Animals, they’re all animals!

Back in Bangkok again. After counting the stamps in my passport, I realized this is the 10th time I’ve been to Bangkok on this trip. It feels like home.

I had a good four days in Singapore but it really is too expensive there so I’m happy to have moved on.

I watched Brazil win the World Cup on a giant outdoor television on Orchard Road, one of the main shopping districts in Singapore, admist thousands of cheering Singaporeans. The next day I was going to go to Sentosa island but it rained all day so I camped out in the Border’s Bookstore instead. On my last day I went to the zoo and then next door to the Night Safari that evening. The zoo in Singapore is meant to be one of the best in the world, and although it was good, it just didn’t come anywhere close to the San Diego Zoo. The Night Safari is essentially a zoo full of nocturnal animals and is only open at night so theorectically you can see all the critters up and about. It’s a cool concept and is obviously popular because the Night Safari was much more crowded than the zoo. The funniest animals were the otters who were running around in packs and yelling like crazy.

I left Singapore the next day. It was either a 2-day journey overland to Bangkok or a 2-hour flight, and since the airfare was really cheap, I chose to fly. The cheapest fare was with Bangladesh Airlines. Now I know why it was so cheap. What a nightmare!

The plane was chock full of Bangladeshi men on their way to Dhaka (Bangkok was a stopover on the way). Yet another experience with Muslim men to further confirm my opinion that the majority of Islamic men are complete perverts. Nance, remember that pin you were selling at one of our flea markets, the one that said’Stop staring at my tits’? Well, I wish I had it to wear on this flight. I was the ONLY western woman on the plane.

Then the takeoff was delayed for almost an hour because of’technical difficulties’, and by that time it was Call to Prayer so we had to wait even longer while the whole plane prayed along with the guy praying on the television screens.

We finally took off and dealt with massive turbulence the entire flight. Even the crew stayed strapped in their seats, that’s when you know it’s bad.

I cannot tell you how good it felt to get off that plane, leave the so-called religious disgusting perverts behind, and enter Thailand again, the Land of Smiles.

So, I’m here enjoying the sounds, sights, food, and familiarity of Bangkok again for a few days and then on Tuesday I fly to Rangoon for 3 weeks in Myanmar (Burma). It should be a very interesting experience. They say Myanmar is at least 100 years behind Thailand. It’s certainly not a’free’ country like Thailand either. When I was filling out my visa application, the guy told me,’Don’t put Journalist under Occupation because they’ll reject your visa.’ Hmmm. Ok, then.

What did I do on the 4th of July anyway? Absolutely nothing. It was just another day here in Thailand. There is a big American party and celebration complete with fireworks which is scheduled for Saturday, but I doubt I’ll go. 3 years ago in Morocco I went to the American Embassy for the 4th of July and it was the most boring event ever. They had hot dogs and Budweiser and 3-legged races and played Bruce Springstein’s'Born in the USA.’ No thanks.

TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE: Photos updated again folks. I’ve got them all in there, from Dad’s dog bite in Ko Samui to the Cameron Highlands to the Taman Negara trek and even a few pics from Singapore. The new photos start on 5.27.02 and go up to the previous journal entry of 6.30.02. Please view them by clicking on’Journal’ above and scrolling through to the dates you wish to see. Every day that has a photo attached to that entry will have the little camera icon next to it, indicating the number of pictures available.

Also, please be patient with my journal entries over the next few weeks as I don’t expect there to be much of an internet presence in Myanmar. I’ll do my best to update if possible but it may have to wait until I’m back in Thailand at the end of the month.

I found Howie Mandel – hes working at the Singapore Zoo!

Are we watching them or are they watching us???

So cute!

Add comment July 5th, 2002

World Cup Fever and people everywhere!

Does anybody in this town stay home on the weekends and like, maybe relax, watch a movie, or read a book? I don’t think so. I’ve been out and about in Singapore for the past 2 days and EVERWHERE I go, EVERYPLACE is packed! The malls, the stores, the restaurants, the subway, the sidewalks – there are just literally mobs everywhere. The national pastime is definitely shopping and it seems as if all 3 million people who live here go out to spend, spend, spend on the weekends. It’s a nice city, but I don’t think I could actually live here and deal with these crowds on a daily basis. The food is great though and the city itself is really safe and easy to get around in so I think I can entertain myself for a few more days…

After exploring the town yesterday, I headed back to the guesthouse for a little break and then met up with some other backpackers to venture out and watch the Turkey vs. Korea World Cup Game. It was 3 Norwegian girls, 1 British guy, and myself. We went down to one of the many outdoor bar/cafe/restaurants along the riverfront and get this, paid $18 USD for a pitcher of beer!!! Oh my, this place is VERY pricey. I nearly fell off my chair.

Everyone was sad that Korea lost.

After the game we went over to Chinatown for some dinner and then decided to go out for a drink. The Norwegian girls knew of a good place that had been recommended to them so we went. It was a bar/club on the 70th floor of the Swiss Hotel. The hotel lobby was amazing. We tried our best to clean up and present ourselves well but admittedly we were a bit scruffy for the likes of this place.

Anyway they had an express elevator straight to the 70th floor and from there we wandered around the multi-level club, taking in the night views of the city. It was so cool! We all could only afford one drink since at the end of the day we’re still just po’ backpackers, and after awhile we walked back to the guesthouse. Even at 1:30am it was perfectly safe to walk around the city. No leering men, homeless people, drug addicts, muggers, nothing. Well where’s the fun in that you ask? Well it’s refreshing, even though it feels strange not to have to be on the lookout.

More walking around town today. Will likely catch the Final somewhere tonight. Also, I bought my ticket back to Bangkok today so I’ll be leaving here on the 3rd of July.

Downtown Singapore

A blend of the old and the new

How long would this place stay in business at home do you think?

Add comment June 30th, 2002