Sensory Overload
I’m in need of a good swing set in a quiet room. Bangkok is just plain madness after four months in Khmer Country. There is constant noise, cars/buses/motos whizzing by at high speed, the rumble of the train overhead, skyscrapers towering overhead, motos and bicycles driving down the sidewalk. The shear amount of auditory and visual information is very tiring. Luckily I have my mp3 player with earplug style headphones.
Phnom Penh has one million residents. There is constant beeping of horns at every little thing; hey I’m going to pass, hey I’m not stopping, hey don’t cut me off… Here in Bangkok the drivers is very considerate, only bliping the horn rarely, but there are just so many of them. In Phnom Penh rush hour is just madness of jammed vehicles trying to twist themselves around each other. Here it’s rows of cars as far as the eye can see, stopping and going in an orderly fashion. But here everything is at high speed. In Phnom Penh you can get to forty miles per hour max due to the poor traffic control and driving methods.
I spend my time walking around trying to not get lost. It’s just row after row of high rises behind high rises. The skytrain towers about thirty or forty feet overhead. You have to crane your neck to see the skyline. No fixing on the horizon here.
I went to Pattaya for a few days. The beach there is also busy. The sand is nothing like Kampong Som and there are boats docked on the beach, jet skis racing around, a dozen parasailers being towed behind fast boats, and constant car, moto, and truck traffic. Drinking here is not as expensive as Bangkok, but still at three dollars a piece or more. A lot of nice looking Thai girls walking around with older men.
Two more days and I’m off to the old capital/ancient Khmer outpost of Ayuthya. Before I run out of money by staying here in Bangkok.
