My Canadian friend from Koh Tao, Jason, came to stay with me for the week in Bangkok. When he arrived in Thailand he had flown into Bangkok, but hadn't really explored it. I told him I'd play tour guide, for a small fee of course :)
I started out by introducing him to really delicious, cheap, thai street food. (He hadn't been eating much of it on the islands.) There's a wonderful little place right down the street from me that's only open until 3pm during the week, so you have to rush to get there, but boy is it delish. The walls on the inside of the garage where they cook the food are also really cool because they are riddled with photos of everyday life in Thailand. Jason definitely approved of our first stop.
We then headed to a viewpoint bar. On our way, we passed a street vendor selling shredded pork sticky rice (disclaimer: it may not even be called this, but that is how I would describe it)-- it's one of my most favorite thai dishes. I made Jason try some and he liked it too!
The bar itself was only 25 stories, but it had a 1920s flapper theme. The inside of the building fit the theme perfectly and the outside balcony was quaint and quiet. I chose it because they have a really nice whiskey selection and when it comes to whiskey, Jason doesn't mess around. I told him if he really wanted to see the city though, we had to go to the tallest viewpoint in Bangkok, Vertigo at Banyan Tree (I had been to this bar with my coworkers and it was amazing) We wandered there but on our way it started to rain. When we arrived the rooftop was closed but we could take a peek from inside the restaurant a few stories below. Did I mention Jason has a fear of heights? I don't think he liked this activity quite as much as the last one.
I then took him for pizza at THE ONLY place to order pizza in Bangkok (trust me friends, Bangkok "pizza hut" does not taste like it does back home) However, because we're ignorant and don't use meters for measurement, we ordered incredibly incorrectly and ended up with enough pizza to feed us for four days. #ThankGodForBoyStomachs
Jenna and I decided a tour of Bangkok wouldn't be complete without free bubbly, so we put Wednesday night Ku de Ta on the calendar. However, since I had sent almost all of my nice clothes home and Jason only had backpacking clothes, we had to spend some time at the mall finding appropriate clothes and shoes for the occasion- Ku de Ta doesn't just let in any schmuck from off the street. So, by going on a tour of the malls in Bangkok and getting clothes for the evening, we killed two birds with one stone. Ku de Ta is an experience to say the least. Jason totally loved the strobe lights on the ceiling, the bumpin music and the overflowing glasses of bubbly. But the best part? When the champagne stops at 11pm, everyone heads downstairs to the lobby of the building-- in it there's a sev and beers/liquors are super cheap. We got a few bottles and then sat in the lobby of the closed starbucks to enjoy them. We then headed back up, ready to dance the night away, having enough liquid courage to shake it like shakira but enough money left in our pockets for some late night Dondy's and then some. We may look like we classy, but these shmucks came in from right off the street :) #No400BahtBeersForMe
Jason had seen plenty of outdoor tourist markets, but what he hadn't seen was the outdoor market for locals in the slums. This market was a true Bangkok experience. It's amazing because tourists don't know about it (well except for the few lucky ones) so it's a real immersion experience. I've been there quite a few times, but bringing someone for the first time never gets old, especially when you're walking by hanging pig carcasses, chicken decapitations and fish flopping off the tables. Jason was really glad to have seen it, but I'm not sure if he would've eaten anything from there (little does he know that's where I get all of my fruits and vegetables :)
Bangkok certainly isn't complete without a massage and on my street is the best massage place, hands down. I bring all of my guests there. Which unfortunately, probably looks a bit odd to my regular ladies who saw me in with Tom over the weekend and are now seeing me in with Jason but long hair don't care, right? He very much enjoyed his massage, sans happy ending.
Did I mention Jason was in law school at the time he was traveling? So yeah, even though he liked to live it up he still had to get some work done here and there, which worked out perfectly for us one evening. It was Julianne's last night, so Jenna and I decided to meet up with her for dinner at Hemingways. We celebrated the three of us, our fun times in Thailand, and our adventures to come. It was a wonderful last dinner! After we ate, I headed back to my apartment to grab Jason. We decided we wanted to hear some live music and I had been hearing nothing but great things about Iron Fairies from Jenna and Julianne, so I decided to bring him there. The venue is small and intimate. We got to sit in the loft area right near the band. Their set was absolutely amazing-- everything was accoustic. And, they had fantastic whiskey. win. win.
After Iron Fairies, we went with Jenna and Julianne to this crazy hole in the wall underground house/techno club (one of Julieanne's favorite things) and danced the night away. Sionara Julianne, XXX!
I decided we needed to see the "nature-y" part of Bangkok, so I planned a day at the Green Lung. We took the MRT to the river, then boarded a boat across (Jenna told us they would try to charge us more because we are farang but just to pay the local price). On the other side you can rent bikes and circle around some paths surrounded by water. It's very beautiful and relaxing. We biked until the heat overtook us and then headed back to the city life.
All in all it was a super fun week. I loved getting to spend time enjoying the city I called my home for seven months, with a person I called my friend for seven days.
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