Blackhawk Drown on Khaosan Road

As we have become accustomed to on this trip, our taxi driver from the airport was for some reason not able to drop us off at our hostel.  Like all of the other times this has happened to us, we began the struggle with foreign street signs and directions from people speaking broken English.  But unlike all of the other times, we had to do all of this in the middle of a warzone.

The Sunday we arrived in Bangkok was during the height of Songkran, the celebration of the Thai New Year.  It is tradition to spray people with water to cool off from the April heat and to rub white powder on their faces which originated from Monks who used it to give blessings.  Khaosan Road, the location of our hostel, took some liberty in the way this tradition is celebrated. The street was closed off to all vehicles, and full of people armed with water guns and buckets of water. 

Being big, white, and clearly not Thai, we instantly became Khaosan Road’s number 1 target when we stepped out of the taxi.  As we made our way through the blasting music and throngs people, our clothes and bags were instantly soaked through.  Since we forgot to pack our supersoakers at the beginning of the trip, we were left with no defense; forced to accept the onslaught of water and white powder that pursued.  Had we not been carrying all of our clothes, wallets, cell phones, passports, and everything else that is needed for our survival, it probably would have been a more enjoyable welcoming.  With each bucket of water splashed in our face, we could only think we will have our revenge.

Eventually the Rikka Inn appeared and we quickly threw our bags and valuables in the room before heading down to the street.  We hit the armory closest to the Rikka, and purchased two of Bangkok’s finest water guns (the price of which we bargained down 50 Baht, effectively saving us each 80 cents.  We’re great negotiators!).  After the armory, we knew the fierce combat would dehydrate us so we headed to the canteen.  We needed to stock up on a sufficient amount of beer from one of the hundreds of coolers that lined the streets.  Finally, we were locked and loaded and ready to wreak havoc. 

It did not matter if it was a mother, grandmother, or infant; no one was off limits.  

 Anyone who was armed was fair game.  Shoot first, ask questions later.  Our tactical maneuvers were unparalleled and betrayal of “allies” we made was rampant.  Despite our disadvantage weapon wise, we were able to hold our own.  In the end, everyone ends up soaking wet and has a great time.  They engage in the occaisional waterfight, take in the music, and in enjoy the various drinks being sold all over the road.  

  One vendor even dared to “ice” us.  She didn’t know who she was messing with, and felt the full wrath of our supersoakers after we had finished the drinks.  After a few rounds up and down the street, we were exhausted from our 3:30 AM flight from Boracay and the intense battles, so we retreated to our room to take a short nap.

When we reemerged onto Khaosan Road, day had turned to night.  That was not the only change.  Somehow the music was blasting louder, and the water and beer were flowing stronger.  The street was absolutely packed and had turned into Bangkok’s biggest party.  DJ’s were blasting house music and putting on light shows.  Bars were advertising not checking ID cards.   

People were climbing onto anything they could, tables, dumpsters, streetlights, in order to dance to the music and fully enjoy Songkran.  And of course, there was water everywhere.  There was so much that at one break in the action we looked up and saw that we had not even realized that it was pouring rain on us.  I think it was at this point when Alex said “I had to wait until I was 22 years old to have the best water gun fight in my life.”  I couldn’t agree more.  It was quite the spectacle and we fully enjoyed sharing in this celebration of the Thai New Year.  Even as the watergun aspect of the night was dying down, you never know when an ambush could strike:

The next morning we decided to get out of Bangkok and head to the jungle for a day or two, so we set out for Kanchanaburi.  On our quest to get there, we were told by numerous people that the bus station was atleast 45 km away, and that all the buses were booked, so the only option would be a private minivan with them for around $2,000 Baht.  Not believing these very trustworthy looking people, we decided to figure it out for ourselves.  After taking a 10-minute metered cab ride to the bus station, and buying a 110 Baht bus ticket, we were on our way to Kanchanaburi.  It was always satisfying to reject and circumvent the countless people trying to screw you over.

Kanchanaburi is home to the Bridge On the River Kwai, which was brought to fame by the Academy Award best picture winning movie bearing the same name.  It portrays the Japanese treatment of British POWs during WWII who were forced to build the Death Railway that helped connect Japan to Burma and India.   

But the main reason for our stay in Kanchanaburi was that it is the closest city to Tiger Temple.  Tiger Temple is run by monks and was founded as a forest temple and sanctuary for wild animals.  While waiting on line to enter “Tiger Canyon”, thoughts of Sigfried and Roy danced through my head.  I only hoped to be spared from having a similar fate.  Lucky for us, we were able to avoid the grim reaper’s clutches and the tigers remained tame.   

It was still a little nerve-wracking being so close to such a big and powerful creature that could literally rip my face off in one swift move if it felt so inclined, but it was definitely an amazing experience.   

We decided to spend the following day in Kanchanaburi and head back to Bangkok at night.  Through our hostel ,we booked a full day tour with various activities.   

First we went to Erawan National Park and hiked through the jungle for three hours.  The Erawan waterfall has seven different falls and pools placed a few hundred meters apart throughout this park.   We spent half the time hiking, and half the time swimming enjoying these little jungle oases.  After the jungle, we were given a delicious pad thai lunch and then headed to an elephant camp.  Here we got to experience an elephant ride that took us down stairs, through the jungle, and even into the River Kwai.   

Upon reaching the river, we disembarked the elephants and boarded a few bamboo rafts that we used to float down the river.  Finally, the tour ended with us taking a ride on the Death Railway and seeing the famous Bridge Over the River Kwai.  It was quite the busy day, and we were ready to bus back from the jungle and return to the city.

Since we had no time to leave Khaosan Road on our arrival day, we took advantage of our final day by seeing the city of Bangkok.  Being our own tourguides, we navigated the streets and viewed the 45m standing Buddha. 

 Following this and a short break for lunch, we made our way to the Royal Palace.  We were forced to borrow pants in order to be granted entry because shorts were not allowed, but it was well worth it.  The Thai architecture was absolutely incredible.  It had almost an other worldly vibe to it, and with our shoes off we both felt the spiritual power of Buddha.  It was here that our celebrity status from the Philippines continued.  

 After we asked a random person to take a picture us in front of the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, that same person asked us if him and his friends could have their picture taken with us.  This set off a firestorm as other groups saw this going on, and wanted their pictures taken with the strange white men.  It’s crazy to think about how many living rooms across Asia are going to contain pictures with Alex and I in them.

Following our cultural expedition, we started off the night with a relaxing Thai foot massage at a parlor set up right on Khaosan Road.  It was great people watching and a great way to enjoy a beer.  After the massage, we got the incredibly good pad thai for the 5^th time and then spent the next few hours enjoying the Bangkok nightlife.  Thailand was a great stopped and we were lucky to time it up with Songkran.  We’re currently sitting on the plane at the Hazrat Shahjalal Airport in Dhaka, Bangladesh with a great view of pollution and the Air Malaysia plane next to us.  Needless to say we are very excited for it to take off and take us to Kathmandu.  Everest here we come.