Stickman Readers' Submissions August 13th, 2014

Bangkok Trip





I visited Bangkok twice in 2003: three weeks (during July) and four weeks, respectively (during late October). But, since it was excessively hot due to the extreme humidity, I couldn’t possibly contemplate staying any longer and actually attempt being an expat—although, I’d love to live there permanently just for the outstanding nightlife (at that time). So, in the end, I couldn’t possibly cope. The first time I went, I caught dengue fever for only 3 days, but I was so ill, I almost checked into the local hospital. But, at the time, I didn’t know (precisely) what my illness was, but a few months later, after returning home and researching another Stickman reader’s submission, describing his symptoms (and his ordeals at the hospital) — it matched mine to a T: I couldn’t sleep a wink, and I felt very weak and I could barely walk, and the worst thing possible was that I completely lost my appetite. (The culprit, however, was a virus with a day time mosquito vector).


So, while I stayed at the Nana Hotel (trying to recover), I had to forgo the free breakfast, because I had to radically change my diet: I had to eat special, Thai-chicken and rice soup for two mornings, and I had to eat lots of canned fruit, wheat cereal with milk which I put in my refrigerator.

He Clinic Bangkok


Then I bought a thermometer and asked for fever medication from the prescriptions provider outside the Nana Hotel. (My fever was about 104 for three nights).


And, I finally did recover (100%) about two days just prior to my scheduled departure. And, I was so elated because I thought that it would take Longer—and thus I’d be stuck in my Nana Hotel room, trying to recover from my illness and having to cancel my flight home. In other words, it was too close for comfort. I always travel alone.

According to my research, most people don’t recover from dengue fever that quickly: two weeks minimum—although, I wasn’t formally diagnosed by a doctor.

CBD bangkok


I wore shorts every day, I bought brand new, running shoes and an Adidas synthetic fiber shirt (called climilite). And, without this shirt, I couldn’t stay dry for even one nanosecond. Without this t-shirt, I couldn’t possibly walk across the street to the Nana Plaza from the Nana Hotel and stay dry, when visiting Fantasia, PlaySkool, G Spot, and Angelwitch.


My second trip I spent a lot more time in the cabs with a/c and I had more fun and walked a lot less and I even went to the famous express river boat, but I didn’t know how much it was going to cost, so I was shocked that it only about 10 baht to the end of the line.


The boat was just like the one that I had seen when I was a child visiting, Disneyland in Anaheim.


The trip was very scenic and I took some great pictures of Wat Arun: (the temple of dawn) en route and other temples. (I had my new Sony digital camera).

wonderland clinic


And, I took a few pictures of Thais releasing two birds from tiny cages outside the front of the wats and fish into the rivers.


But, one other time, on Sukhumvit Road, someone asked me to buy one cage with two birds, but she insisted on keeping the cage after I was supposed to release the birds for 80 baht. I thought that was a rip-off.


I met one girl who was homeless. Her name was Jade and she slept outside on the concrete floor by the front of the Nana Plaza, next to the Kodak shop. She looked very clean most of the time because she bathed using the bathroom sink of the nearby gas station (but the first time I saw her outside of Starbucks on Sukhumvit at 8 AM she did have lots of dust on her face from sleeping with her face against the ground). And, every time I saw her, four times total, I gave her 100 baht for no reason and she didn’t beg. But, one time, she nearly ran in to me from behind when she saw me walking by Kodak. Then the last time she also asked if I'd like to have a beer with her. I told her that I didn’t drink and in fact I was going to leave Thailand in a few days, and so I said, “no.”


She really wasn’t my type and she wasn’t that attractive.


I saw her reading a color magazine once on Sukhumvit Road and I saw her with a plastic bag full of Thai noodles which cost about 15 baht each. So, I assume that that was my money, but she probably asked the local street vendors to boil it for her and perhaps someone else provided her with some chicken, cabbage or chili sauce to augment her diet.


At that same time, I saw a ladyboy who slept on the tile outside the corner of the Nana Hotel during the day, but one time I saw him eating a chicken leg. A chicken vendor probably gave it to him. But, most of the time, he slept for hours without moving, except that occasionally he raised his legs off the ground by leaning his legs against the wall in order to cool off.


It’s too hot for me because of the humidity—and I had some problems with the food when it wasn’t served piping hot.

nana plaza