I new beginning in Bangkok

Now I am in Sukhumvit in a nice little hotel not far from the center of activity for the area which is mostly comprised with street markets, street food, large malls, bars, restaurants, 711 after 711 and other various businesses. I am doing the tourist thing now for the last couple of days left in Bangkok. Instead of living in someones house and abiding by their rules. I now make up the rules and do what ever I want. It is almost noon here in Bangkok while it is 11pm at night back where my buddies in United States reside. It has been an interesting ride to say the least the last three weeks. I have seen a lot, done a lot and have gone past what the usual tourist might see experiencing what it is like to live in Thailand as a real Thai. That does not mean that all my time was entertaining and fun, its means I saw life as it is lived...the good, the bad and the ugly. While in my high school friends home I had to resign my usual everyday routines and abide by the house rules. It was exhausting some days when your host snapped at you about leaving a light on in the bathroom or leaving your rooms air conditioner on when you were not in the room at the moment. There are slews of instances like this, every little thing I did was scrutinized in one way or another as though trying to find fault in the most unimportant events to make me look like a unworthy house guest. I don't think they wanted me there from the beginning but I don't really know that, maybe it was after the first week. I should have gotten a hotel room a long time ago but I kept hanging on because I did not want to give up on the person who I thought was my friend. People change is all I can say, and the person I knew was not the person I met in Bangkok three weeks ago.  Enough of that....and don't think I have had a bad time here either because that is not true, I have had a great time here other than a few set backs here and there.

Yesterday I mentioned that I was going to meet up with a friend I met when I was in the South of Thailand two weeks ago. I took a taxi to a area known as Khoasan Rd were my new friend Costal is staying. He gave me a address and google map location and to meet him there at 4pm. So we meet up. Costal is a great guy, real easy going,  we have a  lot of things in common. He lives in Basel Switzerland,  works as a I.T. professional, has a girl friend and lives in a warehouse apartment were he makes tents and bike trailers among other things. I met him at his hotel and then we set out over to a local bar for a sit and chat. We started walking towards the street and I asked Costal where his shoes were?? No shoes he said, he walks bare foot every where. You guys ever heard of Dean Potter, the famous mountian climber, slack liner and base jumper. Dean does not wear shoes either because he says walking bare foot makes your feet at their best and even improves posture. Costal is a climber as well but I dont think he knows Dean yet, I bet he will after reading this. You should check out the documentary on Dean Potter, its really good. So after sitting a while and watching people by the street side restaurant we headed for a cab to Siam square which is right by my hotel. We just continued to talk and walk around. Costal gets a lot of attention walking around Bangkok with no shoes.  We walked around the Siam Square mall, went into a tobacco shop to pick up cigars and the girls in the shop were so taken by his lack of shoes. They laughed and giggled, asked him a million questions, it was really funny and definitely an ice breaker conversing with strangers.  He says he enjoys the attention and that having the confidence to walk around with no shoes builds character. I go back to Dean Potter and if Dean Potter does it then..... Dean is the best climber in the world by the way. So we parted ways around 930 or 10, I headed back to the hotel for a goods nights rest on a comfortable bed. Not sure what I am going to do today, Costal said something about a Imax show or something.

 Anyway, tomorrow is my last full day in Bangkok. I leave Saturday morning on a 815 am flight. That means I have to be at the airport around 6am or before. I will have to get a cab at 430 or 5am then, uhgg. I can't wait to see my own stuff again, haha - later.