Hostel life - Bangkok

Woke up this morning to the sight of falling rain - have to remember that it is currently monsoon season here in SE Asia so I am expecting to get wet at some points.

Last night I went and visited the MBK shopping centre which is just across the road from the hostel. The outside appearance gives no clue as to what is actually inside or does it reveal its true size. This place is no Lakeside/Bluewater - it is massive inside! On first entering you immediately have some clue to the size of the place as the corridor in front of you stretches on for what seem miles. It's not until you get to a set of stairs that you realise there is six floors in here all equal in size - I think I even saw a sign advertising sumo wrestling in here! But despite the size of the place there is no real variety to the shops; most sell the same types of products and goods.

I am quickly adjusting to hostel life, though Lub d seems to be of quite a high standard so I am yet to experience poor conditions yet. At the moment it seems very quiet here, last night there was only around 10 people hanging around in the lobby/patio area. I quickly made friends with one guy in my dorm - Tom. He has swiftly brought me up to date with the card game Shitface, which he ensures me is the one most travellers play so I'm now in good standing to play later on when I met others.

One thing I have learnt is not to select a bunk in front of the A/C, I thought I was wise picking the lower bunk at the far end of the dorm but found myself that night directly in the path of a cold drift from the machine which resulted in me having to wrap myself up to keep warm - lesson learnt. I managed to grab some sleep last night but it's going to take me a while to get use to sleeping in a strange place every time I move.

Anyway today I am just going to rest, grab some lunch and then head to the meeting point of my Indo-China Discovery Tour which begins properly tomorrow.

Arrival in Bangkok

Well I have finally arrived at my first stop - Bangkok. First impressions are good; have to say that the city reminds me of a few sci-fi films (Blade Runner etc.) in the way that it has been built on several levels. Railway tracks and car lanes rise above your head, were as the ground is home to masses of traffic rushing around, I wouldn't like to risk crossing the road with using a bridge!

Anyway the dreaded 12 hour flight turned out to be good. I was sat in the middle row of the aircraft next to a British couple who have holidayed several times in this region, so I at least had someone to talk to. Have to say that the flight was very mixed in terms of the people on board; Westerns seem to be the majority. Ended up watching X-men: First Class (recommend it) and try to catch some sleep, although this is impossible when sited upright on an aircraft. Dinner and breakfast was dished out along with drinks, overall fantastic service and I would recommend travelling with EVA air (nope I had never heard of them before either).

For tonight I am staying at Lub d Siam Square hostel located near the National Stadium before joining up with my tour group tomorrow across town, I'm just going to do a bit of exploring tonight and eat some food before turning in early to get some sleep.

My adventure has finally started!