Hua Hin to Bangkok

After landing in Thailand and farting in the general direction of Uzbekistan Airways, I spent the first couple of days in Hua Hin, some four hours by car south of Bangkok, at a friend's house. It was okay, but I was a house guest, and dependent. It wasn't until last night that I returned to Bangkok, checked into a hostel and begun my trip in earnest. Until that, it felt like more transit.

And transit it was: the train from Hua Hin to Bangkok was five hours. I met and spoke with a couple of nice folks on board, including a Thai guy who sells sweets on the trains with his brother, an English accountant from Dorking on a cycling trip with his wife, and the train conductor, a smiley man (see picture below, in brown uniform) who was nice to me from the start. At one stop, there were monkeys all around the train, and people threw them peels. I didn't because I think they should get jobs.

Shortly after we left Hua Hin, there was some commotion up front, and he told me that they'd just had to break up a fight in another cabin. Two drunk guys, about 25 and 30, came to blows because one of them looked at the other funny. That's what hooch at 2:30pm gets you. Later in the trip, he sat down and we talked. Turns out he's catholic, a rarity in Thailand. I gave him an Israeli 10 cent coin and an "I Love Israel" mint box I got at the airport, and told them they're souvenirs from the Holy Land.

Bangkok is as I remember it, an expensive consumerist Sodom, perfect for those wishing to party and shop, which I don't. The season now is hot, but not hell. I'm in a dormitory with AC, pricey but worth it. I plan on spending just a few days here, and then heading north to Chiang Mai.

Here are some photos from the trip up, and one short video to give you an idea of the landscape. See if you can spot the monkey.

Hua Hin station

To north to south, i.e., to north?

The train had open windows, smoky breeze, and some working fans

There's always one very fat one in every group of Thai friends

The monkey is in this picture

Conductor