OK, the lyrics actually say "one night in Bangkok" and I had four. Well, the last night didn't actually involve any sleep, but I'm getting ahead of myself.
The visa that allows me to stay in China requires that I leave the country every 60 days, then I can return 48 hours later. So with this in mind, I started looking for places to go that were relatively cheap and nearby. As luck would have it, my cousin Ryan was going to be in Thailand from the middle of December through early January. I haven't seen him for over a decade since he lives in San Francisco, but a few Facebook messages and the trip was a go. He even had a friend with some spare room for me to crash so I wouldn't have to get a hotel room. Way to go man! On top of that, flying SriLankan Airlines will get me there and back for only $200USD each way! Wahoo!
Things are never that easy. I should know that by now. The subway from Shanghai goes right to the airport, and there is even a high-speed mag-lev train that gets you there faster. Unfortunately, in order to catch the mag-lev you must get off the subway at the correct station, which I did not. I went three stops past, at which point I decided just to soldier on through eight more subway stops. What I also did not know is that those last eight subway stops take about 45 minutes instead of the 15 minutes I imagined. Oops. On the bright side, I met an African-Canadian art dealer on the train and he eagerly chatted me up as he seemed to be desperate for some English conversation. Since he had been to the Pudong Internation Airport many times, he told me exactly where I needed to go in order to efficiently meet my looming deadline. Sweet!
Things are never that easy. I should know that by now. I followed his instructions to the "T" and spent the next 20 minutes wandering around the wrong terminal. Note to self: there is a sign at the last subway station that tells you which terminal each airline flies from. In my false confidence I blasted right past that sign and did little doodle-laps through the incorrect terminal bouncing from check-in desk to check-in desk. Apparently SriLankan Airlines is pronounced completely differently in China because nobody had the slightest clue what the exasperated American was loudly blurting at them. Oops. Luckily, I finally made it to another sign which told me I was in the wrong terminal. Whew.
Things are never that easy. I should know that by now. After a panicked 1km sprint from terminal one to terminal two I felt that I was ready to rock. I quickly found the SriLankan check-in sign and looked for anybody that looked official. Nope. Zero. It was now 50 minutes before my flight was scheduled to leave and I soon found out that the check-in counter closes one hour before departure. No amount of begging or pleading over the phone would change that, as I ricocheted from the help desk to SriLankan support to the actual manager of the airport. (Seriously, anybody can just call him to say hi) I wasn't making the flight. To make things worse, SriLankan would happily put me on their next flight that was leaving in two days. Grrr.
OK, so already now you are tired of this story because you want to hear about Bangkok. I don't blame you. Let's just say that my dumb ass should have gotten an earlier start and call it good. I plunked down WAY too much money for a flight on Thai Airlines which left in a few more hours and I relaxed and drank a beer. A Guinness Stout.
The temperatures in Shanghai right now are right inline with Portland. We are hovering around freezing and have had a few flirtations with snow. My apartment in Shanghai is so drafty that my heater at 100% capacity keeps it about 65 degrees with a 40 degree concrete floor. I was desperate for some heat. As I stepped out of the airport all of my wildest dreams came true. The 80 degree evening quickly seeped through my light jacket and I just closed my eyes and soaked it in. Sehr gut. Muy Bueno. Fuck yeah.
The taxi driver takes my handwritten address and we take off (on the wrong side of the road) into a traffic situation very much like China's. Cars and bikes careening across the stripes and giant buses belching clouds of blue smoke into the air. There was almost no honking, though, which was quite a relief. Although there was a lot of traffic, people seemed to respect each others personal vehicle bubble, a nice change. The other thing I noticed was that Bangok is a true car-lover's city. I saw tons of customized cars and even many of the taxis were lowered and had spoilers and custom wheels. I even saw an ambulance with a custom wing and bodykit! I was almost ready to see my long lost cousin, who I hadn't seen since I was a kid.
Things are never that easy. I should know that by now. After 40 minutes of demolition derby we are now in a narrow, gravel alley bordered by stone walls on each side. There are overgrown bushes beyond the walls and broken glass on the ground. I catch the slightest whiff of rotten garbage and then, for the first time, I spot the street dogs. There are about a dozen mangy dogs laying on either side of the road (well, either side of the center of the road, there was no shoulder) and I'm starting to freak out a little. My driver can't find the address and his cell phone battery has died so we can't call. We spend another ten minutes going up and down the alley, when he borrows a stranger's phone and calls Ryan.
Things are finally that easy. We are less than a minute away and when the taxi turns back around I see Ryan and his super-cute friend, Michelle, standing in the road. They greet me warmly and take me into Michelle's home, which is one of the coolest houses that I have ever seen! After passing through a large double-door gate into a courtyard with a circular turnaround, there is a three-story Spanish-style house with a generous front porch. Inside the front doors was a large round courtyard with an open air roof design. Well, take a look for yourself:
The sun was long gone, but the night was still young. Michelle took us to one bar where I ate my first chicken knuckles and drank my first SangSom, an 80-proof rice liquor that is poured over ice and mixed with seltzer water and a splash of soda. Then we were whisked to "Parking Toys" which was a funky place with knick-knacks all over the walls. A Thai rockabilly club called Trix O' Treat was seriously killing it! A tiny little Thai girl was belting out greats like Good Golly Miss Molly, Johnny Be Good and Walk This Way while a thin guy tickled the electric guitar and a stocky fellow stood on his bass! I couldn't see the drummer, but he was just as good as the rest. Everybody in the joint was whooping and stomping their feet. It was probably the coolest single moment of my entire trip.
There was one last bar after that, which I remember being smartly crafted in the style of a 70's living room, but the liquor had taken effect at this point (as well as the big hand pointing at the 4) and we soon were deposited back at Michelle's house and zonked for the night.
Michelle hosts a local roaming variety television show, so on day two (Wednesday) she tasked the two of us with helping her create a piece for Children's Day, a national holiday in Thailand. We met her cameraman and birthday celebrator (named Sun? No, that isn't a question, it is how you correctly pronounce his name) from the evening before down by the banks of the Chao Phraya River, which runs right through Bangkok. (I researched it on Wikipedia which informed me that the river is home to the Giant Freshwater Stingray which can grow up to 1300 pounds!) Michelle, Ryan and I sat down on camera as she interviewed us about our childhoods, our tastes in music and our impressions of Bangkok. After that, as the sun starts to set, we wander through some international neighborhoods that are home to many hostels, then grab some Chang and Singha (beers) on a rooftop bar. The night ends early at the hangout called Happy Monday.
Thursday was a sleeper-inner and in the early afternoon the three of us went to the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre where I learned about the riots that had ravaged the city earlier in the year through a series of photo essays. It was a little jarring to see images of the city in flames and char, especially when you were blissfully ignorant of the chaos. Some shopping and wandering through various malls consumed the rest of the afternoon. In one of the malls I discovered a series of exotic car shops. There were actual dealerships on the third story of the mall, with Lotus, Maserat and Lamborghini (among others) represented. Check out the vid. We ended the evening back at that same mall with a much-needed air-conditioned viewing of Tron in their 3D Imax theater. In Bangkok when you go to a movie the seats are reserved like in an airplane, and you pay more for good seats than you would for seats at the edges or front. Our primo seats? Twelve bucks! Nice.
Friday was my last full day in Bangkok, as I had a 6:00 am flight back home. (Wow, Shanghai is home now) Ryan had decided that Michelle's tattoo hookup would be a great opportunity for him to get his first tat. We taxied our way across the city toward Contrast Tattoo. But first, we stopped at a market that wasn't much different than the markets found in Shanghai, but one entire level was almost entirely devoted to print tees! I was in heaven! I walked out of there with a bag of new tees and we continued on to the tattoo parlor. Suprise, surprise, Contrast Tattoo is owned and operated by the members of Trix O' Treat! These guys were a blast to watch in action on our first night, and hanging out with them at the shop was every bit as pleasurable. They were very friendly and before we knew it Ryan's forearms were expertly marked with his Mayan 11's.
That evening we arrived back at the local favorite watering hole, Happy Monday. The beer and SangSom flowed freely and before I knew it the time was near for me to taxi back to the airport. I was pretty drunk at this point and I barely remember the taxi ride at all. Easy peezy.
Things are never that easy. I should know that by now. When I stumbled up to the SriLankan Airlines check-in counter it was explained to me in stunted English that I did not actually have a seat on the plane. Apparently due to the fact that I had missed my flight from Shanghai to Bangkok, the airline had assumed that I would not want to fly back home. (In Shanghai I did tell them that I was flying the first leg on a different airline) I believe at this point my English may have been more stunted than the Thai airline representative. Through some miracle I was able to explain the whole sorted mess and secure passage back to the crowded city that I called home.
It is interesting that my shortest trip has earned the longest writeup. I am thankful that Ryan welcomed me into his trip with open arms and that Michelle was gracious enough to invite me into her home. (Getting pulled out of bed in the morning with hot breakfast on the table is friggin sweet!) I will end this here, with some video from the Mag-Lev train that runs from the Pudong airport in Shanghai, to a mysterious subway stop inside the city limits. Ciao!
