Gosh, I haven’t updated in awhile, have I? First, I was busy with Chinese New Year (my first in many years, and probably the most memorable) and then I went off to Melaka, Tioman and Singapore.

Now, I’m on a mission to conquer the sights and sounds of South East Asia I haven’t been to (I’m hoping to cover at least half of Thailand, some of Laos and some of Vietnam).

First stop is Bangkok which is short for (say it with me) “Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Yuthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Phiman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit“. The year here is 2554.

The city reminds me of Kuala Lumpur – if it were about 5 degrees hotter. It definitely feels as chaotic as any South East Asian city should be, with traffic that can’t wait to run you over and sidewalks packed with street vendors hawking everything imaginable. The mega-malls near my first hostel here (the uber-cool Lub.d Hostel) was near the main mall district which is very much like Orchard Road in Singapore – if the lanes between the malls were crammed with street stalls.

On day two, we moved over to Mystic Place, which is probably the artsiest hotel I’ve ever stayed in. Every room is unique and, well, very cool. Granted, I could imagine a place like this doing very well in, say, San Francisco.

Took a tuk-tuk and checked out the maze-like Chatuchak (Chatuchat? Jatujak? I’m not even sure what the correct name is) Market. Not kidding when I say this – the clothing section of the weekend market was one giant Urban Outfitters store. They even play the right kind of music. Really. Of course, I made a few purchases but I need to keep spending to a minimum if I want this trip to last.

Anyways, here’s a slideshow. Enjoy!