15FEB17: Thailand Day 0.5 - Bangkok

We landed in Bangkok late morning.  As we were getting off the plane, Rick started rattling off birds he'd seen upon landing, Little Egret, Asian Openbill, Pond-Heron.....  he had a window seat!  We got through customs pretty quickly.  We were meeting Rick's and Nok's friend Na.  Na is a Bangkok taxi driver and we secured his services for our trip.  Why?  Well, driving is on the opposite side of the road than America, we can't read signs, and he's an amazing driver.  I will have a whole lot more on Na later on...

We picked up our vehicle, a white Toyota Fortuner!  Next stop was a bank to exchange our USD for Thai BAHT. As we drove, I took it all in. I had read about Bangkok and heard negative things about it.  Boy, I was wrong.  It was clean, organized, well structured, and the people were not Massholes.  It was a long ride to bank (at least it seemed long) and one thing became evident as we got on the surface roads - motor bikes are THE mode of transportation.  Here's a couple with a side car to sell cooked food!

We made it to the bank and thanks to Nok's ability to speak two languages, we were able to fairly quickly exchange our money.  I converted $1000 USD and Rick and Bob did similar amounts.  Those sums of money in Thailand are large and it took a little time but it was all good.  I was the last one to meet with the banker and as I came outside, Rick and Bob let me know they had Red-whiskered Bulbuls.  We were all hungry so we drove around a little bit to find a place to eat.  In Thailand, everywhere is a place to eat.  There are shops and restaurants everywhere.  It is an open market-type society.  You rent a little space, ply your wares, and make a living.  Pretty nifty.  The restaurants were mostly open air and served Thai staples.  Rice, soup, chicken, pork, everything!

We found a place and went in.  Nok and Na are talking away, Rick is filling us in on what's on the menu, and I was just taking it all in.  The sights, sounds, and smells.  All good stuff.  I ordered some sticky rice with chicken and we shared some papaya salad.  The service was insanely quick.  The food was fresh and extremely well prepared.  It was amazing.  And it was about $4 USD per person.  Yikes!

As we were going down the street from the restaurant, Na stops the car and Nok jumps out.  She had heard that I liked coconuts so she had seen a coconut seller.  She buys some coconuts, he lopped off the tops with his machete, and boom, I was drinking sweet coconut milk.  If you tell Nok you like some kind of food, she will get it for you - immediately.  More to come on that when we have dinner later that night.  But, it must be said, Nok is the best, most kind-hearted woman.  She really wanted to make sure we were taken care of.  Thank you Nok!

Next stop, Sampran Riverside Resort!