Back in Bangkok

After a certain amount of faffing around with taxis and one tuktuk I am settled into a very good guest house on Phra Arthit Road...  http://bestbedhouse.com/

BB House is a 40 minute walk from Wat Po, my new school.  The boss decided not to have the course in Chiang Mai so we have all assembled in Bangkok, and have just completed Day Two.  The school in Bangkok isn't as fancy as Salaya, but I think I prefer it.  Salaya is like a resort, but is isolated from everything.  Here in Bangkok we can choose what we want to eat and where we want to eat it, rather than selecting items off of the same menu for lunch and dinner in the school canteen.  There are options for getting around the city, rather than paying a wedge for a taxi ride that is grudgingly agreed to by the driver or waiting hopefully for any bus that will stop for us.  There's a lot more to do, period.

Phra Arthit Road runs parallel to the river, and the road is dry.  There are some places next to the river that still have some water, but it's not bad.  We don't have to get wet when walking around.  From what I understand the northern part of Bangkok is still flooded, and I know Salaya (west of BKK) is definitely under water.  Don Muang Airport, which services the domestic flights, is wet but Suvarnabhumi Airport is completely dry.  There is water for sale in the shops, and there is food on the shelves.  It was recently reported to me that the most frightening shortage in this part of town is that of Singha Beer, in the small bottles.


The median age of the tourists has risen remarkably - there are a lot less of the young/drunk/stupid kind hanging about, which makes the older foreigners more obvious.  The clubs are pretty quiet from what I've seen, and there are definitely fewer folk howling at the moon late late at night.  I can only assume that parents are keeping their gap-year spawn locked up until they are sure it's safe, and I applaude this decision while nodding and smiling from ear to ear.