Thailand

So now I think I should write about what we did in Thailand. When we went from Hong Kong to Bangkok it was as if we changed from spring to summer as we felt the warmth of the evening right when we got out of the plane.
The hotel in Bangkok where we stayed was unbelievably luxurious. Actually, our room was a studio with its own kitchen, couch, television, stereo-set and a big bathroom. If you wonder how we got to stay at that place: Eriko was offered to stay there for 1000 yen (maybe 8 euros) a night by the Japanese owner of the place. He had read a question she had posted on the Japanese community-site mixi about Thailand and because he was born in the same city and went to the same university, he was so generous to help us out and keep us from staying at some obscure, cheap, small hotel in the center of Bangkok. So now we stayed in a shopping area, about 10 min. by bus from the center. After we had dropped our suitcases we explored the neighbourhood, walking along many stalls where you could buy everything from fruit to dinner to clothes. In Thailand, you can find these kind of stalls practically everywhere and they're often a cheap alternative to normal shops selling the same stuff.
They also show the transition that Thailand is making as a developing country. While most Thai people earn too little to go to a fancy restaurant or expensive clothing-shop, some people and most tourists have enough money to try some of the upper-class establishments where they can spend an average monthly (or yearly) salary in one night. This sharp division between rich and poor made me feel a bit ambigiuos about staying at that hotel, but who could turn down the offer Japanese guy had made us? However, we also found out that maybe half of the people who start talking to you on the street just want money from you. Many expensive shops only have tourists as customers, but they're only interested in you as long as they think you'll buy something. Their greedy, cold attitude stands in sharp contrast to the friendly, relaxed way 'normal' Thai people treat you. For example people who have one of those foodstalls would normally try their best to make us something vegetarian and try to communicate as far as possible. They don't try to get as much money as possible by charging more for tourists and their smile really expresses happiness. It gave me the impression that middle-class (that is: quite poor) Thai people are generally much more satisfied and relaxed than those rich shop-owners who only think about how to make more money.
Thailand is a buddhist country, and this religion is still very vivid. Therefore, we could visit many temples that were beautifully decorated. I think not really with gold, but maybe gold-coloured paint, but also mozaïks with ceramics, small pieces of colored glass or mirrors. And of course the typical Thai roofs with those pointy edges. Also some ruins about 100 km. north of Bangkok (in Ayuthaya) were impressive to see. While many people think Thailand is very touristy, it was only the main sightseeing-hot-spots were most foreigners came. All the other temples, ruins or roads, even very beautiful ones, were quiet or only visited by Thai.
After three nights in Bangkok we took the nightbus to Trat, from where we would take the ferry to the island Koh Chang. After arriving at the island, we took a kind of taxi to the south where we would stay at a bungalow/hut at Bailan Family Bungalows. Even though it was just a basic facility with bed and shower, it was all we needed and the whole place had a very nice, relaxed, friendly athmosphere. Even though it was very warm, the sky was clouded and from time to time we even had some rain. But it would have been too hot anyway if the sun would directly shine down on us. The bungalows were very close to the beach, so we could go swimming or watching the sunset easily. And it wasn't just any beach, but the one with palm-trees and coconuts scattered on the sand like you would only see on pictures or in movies.
At the island we mainly enjoyed swimming and snorkling. On the second day we took a boat trip to some smaller islands nearby were there where beautiful fishes, coral reefs and other sea-plants and animals. It was unbelievable how colourful that underwaterworld was. We were also lucky enough to have a restaurant with a separate vegetarian menu closeby, with delicious food made by the woman who owned the place and her daughter, and served by her young son. On the last evening we were on the island (we stayed there for three nights again) there was a reggae concert where all backpackers and festive locals gathered (which still didn't result in a very big crowd, but the place was not that big anyway). It was a great, uplifting conclusion of our stay at that paradise on earth.
Even though the island is known to be one of the least touristy ones, there were already many resorts and luxury stores with suits or juwellery. While driving from the ferry-harbor in the north to our bungalow in the south, we could also see that they were building many more facilities, mostly made of grey, gruesome concrete. When we talked to the owner of Bailan Family Bungalows later on, he said the government actually supported the construction of such solid constructions, to fit the needs of the decadent tourists. He had even had difficulties obtaining a licence to build his nine bungalows made of only natural materials. It showed the ambigious relationship Thai people have with tourists: on the one hand, many are dependent on tourism for their income, but at the same time they regret the growing number of ugly buildings and disrespectful foreigners. If even the government promotes this process, there seems to be little hope that a balance between authenticity and prosperity can be maintained. Like with any profit generating industry, there's always a trade-off.
After leaving the island, we went back to Bangkok and from there to Hong Kong. After staying there for one more night, we finally returned to Japan. It had been a great 12 days during which we had seen so many different places, met so many people and had such nice experiences that it seemed like we had been away for months.