Where In The World Is Evan?

As you step out of the airport a wall of humidity hits you in the face and the pungent smell of raw sewage forces its way up your nostrils… you are of course in Bangkok.

And boy is it good to be back! Or at least, it was…

Being in Bangkok for the beloved Thai king’s birthday was quite fun. Considering the recent political machinations, it turned out of be quite a party–complete with marching bands and parades, passing up and down the streets of the tourist district. About 90% of the Bangkok population was dressed up in matching yellow polo-shirts, to declare their love for a monarch that has proven instrumental in maintaining stability in a country plagued by years of violent unrest.

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It’s amazing how much a shower, a few hours sleep and a change of clothes can transform your view of the world. As I walked out of my hostel into the fetid air of Bangkok the horrors of the preceding day seemed a distant memory.

Before I could sit down with some breakfast and a Chang beer and make plans for the two days I had in Bangkok I needed to change some money. After having paid a small fortune for significantly overstaying my Laos visa I had a grand total of 200,000 kip (about US$20) in my wallet. Once again, however, I was to be fucked over by Lonely Planet. Nowhere in their guide book to Lao does it mention that kip cannot be changed outside of the country. Hardly a small omission when apparently this has always been the case. Realising that the only remaining money I had left was useless, I went to an ATM to withdraw some Thai baht, but this was not to be my week.

In the last year I’ve travelled through seven countries and used eight currencies but never had I been in the situation of the day before—being caught without friend or money—yet here I was facing it all over again. My withdrawal was declined.
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I arrived back in Vientiane on Saturday afternoon, en route to Bangkok, and checked into the first available hostel. Feeling pretty tired after another long cramped bus ride I rested in my room for a couple of hours before heading out to grab some dinner.

It wasn’t until after 8:00 pm that I realised that the money I’d withdrawn in Luang Prabang wasn’t going to cover my 10 hour bus ticket to Bangkok. With enough money left to indulge myself for dinner I grabbed a pizza and a couple of pints of beer at a restaurant I’d been to previously. When I’d finished I went straight back to my hostel and fell asleep almost immediately.

I woke in the early hours of the morning feeling rather nauseous. As I lay in bed contemplating getting up I farted and shat my pants. Jumping out of bed I dashed into the en suite just in time to vomit in the sink. As I sat sideways on the toilet with my head in the adjacent basin, violently erupting from both ends, I reassessed my earlier complaint that the bathroom was too small for comfort.
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Well here I am in Thailand, on the beautiful resort island of Phuket. I didn’t die on the plane flight, and whilst I’ve been eating chicken I’ve shown no signs of Bird-Flu.

This post will have to be short as I’m off on a sea kayaking trip in an hour that tours some of the remote smaller islands off the coast. And for those who have seen the James Bond film “The Man With the Golden Gun” I am going to be visiting the island that movie was filmed on

The beer here is Thailand is so good. I highly recommend Chang beer, and
at only 39 baht (about AU$1.30) for a 640ml bottle at 7/11 it’s fantastic
value.
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