My solo trip to Bangkok

(Note: unfinished thoughts, but I'd like to at least post what I had written. I've much too many half-written writings lying around, which are no excuse for not publishing.)

Watch my video below that documents my three day solo trip to Bangkok!

I'd like to share some thoughts about my journey, outside of the video I created (and spent much longer than anticipated on, yikes).

I was doing a global internship this past summer with Infosys in Bangalore, India, and every weekend, us interns would travel to unique destinations. When I heard that quite a few interns had used this opportunity to even see Sri Lanka and Thailand, I was convinced that I too should utilize my geography to my advantage and explore outside of India.

Thailand has always been a dream destination because of its food and culture, but I didn't think that I would get to see it so soon in my life. But being in Bangalore, the price to fly was a fraction of the cost it would be from The States. I knew that if I really wanted to make Thailand happen, it should happen now.

I asked all my intern friends to join me, but so funnily enough, most of the interns had already visited and thus didn't prefer to go again for just a short (three-day) trip. The ones who hadn't gone did not have a multiple entry Visa. I booked my flight the weekend before my anticipated trip, hoping that someone would join by then. Unfortunately, no one did, but another intern friend who had just completed the internship was going to be in Bangkok the same weekend with her friends. I felt more calm about it, but I did not want to overtake their plans, so I did not rely on being with them. I did book my hostel on the same street as their Airbnb though.

A lot of panic and fear struck my mind, because I did not feel ready to travel to an entirely different country alone with such little planning, and that too, as a woman. My friends assured me that Thailand is quite safe, and in fact, much more safe than India, but my mind could not be put to rest. The days leading up to my flight, I was so stressed that my jaws clenched so hard throughout the day that I got sore from it. I was nearly in tears and preferred to just cancel the trip instead of going because I was scared that I would not be able to handle myself alone in a foreign country.

On the way to the airport, my mind was littered with so much anxiety that I usually don't have when traveling: has my passport expired, am I positive that I'm legally allowed to enter Thailand, is my suitcase too heavy, etc. Another reason why I was absolutely afraid was that I only had a very, very rough itinerary. No exact location or mode of transportation or anything else had been planned. I was really going on a whim, so on my ride to the airport, I researched a lot and made an hour-by-hour itinerary for the first day which somewhat calmed my mind.

At the airport, I was full of bitterness from all my stress, and I couldn't stop feeling extra self-conscious about my body movements: am I looking too suspicious about anything in any way? I started to resent the little children who at immigration lay on the floor, yelled at each other, danced around...they had the freedom to do anything without looking mistrusting, and I envied it. As a practitioner of meditation, I was very self-aware of these thoughts and knew that they were just a result from my stress and that they will soon pass. Being aware of my negative head space helped.

Because I reach the airport very early, I have plenty of time to wander about, eat, and just relax. I'm very grateful that I'm not in a rush, because I'm already feeling tense. As I'm about to board the flight (to Sri Lanka, and then another connecting flight to Bangkok), I spot two intern friends running my way - they are boarding the same flight, but their final destination is Sri Lanka! Exchanging pleasantries with them uplifted me, and I was in a much better mood thereafter.

Once we land, I part ways from my friends and try to exchange some Indian rupees or US dollars to Thai Baht. Unfortunately, the man who did the foreign exchange was not at the desk, but I made small talk with an elderly lady from New Zealand who was flying back home after a two week trip in Sri Lanka. I giggled a lot during our conversation because I found it quite amusing that although we conversed in English, sometimes I could not understand her accent, even though English is her first language as well. Cute.

Anyway, I scramble to the gate area, and I spot two monks sitting in the area, and I feel so excited - two! monks! Just sitting in the general area so casually! I really don't see monks often in my life, so I took this opportunity to sit behind them in the gate area. When we board the plane, lo and behold, I am seated next to one of the monks! Giddy me is so joyous I cannot stop smiling. I grin around to the seats behind me, because they are not getting blessed by the mere presence of a monk sitting next to them as I am. I am truly a child.

Sitting next to a monk in an airplane was more influencing than I had imagined. When the air hostess asked me what drink I'd like, I chose water, to demonstrate that I am a simple woman. When the others around us used their TV screens for entertainment, I abstained to show that I am a woman remiss of materialistic possessions. In truth, I was also quite sleepy and was planning on sleeping throughout the flight anyway, but I also felt a need to respect the monk's lifestyle by imitating it. I wanted to chat with the monk, but every time I looked in his direction, he really did not seem to be in the mood for it. I let it be and tried napping, except that the air hostesses constantly tried to serve us. In one instance, it was 2am local time in Sri Lanka, and thus 3:30am in Bangkok, and they were offering us coffee! As if we are trying to stay awake! I was so amused!

When we reach the airport, I cannot stop smiling. I see so many Asians, which is a huge contrast from the Indians I have been seeing the past nine weeks. I'm so excited just from this change that although I had little sleep and was planning on sleeping at my hostel first, I was convinced that I was just going to spearhead through the day.

I ask around a lot of assistants at the airport in figuring out the best way to get to Silom, where my hostel was located. I relied entirely on asking random people to guide me because I really had not come prepared. But it felt good to interact with people and see them feel happy in helping an obvious foreigner.