The first 24 hours

I have been in Bangkok for now 24 hours...and my head is already full of images, full of information, full of discoveries.

From the second I stepped outside the airport, I could smell that distinctive odor of the tropics: thick with smog and humidity but with a hint of lushness. The feeling was incredibly good: I was back in that exotic climate that inspires me so much.

From the second I got out of the shuttle bus, my eyes have been wide open. The beauty of dawn and dusk in the city sky, the million car lights of my small but busy street, the baby turtle swimming in its pink bucket at the food market, that little smily girl on her bike...in the street...with tons of raging cars, the tasty look of my first ba mee num, noodle soup, the majesty of the temples (see photo), the colours of food stall at the market this morning...at 6:00am, and many more...so many many more.

And then there is what I hear: the klaxoning tuk tuks, that bird I have not been able to identify yet, and of course, there is thai: thai words, thai intonations, everywhere, all the time. Our lovely hostel, Nirak Bankoc Cultural Hostel, is located in a non touristic part of the Bamglaphu neighborhoud, and with it comes a clear absence of tourist, which is great, and hence, no english. And while I am very proud of my constant efforts to learn the language, I screw up most of the time! This being said, my morning market experience was quite successful, communicating mostly in thai and buying way too many bananas, oranges, mangoes, and two or three other tasty fruits I have never seen and still don't know what they are :)

I am utterly happy to finally be here. It doesn't feel overwhelming nor scary, it just feels right. I hope my smile shines all the way to each of you.

I send my love,

Veronik
-xxx-