The day-time journey back to Bangkok from Mae Sot was effortless again, and we passed some beautiful Thai scenery along the way (all very bright green fields, and cool limestone hills).
Another taxi ride from the bus terminal had us back in the Khao San road area. After a quick scout around I found a cheap place to stay (the area seemed a fair bit quieter than when we left, thank god), although Mullins' wee bit of impatience meant he paid a fair bit more than he needed to.
That night myself and Mr. Mullins had a bit of a late night in the Khao San area, but finished the night with a coffee and a pad thai from a street stall. The following day we saw him off to his bus for the airport for his flight to Vietnam, and myself and Sarah just spent the day relaxing and using the Internet.
Next day I wanted to do a bit of exploring, so we strolled around to the river to catch the boat to the famous Wat Pho, home of the huge reclining Budda (after trying to arrange free bicycles, but I didn't have photo ID other than my passport, which they wouldn't take).
After Wat Pho we tried to get into the Grand Palace, but I was stopped for wearing shorts (I could have swore I got in last time wearing shorts, but maybe not). Anyway I decided to check out the national museum and modern art gallery while Sarah headed back to the hostel (it was getting mighty hot in the midday sun).
Another taxi ride from the bus terminal had us back in the Khao San road area. After a quick scout around I found a cheap place to stay (the area seemed a fair bit quieter than when we left, thank god), although Mullins' wee bit of impatience meant he paid a fair bit more than he needed to.
That night myself and Mr. Mullins had a bit of a late night in the Khao San area, but finished the night with a coffee and a pad thai from a street stall. The following day we saw him off to his bus for the airport for his flight to Vietnam, and myself and Sarah just spent the day relaxing and using the Internet.
Next day I wanted to do a bit of exploring, so we strolled around to the river to catch the boat to the famous Wat Pho, home of the huge reclining Budda (after trying to arrange free bicycles, but I didn't have photo ID other than my passport, which they wouldn't take).
After Wat Pho we tried to get into the Grand Palace, but I was stopped for wearing shorts (I could have swore I got in last time wearing shorts, but maybe not). Anyway I decided to check out the national museum and modern art gallery while Sarah headed back to the hostel (it was getting mighty hot in the midday sun).
So the following morning I walked back to the free bike place and this time managed to get a bike although the conditions seemed to have changed from the day before - the time limit was now 3 hours now instead of 2. So off I rode, and in fact the roads and traffic really weren't a problem at all. Probably because the traffic was heavy it was forced to move very slowly, so riding along on a bike seemed quicker at times. Although it was high season with backpackers all over the place, there didn't seem to be many takers for the bikes (I think I saw three other people on bikes my whole time in Bangkok). No doubt it's just the usual Epsilonic fear, doubt and paranoia, there's just no escaping it I suppose...
The bike route map was a little confusing though, as at one point I was directed the wrong way down a one-way street, but it was easy to circumnavigate that and in no time at all I had arrived at the Grand Palace. I was here years ago with Hanno, but it was still great to see it all again. Also, this time I took the free English tour, which although a little slow was still interesting.
I dropped the bike back after 4 hours - they never seem to mind little indiscretions like that - and after grabbing a bite to eat in a LP-recommended place across the road from the bike place (very nice), I strolled back to our hotel where Sarah was waiting. After a nice shower and a bit of a rest we headed out to sell back our South East Asia guidebook, check out buses to the airport (awkward if early in the morning), and grab our last super-tasty dinner in Thailand before the expected madness of India (after hearing all of Mullins' horror stories about India I think myself and Sarah were both a fair bit more apprehension than we would have been - I guess nobody is immune from 'the fear'...).
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