From Place to Place
By Aaron
Arriving at the Bangkok International Airport was pretty much of an excitement for me. Had no idea what to expect from the people, the place and especially the means of transportation. I’ve heard so much about the famous ‘tuk tuk’ and the infamous taxi drivers! I hate it when I’m right.
We took cabs from the airport to our inn, and the first thing that caught my attention was the cab itself. Why? Because it’s a Toyota. As luxurious as the cab may be, the cabbies were sure ‘Proton’ quality. Out of the three cab rides I’ve had so far, two drove like Michael Schumacher and one like Alex Yoong.
Another thing I found rather amusing was how little these cabbies knew about the roads. It was funny watching these cabbies jumping out of the car and running on a busy road towards another fellow cabbie to ask for directions. The irony of the situation was simply overwhelming. We reached the inn 20 minutes after everyone else, but funny thing is, our fare was the cheapest.
On the second day, we had to take buses as they were far cheaper compared to cabs. The bus ride was horrifying, and getting into one is like an eternal wait. The heat in Bangkok played a major role in the torment as we waited restlessly for the buses to arrive under the hot and humid weather. The first bus we took had no air-conditioning. It was so hot and stuffy I had to admit it wasn’t fun. After that, all
the buses we took had air-conditioning, but by then, the weather had cooled from the dark clouds and rain.
The roads in Bangkok are frequently jammed up, filled with tuk tuks, cabs and colourful buses. But there’s no stopping Bangkok drivers from dodging anything in its path. It’s like David Beckham attempting to dribble past an Italian defense - get the picture?
So far, we have encountered several near collisions and seen a motorcycle slammed against a cab at the traffic lights.
Riding a tuk tuk was simply an experience for me today. I’ve ridden tuk tuks in Haatyai before and they were pretty decent in terms of accelerating to a safe speed limit, but the ones in Bangkok are like turbo charged. Tuk tuk drivers here tend to speed as much as they can and then suddenly jam their breaks to either avoid collision with another vehicle or stop at the lights.
They also do not hesitate to pile passengers into small seating areas. The seats, which are probably able to fit three skinny Asians are packed up to four and sometimes five people! I sat at the side, next to the seats on a small curb in the tuk tuk, as there were already three people in it. After the tuk tuk ride, my butt felt seriously ill and my legs were in a coma.
I’m beginning to appreciate the Malaysian public transportation much more now.
