Once again I found myself in Thailand. This was my second visit in three weeks and probably my fifth overall (I criss-crossed SE Asia too many times to remember on my original trip back in 2013...check out the sidebar for more info). It was nice to be back in a familiar city; I felt comfortable arriving at the airport and navigating the public transit system. Ha, I thought, looking at the backpackers on the train, they're fresh faced newbies! Oh how quickly I can inflate my ego!
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| ahh, so many backpackers in Bangkok! Well I'm one too! |
On one level or another I was tired of Thailand - certainly the tourist crowds and backpacker scene. But I was coming back not so much for myself, but to travel with a high school buddy. Not just any buddy, but Andrew, my best friend from my New Albany High School years. Andrew's parents are Korean, and they moved to the US when he was a toddler. He spent his elementary days in Alabama (of all the places to immigrate!) and then the family moved to Ohio.
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| Andrew (second from right) with his family |
We had the same Language Arts class in 8th grade, and our friendship really started to develop in freshman year band. In order to graduate everyone had to take either band or art for at least one year, and I reluctantly chose to continue playing the trombone. I have no artistic talent whatsoever, so art class was out, but I was still hesitant with band because it involved marching at the school football games. Not exactly the coolest thing for a high school kid. Fortunately Andrew and I got along well - we both played trombone - and class was actually fun. I didn't particularly like the marching bit, but it only lasted one year.
Andrew was really into tennis, and for a few summers we practiced together nearly every day. Although he went to Miami of Ohio and I stayed in Columbus to attend Ohio State, we kept in touch and visited each other more than a couple times. After school Andrew moved to Dallas, where his parents had relocated, and got a job at a marketing start-up. Back in 2011 when I broke the news that I would be teaching in Seoul, Korea, Andrew's hometown, he was ecstatic. Communication wasn't always consistent when I was traveling abroad but that year in Korea added another important layer to our connection; I now know so much more about his family background and heritage.
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Andew was a big tennis fan in high school
and we made great practice partners |
When I was in Seoul and on my extended SE Asia tour of 2013 Andrew was dying to come for a visit. Work kept him in Dallas, however, and we never did organize a trip. Andrew can come up with ambitious ideas but I was skeptical that an international trip together would actually materialize. Fortunately I did get the chance to visit Texas, staying at his parent's house in 2012 on my way back to Ohio and stopping by again in 2014 when I was headed to Australia.
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Andrew worked for Fivestars, a marketing company
catering to small and medium size businesses |
It came as a surprise when, this past winter, Andrew got serious about going to Asia. He mentioned taking a vacation to his boss, who seemed receptive to the idea. At first Andrew was thinking of a couple weeks, but when we brainstormed about the different places he wanted to see, it became clear that two weeks just wasn't going to cut it. He'd been back to Korea before but not anywhere else in Asia. A return trip to Seoul was a must, plus we both wanted to visit Japan, and Andrew was also interested in SE Asia.
After more trip planning what had first been a two week trip turned into six. We would spend approximately two weeks each in Thailand, Korea, and Japan. Via the sign up bonus and a couple years of spending on his Chase Sapphire credit card Andrew had amassed well over 100,000 points. Instead of using those points to redeem for cash bonuses, as Chase advertises, the better play is to transfer the points to an airline partner. Chase partners with several major airlines, including British Airways and United. Using the transferred points I was able to book Andrew a ticket from Dallas to Bangkok and from Japan back to Texas (with a stopover in Hawaii no less!).
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Chase Sapphire has a 40,000 point sign up bonus, which
can be transferred to a number of airlines |
Andrew arrived in the early morning of Tuesday, April 7th (I had flown to Bangkok Sunday afternoon). When he finally showed up I could barely believe that the trip we'd talked about for so long was actually happening. We spent one night in Bangkok, at the hotel near Sutthisan where I'd stayed with Justin, and left for Pattaya on Wednesday.
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the swimming pool atop 68 Bangkok hotel,
where Andrew and I stayed. The price was less than
$25 a night for both of us...not a bad deal! |
For those of you who have been to Pattaya, you might be wondering why we'd make it our first stop on Andrew's tour of Thailand. I've heard that Pattaya is even more scandalous than Phuket (I blogged about it when I went in 2013, that post is
here). Odd thing is that Pattaya, like Phuket, is simultaneously a family holiday destination and a sex-pat haven filled with prostitutes.
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| Beachfront in Pattaya |
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| Nightlife on Walking Street |
As for us we wanted to get back to Bangkok for a huge water festival (more on that next post) and didn't want to stray far from the capital. Pattaya is pretty much the closest big beach destination from Bangkok. Andrew had just gone through winter back home, albeit in Texas, so enjoying the sun and partying seemed a good way to start the trip. Also for better or for worse the prostitution scene is a big part of touristy Thailand and something Andrew had never witnessed before, so in a way the craziness was a draw too.
We spent four nights in Pattaya, at a hotel a few blocks from the beach, and unfortunately there's really not that much intriguing to write home about. Andrew was recovering from jet lag and worn out from work, so it was good just to chill for a few days. We went for a run on the beach, visited a local temple, ate a lot of typical Thai food you'd find in a tourist area (pad thai, curries, sticky noodles, smoothies), and went out for drinks on the strip two of the nights. I did somehow manage to meet a Thai girl who didn't work in the "industry," although all that happened was we danced one night, exchanged phone numbers, and met the next day for coffee. She was from out of town and leaving that afternoon - I was never the best at timing!
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Pad thai: rice noodles, shallots, peanuts, red pepper flakes, often served
with eggs and your choice of chicken or shrimp |
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| I love Thai curries, particularly red curry, which is typically spicy |
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