tea and water from the hustle though. Finally catching on we had him take us back to Koh Sahn Road, a little jaded but not thoroughly, mostly just hungry and tired.
We ate some absolutely delicious fried rice w/veggies and I drank two thai iced teas.(they are sooo good!) And then we went to get some Thai Massages for about 6$ each. We got our asses kicked! But it was much needed as my muscles from running and walking and carrying a massive pack were in much need of a pummeling. A nice first day in Thailand.
The next day we went to the MASSIVE weekend market on the outskirts of town and i bought tons of insanely cute stuff and spent hella baht. Waay over my budget, but I always go over the first week or so. I spent a total of, brace yourselves, $1,600 Baht that day at the market. Which is about $45 USD. I bought a swimsuit, two shirts, a dress, eight or so pairs of earrings, a scarf, bracelets, thai iced tea, spring rolls, and used a public thai toilet. Quite a crazy, hectic, but totally worth it day at the Market. Some of the coolest stuff there was all the layouts of food and pickled something or other and meat on a stick, and piles of strawberries and cups of tiny fried eggs, and stacks of condensed milk for thai iced teas, and piles of knockoff shoes and bags and beads galore!More delicious food and yet another massage finished off day two in Bangkok.
We also went and saw the Royal Palace while in the city, which is an amazing sight not to be missed. Massive golden Wats and temples and ancient art that wraps around the surrounding walls and lily ponds and gold, gold, gold! I don't know what they use, but they bedazzled the crap out of everything in sight and it was like multicolored disco ball gold everywhere you look, even on the ceiling!
Bangkok is a great, vibrant and polluted city, but i had a blast and was ready to move onward!
Love/Hate relationship w/Bangkok? Absolutely!