The good, the bad and the ugly!

So, it's good to be back, there is something thrilling about Bangkok, and the Thai people are lovely.
Public transport is quick, easy, clean and cheap, such a refreshing change from London, no feet on seats, no smelly meals being eaten, no begging, busking, shouting .....
I believe the storm is still raging in the Uk, here it's just the usual hot and humid.
The fabulous Orange flag river boat is still only 15 TB, bargain!
The scaffold is off Wat Arun, magic!
Very few stray dogs.

95% of people are wearing face masks, some masks really terrifying looking, like Hannibal Lecter.
Clerk at station tried a contactless payment over the limit on my credit card, despite my protestations he tried 3 times! End result my bank very sensibly and cautiously blocked my card, whoops! Short of cash and mobile refuses to connect to UK help line.
Pollution level posted by authorities listed as 'unhealthy'!
Lots and lots and lots of stairs at most BTS (skytrain) stations.
Exchange rate has gone from 49 TB to the pound to 38 in the 5 years since my last trip.

The way some tourists dress!
Rubbish in the river.
Too many global brand coffee shops and burger places.
The traffic jams and the resulting pollution, Greta should be here rather than berating countries that are trying to tackle the issue.

Still, it's great to be back!

Comments

Over energetic followed by under energetic!

For my first full day in Penang I decided (for reasons that still escape me) that a trip to the Botanical Gardens was in order so that I could tackle the climb up to the Penang Hill Station. I read up on it and it mentioned that the first 1+km was steep. Ha, I laugh in the face of steep, I bet it's not as steep as they say! It's not, to be fair, it's considerably steeper than steep. I should have been alerted to this from the very beginning as each 100 meters warranted a distance check. I cannot remember ever in my whole life having to stop several times in each 100 metres and I'm not going to justify this by telling you that the heat was unbelievable even though it was. I'm not sure at which stage I made the decision that being intrepid was all very well but my heart rate seemed to be climbing even more alarmingly than I was and I was rapidly running out of water. Enough I thought, I'll turn back at 2.5km. Turning a sharp corner at 2.35km put paid to that ...

Sometimes it's better to remember things as they were

Today my goal was to revisit Batu Caves, just under an hour outside KL. these caves are considered a major tourist attraction as well as being the sight of a very important Hindu shrine. From my last visit what I remember most is the all encompassing blackness of the Dark Cave, the most extreme lack of light possible according to our guide. As someone who has always been afraid of the dark it is this aspect of Batu Caves that is most imprinted in my brain. Now the Dark Cave is closed for the foreseeable future, no reason given but I wasn't planning on going back in there anyway, once was more than enough! But I remember the massive cave shrine kindly, and I definitely recall that my companion and I were the only ones there the day we visited. Today the hoards were there en masse. The first shock comes in the walk from the train station to the entrance to the caves. There is an overwhelming stench of excrement and urine, and the hawkers and stalls and piles of rubbish do nothin...

Oh WOW!

Today has been spent as a typical tourist, not a state with which I'm overly familiar. Singapore is in places quite jaw dropping, a futuristic city that doesn't seem to have a hair out of place. Their MRT, the equivalent of our tube, is quick, clean, efficient and easily understood. Each station has a wealth of information about lines, exits, timings, and provides very clean public toilets. You would struggle to get lost travelling on the MRT, it's impressive. Travel etiquette is instinctive and I have yet to hear any raised voices or see any food being consumed on board, as for pushing and shoving it's just not done. London please take note. I'm still trying to remember that you stand on the left on the elevators, might take some getting used to. First port of call is Marine Bay. Oh my goodness, this is just awesome, like a vast Star Trek set, it wouldn't surprise you if some giant metal alien burst terrifyingly out of the water, scattering all aside i...

Flashpacking 2020

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