Bangkok: “Victory Thailand!”

After bidding a reluctant farewell to Koh Mook island, we boarded the local ferry once again and made our way towards the mainland. Once we hit the shore, we caught a bus back to the town of Trang and, from there, we journeyed to the town of Krabi. After a few nights there, we journeyed further north to the frontier town of Ranong which borders the southern tip of Myanmar. By this stage, our 15 day visa for Thailand was running out and we needed to renew it. The only way to do this is jump aboard a local boat and cross the waters that divide Thailand from Myanmar. We caught a so’n thau (a Thai taxi, like a mini bus but without doors) to the harbour and before we could draw breath a local fisherman crowded us on to his boat for a 400 baht (10 euro) return journey.

As we drew near Myanmar, our boat docked briefly at a military outpost, where (it seemed to us) the fisherman paid the soldier in attendance a small bribe to let us through. Once the stern-looking military man had checked our passports, we crossed the watery border into Myanmar. Sadly, we were only allowed a very brief visit, just long enough to pay our 10 dollars to the Burmese attendants in the passport office for our visa renewal.

Once we were back on Thai soil, we jumped aboard an overnight bus that took us from Ranong to the metropolis of Bangkok. It was not without some trepidation that we made our way to the Thai capital, as we had been hearing news flashes about political unrest and protests. We had no idea how this was going to effect our arrival. As it turned out, the bus pulled into a very sleepy Bangkok just before dawn and, with backpacks on, we made our way through the almost deserted streets (no sign of riots, as expected!) to our hostel.

Our hostel, Happy House, was in the heart of Rambuttri Village, a stone’s throw from the (in)famous Khao San Road, a NY Times Square lookalike replete with flashing billboards and signs advertising everything from Thai Massage to 30 baht Pad Thai dishes to made-to-order fake IDs of every description. Music booms from the restaurants and cafes that crowd alongside the endless array of t-shirt stalls. Fortune tellers from India and a seemingly indefatigable army of suit sellers mobbed us at every turn. The darker side of the throbbing tourist trade is on display too. Sadly, the sex trade is alive and well in Bangkok, and much of it is barely hidden from view.  A common sight are the Western men sauntering the streets alongside the (often much younger-looking) Thai woman for whose company they have paid in cold, hard cash. There is much on Khao San Road that reeks of oppression and fraud.

But Khao San Road isn’t all there is to Bangkok. This is a teeming city filled with ancient culture and modern noise; tuk tuks and mopeds choke the streets that wend their way around majestic, breath-taking temples. Right in the thick of Rambuttri Village is an ancient Buddhist monastery and the monks wander the packed streets in their saffron robes, dodging drunk, sun-burned backpackers and mobile stall-holders. Local characters abound. We used to brave dinner at one street food stall run by a sweaty local with a colossal belly. We dubbed him ‘Naked Belly Man’. He ran around serving food with his t-shirt off.

Two Buddhist monks aboard a tuk tuk in rush hour traffic.

Our first tuk tuk ride!

Meandering along the streets of Rambuttri Village.

Local coffee, Thai style. Super strong with a generous dose of condensed milk. Jeremy’s favourite!

Another favourite is the local pancake…

…expert hands and lightening fast preparation…

…makes for a delicious dessert!

If all of that wasn’t action enough, the political unrest in Bangkok exploded in riots during our brief stay there. Not more than a kilometer or two from our hostel, thousands of Thai people had taken to the streets around the Democracy Monument. By the time of our arrival, the protest was a few months old. Protesters had set up a huge camp. Countless tents and make-shift shelters clogged the streets as people gathered from all over Thailand to cheer the dissident politicians who are calling for change.

The protest movement was sparked when the Prime Minister, Yingluck Sinawatra, issued a call for the unconditional pardon of all political prisoners and exiles. It is widely thought that this was simply a ruse to engineer the return of her brother, Thaksin Sinawatra, from exile. Thaksin is a Thai business tycoon turned politician who was formerly Prime Minister until overthrown by a military coup in 2008 for abusing his power. Although exiled in Dubai, he continues to pull strings in government and many say his sister is just as bad. People all over Thailand are calling for change. During out stay in Bangkok, protesters were attempting to storm various government buildings to take control, but without success. Reports of tear gas, burning cars and rubber bullets made the news morning and evening. In response to the protests, the Taksin-backed government has supposedly been dissolved and elections have been called. But the protest movement insists it will be rigged from the start. Time will tell just how things will unfold, as we continue to hear news reports of violence and protest in Bangkok.

Passionate protesters gather in Bangkok to call for change.

Whenever we ventured to the heart of the action at the Democracy Monument, there were thousands of Thai people decked out in yellow (the colour of the Monarchy) or pink (to signify neutrality) and everywhere, the red, white and blue of the Thai flag was flashing. Impassioned speeches we couldn’t understand boomed from the podium, politicians shared the stage space with musicians and poets, and the sound of whistles was deafening. People were constantly shouting ‘Out Taksin!’ or ‘Victory Thailand!’

Angry protest signs. ‘Taksin Out!’

The protesters have set up a semi-permanent camp replete with washing lines, TV sets, meeting areas, first aid stations and food distribution zones.

The violence escalates. The morning paper informed us that a 21 year old student had been shot dead in clashes the previous night.

In true colour-loving Thai style, protesters bedeck the razor wire with coloured ribbons outside the Ministry of Defense.

Along the streets near the Democracy Monument flags and whistle straps in the national Thai colours were everywhere on sale.

A single bridge divided the protesters from the riot control squads. Despite the tension in the air, we never felt unwelcome or resented. Instead, protesters offered us ice tea as we walked passed their tents and one man made a mighty effort to explain what was happening in the few words of English he had. On one occasion, we walked passed the riot squads as they drilled in preparation for the next showdown. They took no notice of us, save one armoured policeman who actually waved and smiled at us. On December 5th, the King of Thailand turned 86 and that meant an all out ban on protests. With many other Thai people we joined in the celebrations and that night we lit candles in Sanam Luang Park outside the Grand Palace and watched countless paper lanterns float into the night sky.

All over Bangkok, images of Bhumibol Adulyadej the King of Thailand, are on display. He is respected and revered by most Thais.

Fireworks herald the beginning of the celebrations marking the King’s 86th birthday.

Lighting candles in Sanam Luang Park.

A constellation of paper lanterns light up the night sky.

In the middle of all these exciting happenings, something arguably even more exciting happened (personally speaking) when Liz and Andy showed up to meet us! After travelling widely throughout South East Asia, they made their way to India to see some good friends. Now, en route to New Zealand (yes, it’s almost as if we have undertaken parallel journeys, only in reverse!), they stopped over in Bangkok. It was great to spend three full days with them, swapping stories, perusing market stalls and enjoying street food meals together. We even managed to inspire them to follow our lead and buy a second hand van in New Zealand, which they promptly did! Like us, they picked one up in Auckland and managed to make it to Martinborough in time for Christmas.

Sisters reunited over a cheeky Maccy D’s!

The ceremonial handing-over of the travelling kettle. Liz and Andy cooked many a pot noodle with this and so survived the arduous backpacker route through SE Asia. Now, Jeremy and Claire are the proud owners and have since put it to good use, preparing hot porridge with sliced mango for breakfasts!

It was an action-packed week in Bangkok. No sooner had Liz and Andy set off for New Zealand, we made our way to the India Visa Center to pick up our India visa. This marked the end of a 6 day-long wait. The process of applying for the visa by gathering all the necessary paper work, finding the Visa Center and waiting to hear that our application was accepted caused not a little anxiety as we had heard of many backpackers’ applications being refused for one reason or another. Needless to say, we were relieved when we finally got a hold of our passports once again with the needed India Visa safely enclosed inside. Now, our plans to journey to India beyond South East Asia are one (big) step closer to fruition!

The majestic pagodas of Wat Pho Temple.

Despite the negative press Bangkok received from some of the sojourners we have met on our journey in SE Asia so far, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay in this majestic, chaotic super city. We will have to return to catch our flight to India so we look forward to stopping over one more time.