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ben and the golden fleecing! (bollocks)


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Ben In South East Asia 2007

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ben and the golden fleecing! (bollocks)

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Thursday, Apr 12, 2007  06:31

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My first day in Bangkok was a real mixed bag, but a very very expensive one. The morning i spent wandering the streets trying to get a feel for the place, as well as running a few errands. In the afternoon i made my first friend (or so i thought), when i went to one of the temples i met a guy who worked there called Mr Wicham. He explained to me that it was the birthday of Wat Intharawihan, and arranged for me to get a tuk tuk there as it was only open today for its birthday, which was cool. When he also suggested i go to the TAT office to talk about my plans to move on, as many trains etc are unavailable due to the songkram festival, i thought 'good idea'. God I'm dumb.

     So all was fine at the TAT, they put together a package for me that sounded all good, and did what i wanted to do, however it all fell apart when they came to the price, 270 pounds! I dithered over this for a bit, i must admit, and they initially talked me into it. However when i then changed my mind and said i didn't want it, they said it was too late and that if i didn't pay they would call the police. 'Thai prison, on my 1st day here' i thought to myself. Obviously (to anyone who knows me) i got very scared and paid. So i now have my itinerary booked for the next 2 weeks, and it is what I'd want to do, though they have booked me into hostels which are much more pricey than i would have chosen, which I'm very pissed off about! however i guess you learn from your mistakes eh, and at least i do have some stuff from it and its just that I'll be staying nicer places rather than shit holes, could be OK in the end as its soo bloody hot!

      After the fleecing i was determined that day2 ( the 12th) would be better . Starting with the grand palace was a good way to ensure this, as it turns out I'm not templed out, and it was magnificent. Again if you haven't seen it i cant really do it justice in words so check out the pics when they come up. The significance of the building is rather glossed over though i would say, and there is little to no information about the buildings as you go around, so for anyone visiting if your really interested in the cultural side to it I'd invest in one of the guides they provide. I also saw Wat Po and Wat ARun, Wat Po being famous for the largest reclining golden Buddha in Thailand.

         The evening was spent doing pretty much the only thing one can do at this time of year, joining in the songkran festivities, traipsing the streets and joining in the water fights. In the evenings things get much more intense and the street adjacent to mine ended prematurely as the masses congregate, making the road just a throbbing body of people, singing, dancing drinking and smearing each others faces with a chalk like paste. I imagine this time of year is the only time you can really enjoy Kao San without drinking, but i think its gonna get a bit tedious after 5 days.

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Latest Comments (2)

Re: Tit for TAT (reply)
Jan 15, 2008 03:47 EST by benabroad

I agree completely, they do know what they are doing and generally provide an itenary which the tourist wants, however what my problem with the TAT is is the way in which they do it, and in my case pressure foreigners into accepting a package at an extortionate rate for the facilities they book. Bt i am very glad to hear you walked away with far less hassle than i had and didn't part with your mon... show all


Tit for TAT (reply)
Jan 2, 2008 21:24 EST by agnesdv

Thailand is the disney world of traveling in southeast asia. Westerners may find it rough, but compared to other se asian countries, it's disneyland. Tourists are actually spoiled with the organized tourism industry. It is an industry.

We (my friend and I) found ourselves once with nothing to do one aftrnoon, and as we were going out the Grand Palace gate, this nice guy with all the ... show all


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Table of Contents
1 - 20 | 21 - 40 | 41 - 60 | 61 - 80 | 81 - 100 | 101 - 120 | 121 - 140 | 141 - 149
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21.Chapter 2, im all alone! - Bangkok, in the evening anyway, Thailand Apr 10, 2007
22.ben and the golden fleecing! (bollocks) - Bangkok, Thailand Apr 12, 2007 ( This entry has 20 photos 20 ) ( Comments 2 )
23.Bushtucker Ben - Sukhothai, Thailand Apr 17, 2007 ( This entry has 15 photos 15 ) ( Comments 2 )
24.Trekking with uncle nuu nuu - Chiangmai, Thailand Apr 18, 2007 ( This entry has 21 photos 21 ) ( Comments 2 )
25.Chiang Kong, the ticket nightmare - Chiang Kong, Thailand Apr 28, 2007 ( This entry has 5 photos 5 )
26.trekking in laos - Lam Nam Tha, Lao Peoples Dem Rep Apr 30, 2007 ( This entry has 12 photos 12 )
27.Mung Ngoi - Mung Ngoi, Lao Peoples Dem Rep May 06, 2007
28.Hungover departure from Luang Prabang 2 Vang Vieng - Luang Prabang, Lao Peoples Dem Rep May 09, 2007 ( This entry has 24 photos 24 )
29.Lets go tubing - Vang Vieng, Lao Peoples Dem Rep May 09, 2007 ( This entry has 9 photos 9 )
30.Visa time! - Vietiane, Lao Peoples Dem Rep May 13, 2007 ( This entry has 4 photos 4 )
31.Plain of Jars - Phonsavan, Lao Peoples Dem Rep May 17, 2007 ( This entry has 21 photos 21 )
32.spiky beef noodle soup! - Viengxai and Sam Neua, Lao Peoples Dem Rep May 19, 2007 ( This entry has 12 photos 12 )
33.Its all about the Benjamins - Nameo and Quan Son, Vietnam May 21, 2007 ( This entry has 8 photos 8 )
34.Back 2 Civilisation, well sort of civilised anyway - Hanoi, Vietnam May 23, 2007 ( This entry has 13 photos 13 ) ( Comments 2 )
35.Rice planting in Sapa - Sapa, Vietnam May 25, 2007 ( This entry has 20 photos 20 )
36.Halong bay - Halong bay, Vietnam May 28, 2007 ( This entry has 13 photos 13 )
37.Back to Hanoi - Hanoi, Vietnam May 30, 2007 ( This entry has 5 photos 5 )
38.'Sorry, this restaurant doesn't do vegetables' - Hue, Vietnam Jun 01, 2007
39.ooh, suits you sir - Hoi An, Vietnam Jun 05, 2007
40.Bye Bye Liver - Nha trang, Vietnam Jun 09, 2007

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