Thailand!

Im here in Thailand, trying to find my travelling feet. After I flew into Bangkok I had a crazy couple of days; no idea what I was doing or who to trust; ended up getting ripped off in a few scams. If I can give some advice, if you've never been to the place before, pace yourself; spend some time getting adjusted to the local way of doing things and getting good information (I didnt even get a guidebook.. idiot). But you probably wouldnt be as stupid as me and rush straight into things without a clue. In Bangkok the people are warm and friendly... because they want to scam you out of your cash money!

The first there was an Asahi promotion on Kaosarn road, so the street was packed with locals and foreigners checking out heaps of Thai bands; 'Taste the Synth' was the slogan. Macked out with some locals and tried to get the lowdown on the place, the girl at the guesthouse said she had a crush on me, so I was stoked the locals were feeling the half-breed flavour. My first day a Tuk-Tuk driver rode me for all my cash, took me to tourist stores where he gets a kickback, also some shrines, the golden mountain for views, then to his place for food. That night went out with a local guy I met: Mr Mon, he was a super nice 40 year old dude who invited me for drinks for his friends birthday at a local night spot. The Tuk-Tuk driver tagged along, they were all very warm and hospitable; gave me lots of food and whisky, even a lottery ticket and generally opened up to me. I was touched by their kindness and generosity and generally trusted them which was a mistake.

The night went on and we got drunk, they took me to some very interesting places; a local joint for late-night food and beers, also this huge night club where there would have been a thousand Thais partying to jiggy music (I was impressed by the sexy Thai girls booty dancing on the floor and on the big screens). At one point in the night I was subjected to a scam but didnt realise till later; I dont want to say too much about it, other than it was probably worth it!

The next day I sat down to look at my finances and realised how much money I'd actually spent and decided to head to a beach and lay low for till Tony arrives. So I'm writing from Koh Samed an island not far from Bangkok where things are quiet. I can relax, read, get my head together, and generally take it easy for a while. I've restricted my spending for the next few weeks to compensate for my crazy time in Bangkok. Definately learned more a few lessons since I left (it's a steep fucking learning curve). Im paying for it now but hopefully I have learned some sort of lesson and it won't happen again. Ill post again soon with some photos. Take care, wish me luck, Ill be praying to Buddha tommorow to help me out.

Apparently the beer is fuckin' good.