Day 26 ( I think) Train to Phitsanulok
[ Tommy typing ]
I bungeed my bike in the back of a tuk-tuk this morning and we traversed the congested Bangkok streets to Hua Lumphong Train Station, the main train terminal in town. After checking the bike with the cargo office, I could not resist hopping in a taxi for a little bit of last minute sightseening. The first taxi I grabbed quoted me a price of 200 baht (too much). I asked him to go by the meter and he said “tour for 200 baht,” not running the meter for a taxi fare is illegal in Bangkok, but many unscupulous drivers try to play this scam on newbie foreigners. Unknown to me, there had been a cop standing behind me watching the whole exchange and taps me on the shoulder to motion me toward another taxi cab. Then the cop opens the driver door of the first cab for a chat with the driver… busted. The taxi took forever to navigate the jammed streets through lunchtime traffic, and I’m finally dropped off at Wat Pho, the Temple of the Reclining Buddha. The giant reclining Buddha is a must see in Bangkok and I was excited to see this spectacular icon (photos soon). By the time I exited the temple, I knew that I would be cutting it close to make the northbound train, and the traffic jams were still as bad as earlier. The solution to getting accross Bangkok in a hurry: motorbike taxis! There ar plenty of motorbike taxis in the city, they are identifiable by the driver wearing bright orange vests. Unlike the taxi cabs, there are no fare meters and you must haggle the fare with the driver before getting on. Being in a hurry, I did not drive a hard bargain, but I did manage to talk him down to 150 baht (about five bucks). After I explained that I was in a rush to catch the train, the motorbike driver set out to EARN his fare. I hopped on for a white-knuckle speed fest through the congested city with the driver raging between lanes of clogged cars, cutting the oncomming lanes, down the wrong way for a block of one-way street and even up on the sidewalk for a block whrere auto traffic was too crowded to sneak between. The guy got me to the station in record time with an elevated heart rate and a couple new gray hairs, I’m sure. Traveling by rail in Thailand is a great experience. The trains are fast, cheap and on relatively on time, (especially compared to American Scamtrak), and there are vendors that walk through the traincars at every station selling everything from food, snacks, drinks, beer, booze, newspapers, little toys for the kids and all kinds of other stuff. A couple hours into the train ride, a tired mom with her two little boys take the seat next to me. The mom smiles and begins chatting with me in Thai. I get another chance to use a new phrase I’ve just learned: “mai chai khon thai” which translates to “not Thai people,” as I’m pointing to myself. The mom gives me an embarassed laugh and says “sorry, sorry” in English. As we pass the town of Lopburi she excitedly motions her kids over to our open window. I know why they are so excited to look out the window, Lopburi is overrun with bands of roving mischevious monkeys, soon we start seeng gangs of the little furry creatures on rooftops, and the mom says “monkey” in English. The kids start counting the monkeys, I lose count after thirtysome. The monkeys of Lopburi are totally fun and I wish I had more time to spend in town checking out the ferral monkeys roaming the rooftops, jumping on cars and stealing trash from the food stalls. After Lopburi, the tired mom builds a footrest out of her bags and reclines her seat to try and sleep, but the two little boys are still full of beans jumping in their seats and wrestling. Every so often mom raises an eye to shush the kids, reminds me of my brother and I as little kids. Finally the sun sets, and everyone falls asleep. I get off the train at Phitsanulok to find a cheap guesthouse get a good night’s sleep for the next day’s ride to the ancient ruins of Sukhothai.
1 year ago