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Other entries in Bangkok

one day in....

the travel legs are back. last 2 days I've been wandering around the city. basic route is take the sky train to the river, then a boat for 25 cents upriver to downtown. 2 days ago was my first time on this route - was trying to see the national museum but didnt really go as planned...easier to give you the blow by blow:

12:00 - start my day. hop sky train. (have blister, don't really want to walk)

12:25 - get to river (chao phraya), get on boat, feel good for actually finding boat

12:45 - get downtown, get off boat, start walking to museum. thai stranger starts randomly talking to me (nice guy) "today is buddhist holiday - wats (tempels) museums are closed until 3 - have you been to these other wats - miss they are very beautiful you should see them if you can dont accept anything less that 10 baht for a ride becuase drivers get gas coupons from the government for this holiday" he takes over my map and starts circling temples. big buddha, lucky buddha, standing buddha, etc etc.

12:50 - not surprisingly, a tuk tuk driver shows while we're talking up but my guy says "shes my friend" and waves him away. the driver sticks around (also not surprising, this is probably his best shot at work today) and the more the temples get talked up, my love of getting distracted takes over - afterall, the museums ARE closed until 3. 'my friend' negotiates that 10baht fare.

1:00 - what the heck, I hop in.

1:30 - visit first temple - big buddha - cool enuf - he was really tall and gold. I also see caged birds that you can 'release for good luck for 90 baht'. geeze, thats so unbuddhist, isn't it? they cage em, then make you pay to release em??

2:00 - visit second temple - lucky budha - cool enuf - old women chanting too.

2:10 - meet dude outside lucky buddha temple whos getting married in a month - here from chaing mei. buying suits and jewelry for the wedding. talks up the idea of buying jewelry in thailand and reselling for double (or more) in other countries. and becuase of the national holiday, travelers can go to certain stores today, not just wholesalers. he recommends a shop, I'm a little intrigued (I need to raise funds to get my bum to australia afterall). mostly it seems weird to be talking about such gross consumerism in front of this temple.

2:30 - stop at custom tailor shop the driver says he needs to go to to get his gas coupon. I look - he gets his coupon. fair enuf, but as a backpacker, Im so not interested. I give the polite look around, but even the sales guy wasn't so into selling me up. (am I that grubby looking already?)

2:35 - back in tuk tuk. ask driver if he got his coupon. he nods and smiles. I ask to go to jewelry store. what the heck. I kind of have this guy for the day, why not try on a few rings (and add a distraction within the day of distractions).

3:00 - get to jewelry store. meet wonderful gay guy from chiang mei selling rings. thai accent with a lisp. I try on some sweet things....so sparkly! (I love sparkly as much as I love distractions). but eee-gads. I'm no idiot. I'm not gonna plunk down $200usd (or (way) more) on a whim. ask if I can buy tomorrow. "nope, only today". politely decline but ultimately, that was a lot of fun!

3:20 - back in tuk tuk. driver asks if I want to visit "government building" (???) before we go back to art museum. I'm not that into it, but also have no time frame so around us barely understanding eachother, I guess I said yes.

3:30 - caught in traffic. change my mind. "hey, I just want to go to the museum". "mees, you will like dees, we are close". uh-oh. first sign this aint cool - I can't do something I want....but no point in getting angry (yet).

3:35 - get to store - now it makes sense. this is SOOO the racket you read about. driver offers you to tour the city, instead takes you to some store (full of overpriced goods), gets some sort of kick back. sheee-ite. what a pain that I now have to deal with. did I really fall for this? start thinking back to the first guy I met....clearly that's where this all started.

3:40 - walk through store, see they want to funnel me up stairs to aNOTHER floor of this overpriced crap-ola. so not into it. I sneak back between shelves and back out the front door.

3:42 -back in tuk tuk

3:45 - driver turns a corner, stops tuk tuk engine. uh-oh

3:46 - begin thai arguing (so damn polite). him: meees, I drive you for 3 hours, I didn't get my coupon, 10 baht is not enuf..." me: "this is price we agreed on, you knew the places we were going, you said you got the coupon, you knew it would be this long, you took me to these extra stores. please take me to the museum."

3:47 - repeat above convo

3:48 - repeat again

3:49 - realize this is going nowhere. now I'm in damage mode  what's the safest fastest way to get out of this? check out neighborhood, doesnt look too bad. I"m pretty sure I know where we are. obviously this guy isn't taking me anywhere until he gets more money. I'm PISSED. I had planned to give him so much more than 10baht once done (I even did a sketch while driving around that I was going to give him too), but now, he's a swindler and I have no sympathy.

3:50 - I say forget it, you're dishonest. I hop out. I pay nothing. I seriously have NO sympathy. this is such a publicized racket. I could care less that he made no money off me. but I'm more than a little freaked out. inside I'm shaking, ouside I'm listening to hear if he runs up behind me. or if anyone else drives up to "conveniently" take over the situation. my best option now is get a cab and get out of here. cabbies dont rip you off and its the fastest way to get off this street. (which, reminding again - for mom! - this street really didn't seem unsafe, I was just a little freaked out)

3:53 - hail cab. insist meter gets turned on. there's air conditioning. and a sign posted with all fare rules written in english. what a relief.

4:07 - get dropped off in front of museum

4:08 - walk into museum. dude stops me, "mees, museum close at 4".

I'm not even joking.

4:15 - take the boat home.

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