Our hotel is located on Surawong in the Silom district, which consists of high-rise office buildings, fancy restaurants, and long strips (like Patpong) filled with whorehouses, nightclubs, massage parlours, and swanky little pubs. It's an ironic mix of entertainment centers and professional accomodations which prove that trips to Bangkok involve mixing business with pleasure.

After conquering Wat Pho and the Grand Palace in one day, we decided to reward ourselves with some heavy drinking. We heard about a cool pub in the heart of the racey Patpong area, so we set out to find it. Smack in the middle of girly bars, topless cabarets and live sex shows we found The Barbican, a heady little pub that serves Guiness on tap and plays classic funk music (like The Meters, James Brown, and various underground funk jams from the early 70's). This joint attracts the hip 20-something nine-to-fivers that work just a few blocks away.

The decor of the Barbican is a stark contrast to the clubs around it. It has long polished wooden panels, chic decor and gorgeous wooden tables. The beauty of this club is that it has large windows that face the sleazy madness going on out front. You can smoke your cigs, drink you beer, listen to good music with good people while watching the odd mating rituals of animals out in the streets. We had a blast kicking back and watching fat, hairy white men (no jokes please) hit on sweet young Thai hotties.... for a price, of course!

The Patpong area also has a huge night market with a gazillion fake designer clothes among many authentic carvings, embroidered wall-hangings and jewelry. We wandered about a bit and soaked up the madness. We passed street vendors selling food, including more bugs... I'm not sure how (or why) you eat scorpions, but they were deep fried and ready for consumption...

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We made a quick sweep through the market and decided we would check it out in depth the next night.

When we returned to the hotel, I noticed that my ankle was swollen and had developed an unsightly set of bruises. At first, we were not too sure what was happening. Spots started to develop all over my leg below the calf. I wasn't feeling any pain, but the skin was tender in the affected area.

Shaunna was (rightfully) worried. Rather than just turning black and blue, the entire calf developed wierd spots that looked like a rash. We sought our trusty and most reliable medical resource: Shaunna's mom, Nurse Phillips. We sent an email and a set of pictures, and early the next morning we read her reply.

Because I was incorrectly using my ace bandage, the swelling from my calf transferred to my ankle. The spots were bruises and minor blood clots, although nothing of the "deep vein" variety (I hope).

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Not to be held back by a little pain and swelling, I suggested we go for a walk to check out some more sights and THEN I'd put my leg up and tend to the funky things going on with my ankle. I swallowed some ibuprofen, tightened my sandals, and prayed it would all work out.

The French Embassy (among many others) is just a few blocks away, and we had heard that they have an excellent cafe with pastries and delicious coffee. We decided that a nice hike over to Alliance Francias would be a fun day trip...

The walk included many pedestrian skywalks to pass over 12 lane highways, a few dark alleys, and an interesting stroll past the Red Bull X-treme Sports park. My impression of Bangkok after this hike is that it is like a massive New York City... tons of skyscrapers, quaint ethnic districts, and plenty of food options. The city never sleeps, the traffic and pollution are horrible... nevertheless, the vibe is infectious.

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Here we are, stunned by the massive highways...

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By the time we made it to the French cafe, it was closed. We were pretty dismayed about this, but the exercise and views were terrific. We shrugged our shoulders, pulled out the map and found another French restaurant closer to our hotel. The main courses were nothing too special, but the escargot was huge. It was a nice treat, and a welcome break to the Thai food we've eaten by the bucketload.

As promised, I returned to hotel and put my leg up for a few hours. My leg wasn't doing much better, but we ventured back out to the Patpong night market and scoured the stands for various gifts for friends and family. I've developed quite a knack for haggling, and I now realize why bartering is half the fun of shopping in markets. Here's a cool system that you can use to your advantage... some more experienced or seasoned travellers may comment, but this has worked for us so far:

1) Know enough of the language (in this case, Thai) to make it seem like you've been in the country for awhile - the vendors will always jack the price up through the roof if they think you just got to town or are only going to be around for a weekend. If they ask how long you've been in the country, lie. I've been telling people all kinds of crazy stories... but my half-ass Thai language skills fools them every time... I think...

2) Do some research on an item to get an idea of how much most vendors are charging... that involves doing some window shopping, which I normally hate.

3) Ask for a price, then immediately ask for a discount.. they'll always give you one. Ask for a calculator, convert the amount to your own local currency... I hide my calculations and do some serious looking thinking... they're always watching your face to guage how serious or knowledgeable you are.

4) Cut the price in half or by 40% in your own currency, then convert back to the local currency - this gives you a clear idea of how much your spending... a plastic set of slippers wouldn't cost more than a couple dollars in the US, but it gets a little confusing when your talking about baht.

5) The vendor will almost always laugh. Follow up with a joke or merely laugh with them. Humor really softens them up... at least it works on the Thais...

6) They'll return a price, and you can go back and forth until you arrive at an agreed price, which is usually much lower than their initial offer. If you need to buy in bulk, do it. They will always cut a great deal if you buy four t-shirts instead of just one.

7) If you agree to haggle with a vendor, be sure you are going to buy. There is nothing worse than a tourist that welches on a deal, particularly if the vendor lowers their price for you.

We haggled and stumbled our way through the maze of stands until we couldn't stand. My leg was feeling like a dead piece of wood, so we hobbled back to the hotel and prepared for our trip to the National Museum the next day.