November 23, 2006 Bangkok, Thailand

November 23, 2006
Bangkok, Thailand

Happy Thanksgiving!!

This is the first Thanksgiving in a long time that I have not spent in Medford, OR with my family. I hope you guys have a good time without me and everyone eats a lot of turkey…

I got up this morning at 9:00 and quickly got ready for the day (Spizz was already up and ready to go). Our first order of business was to get to the post office and ship some of my stuff home. It turned out to be a very long walk and a super hot day. By the time we reached to post office I was drenched in sweat.

The post office was quite complicated. I had to go to a tire shop and have them package my goods (this took a long time for me to figure out). I then returned to the crowded office and waited in line. I filled out all the forms and then was SHOCKED by the price of my package. It cost me more than $130 to send my stuff home. I later was told that Thai Post is notoriously expensive!

By the time we were done with the post office it was almost 10:30. On our way back to the apartment we made a stop at the internet café. We sent Thanksgiving notes to some people and then did some more hostel booking.

After using the internet we decided it was time to get some food. We went back to the restaurant that Ben had taken us for our first diner in Bangkok (café P or something like that). We each had a delicious plate of fried rice.

We were both relieved to step back into the air-conditioned apartment (12:00). We rested for a few minutes and then headed for the snake farm!

In order to get there we had to take the underground. It was one of the newest, cleanest subway systems I have been on. It even had AC! After 4 or 5 stops we jumped off. As we returned to ground level we were pleasantly surprised to see a large Buddhist temple. It was super cool looking and we took a few photos.

From there we headed for the snake farm. Spizzle had the map and was in charge of navigation. We walked for about 10 minutes in one direction before he had us turn around and head back the other way. We walked about 15 minutes in the other directions before asking for help. As it turns out the snake farm was very close to where he had us the first time (only about 150 meters further).

When we finally arrived at the snake farm we were hot and sweaty. After a quick refreshment we headed inside. Almost immediately we were told to leave and go to the auditorium. We followed the crowd and took a seat in the small classroom. A few minutes later a slideshow on snakes and the snake farm started.

When the show ended (1/2 an hour later) we went back into the farm and entered an amphitheatre. At this point our host for the afternoon started bringing out some of the snakes. My favorites were the cobras. I especially enjoyed the King Cobra (the worlds longest poisonous snake). The end of the show was also fun because I volunteered to be the first to handle a very large Burmese python. Once everyone saw that it did not attack, they lined up to hold it as well.

We left the snake farm just after 15:00. Our next destination was the Hard Rock Café and the large shopping area around the restaurant. As expected, the Hard Rock was overpriced and not that exciting. The mall, however, was bustling with activity. There were thousands of stores, even more people, and some fun music. Spizz purchased a soccer scarf for very cheap.

Next, we headed back to the underground. Before jumping on the train we decided to do a little more exploring in the Buddhist temple. It was our first temple and we were very impressed.

We arrived back at the apartment at around 17:00. I decided to run and get my hair trimmed. I want to look good for Jackie when she gets here and its too hot and humid to have long hair. Even so, I didn’t get it cut too short…

For Thanksgiving dinner Spizz, Ben, Ju and I went to the restaurant “Cabbages and Condoms”. A super cool restaurant that donates a portion of each meal sold to birth control in Thailand. We met up with Bens boss and had an incredibly large Thai meal. Everything was absolutely amazing, especially the peanut sauce (sorry no pics – spizz forgot his camera). For desert, we even had some pumpkin pie (made by Bens Boss). The funniest moment of the entire day came when Ju turned the can of whip cream upside-down and started squeezing the aluminum sides. When we explained to her that you push on the nozzle at the top she was extremely embarrassed.

After dinner (and checking out the funny stuff at the giftshop) we slowly walked home. Everyone was super full and very tired. I made (very) rushed Thanksgiving phone calls to my family and my precious Jackie’s.

I the packed up my stuff and headed to bed (just before midnight).