Finally, we checked out and left the island on the 11:30AM boat. Then we got on a 1:30PM bus to the capital of Thailand, Bangkok. Luckily this was a better bus experience over my last one. We arrived 3.5 hours later and boarded the SkyTrain. This is very similar to Detroit’s PeopleMover. Then there was a transfer to the subway, which just opened in 2004. I’ve been on countless metro systems around the world, but I was surprised that I had to get my bag searched by security at the SkyTrain and the subway! That’s never happened anywhere else since it just isn’t practical for the amount of people using the system. We got to our destination finally after a trip on a motorcycle taxi again.
For dinner, we tried some nearby street vendors. By this time we were hungry and actually after eating a plate a one vendor, went to another to have a second. The food is only $1 for each plate out on the street. It is Friday and tomorrow begins a New Year holiday for a lot of people in Thailand (there is no Christmas holiday). We figure a lot of people will leave the city for the beaches and islands, so it is a good time to be here in Bangkok for the next few days.