Four Nights in Bangkok

Over the Thanksgiving holiday, we did what all good Americans do and took a weekend trip to Bangkok. We had worried before we went there that it was not going to feel like much of a vacation going from one big Asian city to another, but Bangkok is really nice. It's still a developing South East Asian city in many ways, but at the same time, nothing like Jakarta. It's clean and organized, nice sidewalks, great public transportation, etc...

We waited too long to book a cheap hotel, so we cracked open the piggy bank and stayed at the J.W. Marriott. It was an awesome hotel. We also ended up getting a mini suite as they were out of non-smoking regular rooms, so it made staying there really worth it.

I had heard that sex is on display and for sale in Bangkok, but we were shocked by how in your face it really is. Near our hotel in the area called Nana, there are prostitutes on every corner and in every bar. They even have "strip clubs" where the girls stand on stage in a bikini top and thong with a number pinned to their chest, presumably so that you can just say what number you want to order for the night. We also found a bar called Hillary Bar on the same street!

One really cool thing we did was eat at this restaurant called Vertigo. It's on the very top (62nd floor) of the Banyan Tree Hotel. It's a converted heli pad that's now a trendy bar and restaurant. It's completely open air, so our table had a rail, a small hedge, another rail and then a straight drop of more than 600 feet. Not for the acrophobics! It is definitely the most unique and coolest dining experience we've had.

Another thing that made our trip was we found a place with homemade corn tortillas, carnitas, barbacoa, margaritas, the whole bit. It was awesome.

Oh yeah, we saw some temples and stuff, too.