Travel Orientation

When you first arrive at a new place, there are several things that have to happen immediately, especially if you’ve traveled halfway around the world to get there.

As you check in at the front desk, you snag a business card to go in your wallet.  Preferably one that is multi-lingual, so that you know you haven't picked up a coupon for 10% off your dry cleaning needs, but rather have something that has both the address and telephone number of where you're staying.  In this way, if you get lost -- and eventually frustrated -- you simply hail a cab, show them the card and tell them to take you there.

When you get to your room you get to take a shower and have fresh clothes. You get to brush your teeth because "travel breath" has "morning breath" beat all to pieces, and you get to appreciate that little pop up hamper that lives in the suitcase, so whatever you’ve been wearing for the last two days can go into quarantine.

No matter what your hygiene habits normally, after 2 days of the same clothes some things have to be segregated.

Then you get a little bit of a nap – but not too long – because your body is still outta whack time-wise and even though you slept on the plane, it’s nice to be able to sit / lie on something that’s not hurtling through the sky at a gajillion miles an hour. Then you figure out what and where you want to get something to eat and wander around the neighborhood.

So began Bangkok. we have no idea where in the City we are, other than we’re on the edge of the “Silom” District.

Have no idea what that means, but apparently it orients people in the know, like saying "Upper West Side" or "Greenwich Village" does for people who know New York.  It seems to be within walking distance of lots of things

We have a map, and guide books, but it's hard to get a good grasp of where we're at yet.  We've found stations for both the Sky Train (apparently one of the best ways to get around town) and the Underground Train.

There's a nice symmetry to those names, isn't there?  It doesn't carry the visual that we have about a "subway".

Incidentally, Thais drive on the opposite side of the road so we have to re-learn to look backwards to what we're used to doing when crossing the street.  

I suspect it has to do with being south of the Equator, like the water in the sink whirling in the opposite direction from home.