After lounging around for a bit, I set out to the city. i followed the same route as I did yesterday. I hopped off at Pier 6 instead, and decided to wander the streets. Within 10 minutes, I found myself strolling along a small lane that was bordered by wholesale food vendors. It was early in the afternoon, so there weren't too many patrons around. Everyone was selling vast quantities of food - limes, peppers, garlic, basil, etc. I continued to wander without a destination in mind. I somehow found my way back to Wat Pho. I took a breather here & watched people for a while. I wanted to find Chinatown, because where I found the Chinese, I would find a small contingent of Indians, and I was in the mood for curry. After 30 minutes, I was completely lost. I stood on a street corner scouring my map for any sign of the foreign street names that surrounded me. A guy walked up and asked if he could help. I explained to him that I wasn't looking for a particular place, but I had gotten myself lost in the process. He motioned me over to the curb & introduced himself. He explained that he was just getting off of work in the building adjacent to where I was standing & he saw me looking confused. He explained that because today was the King's birthday, all Thai tuk tuks cost 10 baht for wherever you wanted to go. He also mentioned a temple that hols a black Buddha, which is only open one time per year (and today was the day!). He also recommended a tailor if I felt like getting clothes made - the place does a lot of work with the embassies & the government. Armed with a ton of information, he flagged down a tuk tuk, told him where to take me, instructed him to only charge me 10 baht, and sent me off. I don't think that I could have had better luck...
When I arrived at the black Buddha temple, the driver & I sat outside for a bit while the monks were inside praying. Afterwards, he motioned for me to enter. Within 30 seconds, the temple groundskeepr came inside to chat with me. He mentioned that they were very busy earlier in the day, but I was the only person who was here in the late afternoon. He suggested that I go pray & take some photos, both of which I proceeded to do. He was then talking to me for 30 minutes. In the course of our conversation, he also had mentioned the same tailor that the guy on the street corner had mentioned.
After the temple, we stopped at the tailors. The guy that helped me was a true salesman. We sat down & chatted for a while about life in Bangkok & US politics. He served me tea while we were talking. After 40 minutes, we got down to business. I wanted shirts made, and Suresh was perisistanly trying to sell me a suit. After I convinced him that I wasn't going to purchase a suit, he was then pitching a camel hair winter jacket. Again, I argued polity that I didn't need a coat and that I wouldn't be buying one. I took some time choosing the fabric that would ultimately turn into a custom shirt. When my shopping splurge had concluded, I headed back to the Silom district to throw my bag in the room and find some dinner. I had a fruit salad & basil-chili stir-fry; both being deliciously spicy. After dinner, I went to the night market for a bit, and then went back to Take a Nap. I met this woman with a beautiful accent - Air. We were talking about a multitude of things while I waited for James.
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