Okay, it's not exactly the Jungle. Maybe the jungle with a small "j". Jet's dad is developing a piece of land into a adventure/ecotourism destination.
He calls it Wiman (vee-mahn) in Thai, meaning Heaven. It's waywayway back in the backcountry, West Northwest of Bangkok.
This Buddha is about 40 meters tall. From this picture, my neck would be about 20 meters wide. Note to self, take more than one shot...
Currently 5:55pm, Monday, November 14th.
I just added new entries for shopping at Doguya-suji in Osaka having dinner at Gyoza Stadium and my day in Kyoto.
I had a nice meal last night with Jet's peeps at a restaurant on the river. I'm leaving Bangkok tomorrow morning for an area outside of Kanchanaburi, Thailand. I'm told it's near the Three Pagodas and the Bridge on the Kwai River. There won't be any Internet access out there, so I'll just blog to myself for a few days. After that, Penang, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.
Currently 5:37pm on Sunday afternoon in Bangkok.
The sky blessed us with probably over an inch of rain in about a 2 hour period.
Earlier, I was fortunate to have been guided around Chatuchak Market, the largest market in Asia, with over 15,000 vendors. They have everything from handicrafts to flatware to bronze statues. Gigantic.
Tonight, I'm having dinner with friends and relations of my business partner, Jet.
I also created an entry for my first evening in Osaka.
Currently 10:10am on Saturday in Bankok.
I had my first Thai massage ever. Let me specify, a legitimate, theraputic massage. The young massuese was petite, but had strong hands and knew how to use her weight for pressure. I have a new appreciation for elbows. For 180 baht for an hour ($4.50US), I can definitely incorporate that into my budget every few days...
Off to explore the neighborhood and some temples and monasteries nearby. There are tons of tour buses about, so I may change plans to avoid crowds.
Currently 11:46pm on Friday night in Bangkok.
It's a wonder that things get done in Bangkok. Or actually, it's a wonder that anything gets done after 10am. At least today, it seemed to be pretty calm until then. I had a nice breakfast of pork over rice with Chinese greens at a street stand. Besides being boiled, it looked safe because it had just been made, and it was soft and glistening. Then I walked down the street and got some tiny pancakes, blini sized, but I think they have fruit pulp mixed in the batter, kind of orangey-yellow, but I couldn't pick out the specific fruit. They're addictive!!
Currently 9:37pm in Bangkok.
Safe and sweaty in Bangkok. Thankfully it has cooled off a bit since sundown, but still quite humid. Of course, I had to find an air-conditioned room. I'm in a backpacker area near Kao San Road, which means there are probably as many foreigners as Thais. I probably won't stay here very long. Off to look for a phone card and food.