Thailand

Visited: November 1999

Duration of visit: 40 days

Capital city: Bangkok

Population: 63 million (2000)

Estimated reading time: 21 minutes

• Bangkok – the City of Angels, that can be extremely demanding with humidity heat, traffic jams, long distances and polluted air.
• Patpong night show where artist show their capabilities to entertain adults.
• Ko Samet – relaxing on the beach with bizarre interruptions.
• Surprising Nan – laid back, peaceful and free of tourists.
• Elephants gathering in Surin – the exposure of elephants’ strength, capability of movement and entertainment.
• Millennium New Year celebration in Chiang Mai was rather a shopping party than a new year celebration
• Damnoen Saduak Floating Market and Wat Phra Pathom Chedi near Bangkok.

With worthy beaches, majestic limestone cliffs, friendly locals, and glimmering temples The Land of Smiles attracts millions of tourists every year. The only country in Southeast Asia that was never colonized by any European nation is blossoming with over 40,000 temples; more than 30,000 of them are still in active use.

Although Buddhism is not the official religion of Thailand, more than 90% of the population adheres to this faith, making it the second largest Buddhist community in the world.

In the past, all young men in Thailand, including royalty, became Buddhist monks before they turned 20 – at least for a short amount of time.

The capital city Bangkok is not only the world’s hottest capita city with an average air temperature of 28°C, but also the center of South East Asia where anything is at the palm of your hand. The country where 76 letters of alphabet are used, where the world’s largest solid gold Buddha stands and where Austrian entrepreneur Dietrich Mateschitz found the main source of the famous Red Bull drink, is simply incredible.

Thailand was part of the Asian Big Tour from Australia, through Southeast Asia and China to India. During this 15-months long trip I visited most of the countries in the region and spent almost a month and a half travelling around Thailand by buses, trains and boats.

My arrival to Bangkok was unexpected and not planned at all. After I was denied an entry stamp on Cambodian – Thai border I had only two options. Travelling back to Phnom Penh and applying for visa at Thai embassy or continue (illegally) to Bangkok, where I would formalize my stay at the immigration office. Returning to the capital of Cambodia was an absolutely no go – the trip would take me 3 to 4 days and afterwards I would need to travel back on the same route to Thai border. I was convinced that the immigration officer was wrong and I didn’t need a visa for any border crossing, also overland.

I continued illegally by bus straight to Bangkok. At the only checkpoint on the road a soldier reviewed my passport full of stamps and visas from various Asian countries.

Obviously, he didn’t know what he was looking for because he didn’t alert me to the missing Thailand entry stamp.

A visit at the Immigration office can be a nightmare, but Bangkok was another story. As soon as I explained what happened, a receptionist directed me to a specific counter. Nice smile and communication with an official on the second window didn’t help, so I was conducted to a new area for foreigners. Finally, somebody took my passport started to write something in Thai and disappeared for an hour.

“Am I going to be deported from the country immediately or tomorrow?” where my thoughts, when losing patience and trust in Thailand as a friendly tourist destination.

When a young man in a perfectly arranged uniform showed up again, I had to sign a document with Thai text that I couldn’t understand. He continued to write on a visa page of my passport text in Thai alphabet. I couldn’t understand anything, but I was assured that nobody will bother me anymore, I was allowed to stay in the country for 3 months and crossing the border in / out as many times as I wished.

It turned out later that the message in my passport opened all doors for me when leaving and entering Thailand. The officials at the border crossing and airport gently saluted me, wishing a welcome stay or trip.

I needed a break to relax and make plans for further travelling. Thailand is blessed with so many beautiful seaside areas that it is not a difficult task finding the right place.

I chose a small island of Ko Samet, dotted with soft, white sand beaches, five hours driving from Bangkok and thirty minutes by boat from the mainland.

The bungalows were located slightly away from the beach in a small grove, consisting of two apartment units in each one. Each bungalow complex has its own electric generator, which is so powerful that it moves or shakes a quarter of the island, when operating at night.

The next morning, I moved to another bungalow, a little further away from the loud generator. Unfortunately, the noise of the generator was replaced by a couple, who accommodated in the neighboring apartment. On the first night, a dispute arose between a French couple who reside next door to me. The girl wouldn’t let her boyfriend in the condo, so he had to sleep outside. The next morning, he beat up the insolent young girlfriend. After the fight they moved out.

The next roommates were a trio of two young women and a boy. I don’t know how they squeezed into small beds, but at least they were quiet and polite. As the last guest, a drummer appeared, who played his instrument loudly at night, until an elderly tourist made him so angry that he immediately fell silent the next day and disappeared in disgrace.

In addition to all the above-mentioned inconveniences, it was interesting to observe swimmers in beautiful waters just before it got dark. In those moments, some kind of tiny jellyfishes appeared and began to sting all over the body. Surprised bathers tried to resist, while scratching their bodies, but soon realized that the stinging was unbearable and left the sea. The next day they joined the old-timers in watching the newcomers, who arrived on the island and were not familiar with the show.

Overall, my experience at Ko Samet was exceptional, allowing me to organize my diary, plan for further travelling, combine swimming in warm, turquoise sea, lazing in a hammock shaded by coconut palm trees, and delight in the delicious local seafood.

On the third weekend in November, the bustling city of Surin in northeastern Thailand turns into a city of elephants. These giants are brought from all over Thailand to show their strength, skills and tameness, taught by aspiring trainers.

I entered the central stadium in Surin with the cheapest ticket in my hand, which enabled me to have a price-value view of what was happening in the arena. For a while I watched the elephants marching from far away, admired their virtues while playing football. I somehow managed to convince the guard at the backstage entrance, where the giants were preparing for the show, to let me in the VIP section with a closer view and possibility to take good photos from a closer distance.

According to estimates, the number of wild elephants in Thai forests (in 2000) varies between 3,000 and 4,000, which is extremely little comparing to the year 1900, when there were around 100,000 trained elephants capable of working.

The strength of a single adult elephant was demonstrated by pulling a rope. On one side, the rope was tied to the elephant’s leg, and on the other side, 50 inspired Thai young guys were pulling it with all their might. Strong animal pulled them off as if they didn’t exist. Another 50 men were added to form a group of 100 people, who were eventually capable to equal in strength to one elephant.

Despite the fact that elephants look clumsy and give the impression that they are crushing all living things under their feet, this is not entirely true. Adult elephants can run at speeds of up to 23 kms/h, while the pressure on the ground (per square centimeter) is less than that of a doe. Ideal for working in the forest, as they do not destroy the undergrowth. Walking on wet or steep terrain does not cause them major headaches. To show their ability of walking under control, the elephants marched over their trainers who laid down on the ground, without stepping on them.

Due to the fact that an average year of service can last 50 years, the young elephants are usually trained by two guardians – an older, more experienced one and a younger one, who will be able to take care of the ward for the rest of his life. Sometimes the trainers are father and son. According to Thai law, an elephant must retire at the age of 61 and be released into the wild. Considering that elephants often live more than 80 years, the time spent in the wild means approximately a quarter of their life.

The annual gathering of elephants in Surin has outgrown the scope of the local grand event in recent years. Crowds of tourists from Bangkok come for a day trip to see the spectacle. Despite commercialization and show, this is an ideal opportunity to see several hundred elephants in a pile and get an idea of their importance in Thai society, both, in the past and today.

Nan was a separate, autonomous kingdom called Nanthaburi for centuries, having few relationships with the outside world until in 1931 fell completely under the rule of the Kingdom of Siam. Nowadays, Nan is visited mostly by Thai tourists and although very few foreigners make it here, it is a great stopover on the way to Laos or for those looking for a non-tourist alternative completely off the beaten track.

There are two very interesting temples in the town center: Wat Phumin offers well-preserved murals painted during the restoration in 19^th century, that depict the Buddha’s life cycle, as well as scenes of the local life of the time. Wat Phra That Chang Kham is a 15^th century temple that is considered to be one of the oldest in Nan, very elegantly decorated with gold motifs on a blue background.

I settled down in a simple guest house that turned out to be quiet, clean and comfortable. In wooden barrack we walked barefoot, mattresses were put on the floor, kitchen was available for all guests and I even received an opportunity for hot shower. The first time after Saigon, where I stayed a month earlier. Other backpackers in the guesthouse were quiet and respectful, easy going and eloquent interlocutors.

The whole atmosphere of the town was very different from the rest of Thailand I had seen so far, since there were hardly any foreigners. Locals are super friendly, all people smile, when they see a backpacker.

Delicious food, vibrant market and thousands of birds that sing from electrical cables in the evening, were the main reason to stay four days in Nan.

I rented a motorbike for a few dollars and drove on perfect roads in the valleys surrounding Nan. Sao Nin is a geological park inside Sri Nan National Park Large – a tribute to the power of wind and water which formed sandy pit full of the most extreme and impressive formations, when this area was still under the ocean.

I entered the new millennium in Chiang Mai, the former seat of the Lanna kingdom, in a land of misty mountains and colorful hill tribes. The Royal Park, temples, wats, botanical gardens, caves, national park, tribal villages, workshops, museums; all of these and more activities are available in the northern tourist capital of Thailand.

I only wanted to relax for a few days and celebrate the end of 1999 and change of the millennium. Incredibly cheap guesthouse with excellent facilities costed me only 4.00 US$ per night, the food was great and inexpensive.

New Year celebration was a big disappointment. I expected much more in the second largest city in Thailand. Majority of people used the last hours of the year for regular shopping on the market, driving cars up and down busy streets in downtown.

At midnight the traffic stopped; fireworks lasted a few minutes. No music, party, public gathering nor celebrating. Only foreigners wished each other a happy new year, chat for a wild and the party was over.

Sukhothai was the capital of the first Kingdom of Siam in the 13^th and 14^th centuries. The ruins of the kingdom’s capital, now 12 kilometers outside the modern town of Sukhothai Thani are preserved as the Sukhothai Historical Park and have been designated a World Heritage Site. The historic town consists of three physically closely related ancient towns:

• Sukhothai – the political and administrative capital of the first Kingdom of Siam in 13^th and 15^th
• Si Satchanalai – the spiritual center of the kingdom and the site of numerous temples and Buddhist monasteries, center of the all-important ceramic export industry.
• Kamphaeng Phet – an area with important military functions to protect the kingdom from foreign intruders as well as providing security for the kingdom’s extensive trading network.

The ancient town is reported to have had some 80,000 inhabitants. Under royal patronage, Buddhism flourished and many impressive monasteries of brick covered with carved stucco were constructed, illustrating the idealized beauty and the superhuman characteristics of the Lord Buddha and His Teachings.

After 1351, when Ayutthaya was founded as the capital of a powerful rival Tai dynasty, Sukhothai’s imperial influence began to wane, and in 1438 the town was conquered and incorporated into the Ayutthaya kingdom, later abandoned in the late 15^th or early 16^th century.

I rented a motorbike to move from the town center to all historical sites that are spread around. The spiky pagodas or stupas have been rebuilt with small, unattractive red bricks, so they did not impress me that much.

Due to the importance of the archaeological sites, the tickets are correspondingly very expensive by Thai standards. Maybe that’s why there weren’t many visitors, especially in Si Satchanalai. While driving, I stopped at different food stalls along the road. Especially boiled corn was naturally sweet and delicious.

Back in Bangkok for the second time I couldn’t help but admire the beast that emerged from Thailand’s capital.

I was searching for the right word to describe traffic chaos, polluted air, blocked roads due to the number of vehicles, concrete conglomerates, structures and buildings, nervous people and unbearable noise.

The monster could be ideal description of this megacity that I am able to compare to Manila in certain aspects.

Bangkok’s nickname the Big Mango could also be rightly deserved: Bangkok is the tropical equivalent of New York, one of the world’s most fascinating cities, a melting pot of people and ideas from around the world.

Most of the guesthouses and hotels along Khaosan Road were fully booked; even the rundown place where a stayed a month before. After searching for quite some time I found a perfect room with private bathroom in a quiet area, some distance from the main road. I didn’t even need to take my shoes off to go inside, what is usually a must in many guesthouses. The heat and humidity became unbearable, I was forced to take shower constantly.

Khaosan Road is a he most famous part of Bangkok, internationally known as a center for budget travelers, offering all kind of services that you can think off. One Thai writer has described Khaosan as “…a short road that has the longest dream in the world“.

Guesthouses, hotels and real dumps; bar, nightclubs and restaurants offering from the basic cocktails to the most bizarre parties.

The vibrant area, where Thais join travelers for parties, bargains, shopping or just mingling. Thais massage can be miserable or extremely rewarding, fake t-shirts or watches excellent deal or money thrown away. Spring rolls, pad thai or banana pancakes at street vendors stalls are offered at the cheapest prices in the whole city. Prostitutes and go-go dancers entertain for any taste or pocket.

Variety of supply and low prices, combined with international atmosphere are the best in the region. Khaosan is a must, when in Bangkok!

I used this stopover to organize my further travelling around Asia, since my bank account was blessed with Santa Claus donations and I didn’t need to return home yet. Arranging airplane tickets for Bangladesh with a stopover in Myanmar was a tense experience that I wouldn’t want to repeat, ever.

In the morning, I made a reservation and paid with my credit card in the old way with a manual slip. I was promised to get the airplane tickets at 6:00pm on the same day, since the agency had to coordinate some details with the airline. When coming back to the office at agreed time, the owner told that my ticket will be issued only when I present him visas for both countries.

Since only three days were left until my departure and the agency didn’t keep the promise, I got really angry. Unfortunately, the agency owner was very impatient, lost his patience and went completely mad. When I asked him to return me the money, he immediately pulled out the credit card slip, tore the paper into small pieces in front of my eyes, threw it on the floor and kicked me out of the office.

I wasn’t sure if the payment was cancelled this way, so I asked my friend to call the police. I stayed in the office without any intention to leave.

The owner closed and locked the agency’s doors, leaving me inside, and proceeded to exit, as it was time to end the business for the day. The police didn’t show up. I picked up all broken pieces of the slip in case I might need to claim refund, opened the metal shutter and escaped from the tourist agency office.

Fortunately, it turned out later that my credit card was not charged. I purchased the airplane tickets at another office without any issues.

Visas for Myanmar and Bangladesh were issued straightforward. What a contrast, visiting these two embassies. If there were groups of tourists and backpackers at Myanmar embassy, Bangladesh consulate seemed to be abandoned; I was the only one in line. A friendly employee was searching through the list of countries for Slovenia, but he couldn’t find it. I noticed different visa prices for different countries. One of the cheapest was Croatia, my neighboring country that used to be a member of the same, old Yugoslavia.

I suggested that as a Slovenian I should probably have the same privilege as Croatians, since we used to live under the same umbrella for decades. The friendly clerk agreed with my proposal:

“Sure, let’s do this. 110 bahts = 3.00 US$. Your visa will be ready in 30 minutes!”

This was one of the easiest procedures to get visa and also the cheapest one in my backpacking career.

Patpong is an entertainment district of Bangkok that is welcoming mainly foreign adult visitors.  I wanted to explore the internationally known red-light district at the heart of Bangkok’s sex industry, to see how professional sexually explicit shows look like.

When I arrived to the area of Patpong in the evening, I thought that I was lost. Huge market with clothes, souvenirs, bags and other goods reminded me on night bazar in Chang Mai or any other city in Thailand. Families with kids walked around, bargaining for good deals, vendors offering me the latest models of fake Lacoste t-shirts, Rolex watches or Ray Ban sunglass.

I was joking with the sellers: “Hey guys, I didn’t come here for shopping but for fun. Where is the action? Am I at Patpong or at Pahurat textile market?”

They just looked strange at me and directed me to the sidewalk on the edge of the stalls, loaded with clothes. Here there are; bars illuminated with neon lights, provocatively dressed girls of any age, size or beauty range. I assume so. It is actually hard to say who is a woman these days.

I was immediately offered a variety of shows, services and drinks. Men, women, transsexuals, striptease dance, massage, relaxation and more.

I entered one of the beautifully lit bars and in the shock almost fell to the ground. Three muscular men on the counter and a dozen more on the stage, dressed only in golden thongs and red ties on the stage.

“Have a sit my friend. You came to the right place. No photos are allowed, ….” a beautiful travesty with deep voice invited me to accommodate at the bar.

“Sorry my friend, I think I am at the wrong place, I am an old fashion backpacker, preferring girls to boys!” I quickly defended myself.

“Don’t be shy. You don’t know what is good for you yet. You are young and innocent. Stay here for the best night in your life!”

I ran away from male striptease bar and continued sightseeing tour around Paton red-light district with more precaution. To attend most of the shows requires some payment, which I didn’t want to conceal, because they wouldn’t start the performance if there were not enough visitors.

After some time, I finally came to a bar where the lady at the entrance offered me the most exclusive show, with beautiful girls, dance, love in tuk-tuk and fun.

“No entrance fee, but you need to buy some drinks. It will start in 10 minutes and they do some crazy stuff.”

I was eager: “How do you know that it will kick off in 10 minutes and how can you guarantee me the crazy stuff?”

She replied me with a charm, very self-confident: “I am the star of the show and I will do the focal performance of the night.“

I was convinced and took a seat a little bit further from the main stage to avoid being involved in the show or being called as an assistant during the presentation. A rather uninteresting spectacle included the participation of bored, unattractive dancers lacking the proper curves, dressed only in narrow straps around the hips, revealing modest breasts and moving in slow motion on the stage.

The presentation consisted of the following agenda: smoking a cigarette, shooting arrows at balloons, playing with balls, pulling out a razor, drawing with a marker. All performance points on agenda were executed by woman vagina by the woman who invited me to watch the show. So, she was really the big star of the show!

The public, predominantly foreigners, were having fun, laughing applauding and asking for more. The final part of the show: love in tuk tuk, was a disaster. Two of the most bored strippers were faking to make love for a few minutes. Basically, we were all laughing when they were softly touching and hitting each other with their bodies.

When the hot show culminated at midnight, the clothes market at Patpong was still very much alive, most of the visitors walking around loaded with full bags of cheap, fake branded clothes.

Two of the most memorable landmarks in the vicinity of Bangkok that I visited were Damnoen Saduak Floating Market and Wat Phra Pathom Chedi in the center of Nakhon Pathom. They don’t have much in common, beside being very popular tourist destinations, which are easily accessible by many tourists, based in Bangkok.

Wat Phra Pathom Chedi, the tallest stupa (chedi) in the world, with the top of its spire reaching 120 meters and the base circumference of 235 meters. Bell shaped brick stupa is covered by golden brown color tiles. The original of Phra Pathom Chedi has no historical record, speculating that the stupa had been built around the year 193 BCE, as part of older Buddhist temple, Wat Phra Pathom. Restored in 1850s, the stupa is one of the most important places for Buddhists in Thailand and regarded as the oldest.

My next stop was Damnoen Saduak Floating Market, considered the most famous floating market in Thailand. In general, the floating market is crowded with tourists and I would personally mark it as a tourist trap. No wonder if the popularity also grew to the extent of several Hollywood films that shot some scenes in the area.

Vendors on boats offer fresh vegetables, fruits, dry goods, herbs, spices, souvenirs and street food to their clientele, which these days are mainly tourists instead of locals.

Traditional Thai dishes are cooked right on the boats, handed over to the customers passing by on another boat or standing on the shores: pad thai, spring rolls, fried rice and Chinese-style dumplings are the most popular.

I arrived very early in the morning before tour groups overflown the villages. Even though it wasn’t bad to observe the action along the straightest and longest canal in Thailand from the mainland, I quickly negotiated a special early bird discount to navigate the canals all the way to Khun Phitak, smaller and least crowded market, about 2 kilometers south of Hia Kui, where tour groups don’t tend to gather.

Thailand is known as The land of Smiles. The country that receives a tourist with smile, attention, respect and great infrastructure. It offers plenty of activities, great range of sightseeing, historical landmarks, well organized, easy and safe travelling. One of those places where it is easy to get introduced to a new religion or culture. Similar to Ghana in Africa or Costa Rica in Central America.

Thailand is a great transport hub where it is always pleasant to return, being in transit or staying for longer time.

Many sensational beaches, islands, spectacular parties, lively Bangkok, variety of food and inexpensive opportunities to afford more luxury than anywhere else, have marked Thailand, which, in the year 2000, is at the crossroads.

It will either remain a synonym for the ideal mix of Western-Asian culture, or it will completely submit to tourism, sell out and transform into a sleazy destination as many young Thai girls, who shamelessly sell themselves to drunken, old Western men who cannot find a suitable partner in their homelands and court a few decades younger, desperate beauties in need to survive.