Backyard Bangkok

Our taxi driver squeezed the car through a narrow street in backyard Bangkok before coming to a stop alongside another tiny alley.

“No more go,” he announced, waving both hands. “Hotel over there.” He pointed to a back street that was scarcely wide enough to fit two bicycles side-by-side.

We paid the cabbie 300 baht (not a bad price coming from Don Mueang). I slung my pack over my shoulders as Jenelle pulled hers across the pavement. We moved cautiously into unknown territory, quickly observing the scent of grease and urine. A stray cat with wide blue eyes watched us pass by.

Our hotel was in a rough section of town, but it supposedly had a breathtaking view of the Chao Phraya River from its eighth-floor restaurant, and to boot, it was only a 10-minute walk to Chinatown.

The hotel fit well with the neighborhood. Squeezed between other drab buildings, the hotel was very inconspicuous, and would be nearly unrecognizable as a place of accommodation without the green awning draped over the front. Inside our room the walls appeared unfinished; the floor felt of concrete. Plywood was part of the decorative motif, and our shower and toilet appeared antiques.

Much to her dismay, Jenelle quickly discovered that the room had no air conditioning to combat the stifling Bangkok heat. Instead, a large ceiling fan hovered over the bed. (We developed a coping mechanism of taking cold showers, then lying wet on the bed, with the blades of the ceiling fan circling above us. Sometimes we took several cold showers a night.) As for drinkable water, the hotel left a pitcher of it next to the television with two glasses. We could refill the pitcher in the hallway.

There were no major tourist sites within our backyard neighborhood. We used it as a thoroughfare to get to other parts of town. As much as we attempted to learn the tangled web of streets, we constantly got lost. One miscalculation would send you into terra incognita.

As I mentioned earlier, our neighborhood smelled like grease. This was because they sold second-hand car parts here. Walking down the street you would find heaps of metal, including engines and mufflers that belonged to anything from cars to mopeds. It's like having the junkyard as close and convenient as the grocery store. Sometimes a couple of men would be tending the heap by sitting next to it on chairs, smoking cigarettes and talking. Any foreigner who walked past would get a look of suspicion.

The other smell—urine—we learned frequently came from night. At least twice while walking through a dark alleyway, we witnessed men urinating on the street. This would make Jenelle very uneasy and we would always detour and take a longer route to avoid them.

Just below our hotel, pretty much at the side of a parking garage, was a Chinese Taoist Temple. Outside hung red Chinese globes and inside I could hear people singing or chanting. I didn't dare go in. The temple was very simple, and if you weren't right there, you wouldn't even notice it. Nearby a small shrine displayed several figurines, as well as flowers and incense sticks. A small sign was in both Chinese and Thai.

Just a few feet away was a tiny “public” bathroom. Having a curiosity of what bathrooms look like in Thailand, I was anxious to check it out. The closer you are to the tourist centers, the more likely the bathrooms will have a Western style. This was no where near the tourist centers.

The little room was slightly bigger than a closet, with a squat-toilet on the floor. No toilet paper. Just a hose inside a basin and a plastic bowl. There was a hand-rail, just in case you needed something to hold on to. Very rudimentary indeed.

We passed a small group of children playing with a basketball. No hoop. No goal. Just a an orange rubber ball that they bounced across the pavement.

These backyard streets lacked the vendors that you might see in Chinatown or Khao San Road. The vendors were there, but in fewer numbers.

On our last evening in Bangkok, on the way to the hotel, we passed a lady selling pad thai from a little stand in front of her home. One plastic table with two chairs were tucked into the shop. A windowed refrigerator had a few beverages for us to choose from, as well as the ingredients she needed for the pad thai. We watched as she cut all the fresh ingredients on a wooden cutting board, then fried them inside a wok to make my meal. I ate it right there, sitting at the little plastic table. Several flies swarmed around the humid outdoor room. The dish cost me 40 baht.

That evening I stood at the balcony of our hotel that overlooks the backside of several high-rise buildings. I thought about the people who live there. Thai's are very hard workers and don't have a lot of material wealth. Their dwellings are small. I could see that from my vantage point. I watched one lady hang her laundry—one by one—on her tiny rooftop.  She probably washed them by hand.

Even though we would be flying home tomorrow, life here would keep going. A backyard that appears crazy and chaotic to me, will continue to be their ordinary way of life. ♠

Wat Tham Seua (Tiger Cave Temple)

1,272 steep and grueling steps above the valley floor sits a shiny golden Buddha that overlooks limestone cliffs and the distant Andaman Sea. These forested mountains were once inhabited by tigers and later by monks, who came here to meditate. It is one of the most sacred Buddhist sites in the area.

There are no longer tigers near the temple, but plenty of monkeys near the foot of the stairway that leads to the top of the mountain. There is no particular building that would be considered “the temple,” but rather, the whole mountain complex. The most popular trail is one that leads to the shiny Buddha at the summit, but there is also another path that is less difficult that leads to a dell encircled by limestone outcrops. Here there are several caves and cells used by monks.

Tiger Cave Temple, or Wat Tham Suea in Thai, is located 488 miles south of Bangkok in the Krabi Provence. From nearby Krabi town, which is only 5 ½ miles away, it is possible to get here using a combination of songthaew and motorcycle taxi. We choose to visit as part of a day tour, which we booked from our hotel. Our group is very small and our tour-guide gives us a couple hours to do whatever we would like. Most of us choose to climb the stairs.

Today is the hottest day of our trip so far. Thailand is sweltering year-round, and March is especially scorching. What should you bring? I would suggest comfortable walking shoes, plenty of water, and modest clothing. We purchased extra water from a small store near the temple. As with all sacred Buddhist sites, please wear clothing that will cover your knees and shoulders.

The stairs to the top are steep, and seem to become steeper the further you ascend. In some places the handrails burn my palms. Although there is no drinking water along the way, there are bathrooms half way up.

The climb to the summit is too much for Jenelle, as she is sensitive to the heat. She decides to turn around and wait for me at the bottom.

The ascent will take approximately an hour, depending on how fit you are. Near the final level, just before the summit, there is a section where everyone has taken off their shoes. I remove mine also, as is common practice to show respect at a Buddhist sanctuary.

From the top, the panorama is breathtaking. In spite of the constant Asian haze, you can see for miles in every direction. To the north and west are the iconic limestone cliffs that give so much beauty to Southern Thailand. To the south one can see Krabi town, the Andaman Sea, and several of the closer islands. On the east side are many palm plantations, and south of them, mangrove forests. Directly below us is the village, the roofs creating an irregular patchwork.

Other than the large Buddha, there are also several shrines at the top. Some are miniature figurines with offerings and incense sticks.

A large bell-shaped chedi competes with the Buddha as the most prominent object at the summit. A chedi, as it is often referred to in Thailand, is also known as a stupa. Originally, they contained the remains of the Buddha, and later they were used to house the remains of Kings, or an important monk. The shape of the chedi is patterned after ancient burial mounds. As for the one here, I don't know whether or not it contains the bones or ashes of anyone. Regardless, it is an important structure within the Thai temple complex.

Because there is no one to monitor dress, not many of the visitors are dressed properly. Most wear shorts or sleeveless shirts. One man is shirtless. A Chinese woman uses a sarong to cover her high-cut shorts. In spite of their modesty or lack of it, most show respect. Some kneel down at the Buddha and others give offerings.

The trek down the mountain is far easier than the hike up. I am pleased to find Jenelle at the bottom and she has apparently found a vendor of ice-cold fruit smoothies, or in Thailand known simply as shakes. These shakes are ubiquitous and bring much needed relief on sultry days. We don't explore any other trails because we know our tour-guide will be waiting for us.

It is refreshing to find a religious sanctuary in Southern Thailand, which is often dominated with secular beaches. Wat Tham Suea is definitely worth the stop. ♠