I arrived in Bangkok on the night of the 18th. I was able to catch the sky tram to my hostel, and some nice locals even walked me to the door of my hostel. I then spent the next day and a half recouping from jet lag and getting used to the heat.

My hostel Siam Journey Guesthouse is pretty nice. I would give it a 3.5 out of five. The rooms are nice with individual plugs, adequate room for your bags and the mess you with inevitably make, and is very clean. The community room is comfortable enough with a table, couch, and two computers. They have free wifi, coffee, and the staff is very friendly. I also enjoyed the location, in the heart of a Thai neighborhood, and very close to the different sky trams, and some markets.

The location is also some what of a downside as well. It offers a genuine look into a Thai neighbore, but is a decent distant from some of the common tourist attractions. The beds are not comfortable, it’s more like sleeping on a slightly padded concrete floor even though you are sleeping on the bed. I would also prefer breakfast included, as there are not many options for food in the morning. Even though the staff is friendly, there are not a lot of guests currently here, which makes meeting people harder.

I did venture out a couple of times and enjoyed the experiences. I really like walking through the markets and seeing all the different food options. I wish I could speak Thai! It’s so frustrating trying to communicate. The first night I thought I was purchasing a soul somewhat like Pho, and instead I got a soup that was made of mushrooms and was incredibly spicy.

The second full day here was my birthday! I also had the lovely opportunity to meet up with a good friend of mine from back home. It was Incredibly nice to see a familiar face on my birthday. She got here a little later than expected, but once we got her we went out and walked the streets. After returning to change, and watch an episode of broad city, we went back out to find the legendary sky bar.

The Sky bar is a bar that was in the second hangover movie, located on the top of a sky scraper. Once we finally found the tram station we needed, I got my first glimpse of the enormous size of Bangkok. We got off the tram, asked directions to the Sky Bar, and decided to get some food first. We went to restaurant that my friend had already gone to and it was delicious. As I was sitting down at the table I absentmindedly wondered if I should really be splurging on a nice meal, only to remember that a. It was my birthday and b. Spending $4 wasn’t really splurging.

After dinner we decided to go back to the hostel to meet up with some other people to go out, forsaking the Sky Bar. Unfortunately, they didn’t end up going out till later and we regretted that decision. My friend bought me a cake (more like cup of straight frosting/fudge), ice cream and candles, and everyone sang to me as I blew them out.

I love the people in my life:)