YOU CAN'T GET TO THERE FROM HERE
After sitting around in Khon Kaen for another few weeks, I am really bored of it. I realize that going back to a city I've spent so much time in (Siem Reap) may get boring as well but the restaurants here are quite frankly not very good.
Great hotel room (aside from no mini fridge) but not great food.
I miss Mexican food.
So on Monday it is 'bug out' time.
I decided today to go to the bus station to find out what the 'real deal' is. Realize that a lot of what you read on the internet either turns out to be fiction or wildly outdated. Or just can't seem to happen for you for unknown reasons. It's nothing like Western Europe where getting around is bloody easy, though expensive.
Any time you want information within Eastern Europe or SE Asia, you will usually consult what I think of as a 'brain trust'. It is seldom, outside of tourist areas, where you will find one person who is knowledgeable about giving directions to the foreigner. When you consult someone, they will gather others in. Much like a beehive, they will all work together to find the solution.
It turns out to be about half an hour, two different dialects of Thai and a lot of arm waving. Google translate seems about butt useless in so far as translating Thai. Guess it is just 'too foreign' of language. Hell, they can't even agree on English spellings of different place names. You'll find some wildly different ones. I've no idea why that is.
After consulting with one 'brain trust' at the hotel, a taxi was summoned and he took me to a bus station I'd not been to before. This was good news as I thought I'd have to go to the half an hour out of town bus station. This one was in town. There, we consulted with another four person brain trust.
I just kept repeating I wanted to go to Cambodia. The consensus was that 'you can't get to there from here'. Apparently, Khon Kaen is where you can easily get a bus to destinations northward. Laos, Vietnam, northern Thailand. No problem. But, to go to the south, I need to go to a place which might be called "Kolat".
I say 'might be' because I can't find it on a map. I'm told that the bus ticket is 116 baht. About $4.
According to Google, Kolat might be Korat (the ole L and R problem Asians seem to have, again) which is also known as Nakhon Ratchasima. I say just agree on a town name and stick with it. Not in Asia - it would make things too easy. I'm sure there is some sort of strange reason going back to 'pre-USA' times for it. Goat trails and all that.
My plan is just to 'punt'. Just show up early on Monday, get a bus ticket then when I show up there (wherever there is) work on getting a bus ticket to the border of Cambodia. And try not to get ripped off too badly.
This kind of 'fuck it, let's just go' travel might not be for everyone but it should be interesting.
If you ever need to travel to Khon Kaen, print out and cut out this business card. It seems everyone in town knows where this place is. For 380 baht, you just can't beat it. I like the hotel very much and the people are very friendly - though they don't speak a whole lot of English.
TV SHOW REVIEW
Blindspot
Girl chemically castrated of all her memories shows up naked and covered with tattoos.
Despite looking like a really thin model, somehow she is a fighting badass.
They team her up with a cop who goes with his instincts rather than procedure and likes to go into dangerous situations alone rather than have any backup. Because your gut and being alone work out so well.
It's another in the long list of 'buddy' movies pushed out by the lazy writers of Hollywood (or wherever this came from). Rather than have two guys or two girls, they will put in the 'will they or won't they' factor. See Bones.
Who did bone.
It's pretty average and worth watching if you are so bored you are thinking about cutting yourself. Watch this instead of self harming.
Though it may make you want to have shitty tats that are so obscure it takes some cryptographer to figure it out.
In addition to the rather blah main actors, the supporting cast is forgettable as well.
I shall not make any predictions about how long this series will go on because what I like - and what the average person likes - are way different.
I just don't see this as a quality product nor neat enough to push it beyond a 4/10. You can watch it to get through some time but you won't be excited about it.
After sitting around in Khon Kaen for another few weeks, I am really bored of it. I realize that going back to a city I've spent so much time in (Siem Reap) may get boring as well but the restaurants here are quite frankly not very good.
Great hotel room (aside from no mini fridge) but not great food.
I miss Mexican food.
So on Monday it is 'bug out' time.
I decided today to go to the bus station to find out what the 'real deal' is. Realize that a lot of what you read on the internet either turns out to be fiction or wildly outdated. Or just can't seem to happen for you for unknown reasons. It's nothing like Western Europe where getting around is bloody easy, though expensive.
Any time you want information within Eastern Europe or SE Asia, you will usually consult what I think of as a 'brain trust'. It is seldom, outside of tourist areas, where you will find one person who is knowledgeable about giving directions to the foreigner. When you consult someone, they will gather others in. Much like a beehive, they will all work together to find the solution.
It turns out to be about half an hour, two different dialects of Thai and a lot of arm waving. Google translate seems about butt useless in so far as translating Thai. Guess it is just 'too foreign' of language. Hell, they can't even agree on English spellings of different place names. You'll find some wildly different ones. I've no idea why that is.
After consulting with one 'brain trust' at the hotel, a taxi was summoned and he took me to a bus station I'd not been to before. This was good news as I thought I'd have to go to the half an hour out of town bus station. This one was in town. There, we consulted with another four person brain trust.
I just kept repeating I wanted to go to Cambodia. The consensus was that 'you can't get to there from here'. Apparently, Khon Kaen is where you can easily get a bus to destinations northward. Laos, Vietnam, northern Thailand. No problem. But, to go to the south, I need to go to a place which might be called "Kolat".
I say 'might be' because I can't find it on a map. I'm told that the bus ticket is 116 baht. About $4.
According to Google, Kolat might be Korat (the ole L and R problem Asians seem to have, again) which is also known as Nakhon Ratchasima. I say just agree on a town name and stick with it. Not in Asia - it would make things too easy. I'm sure there is some sort of strange reason going back to 'pre-USA' times for it. Goat trails and all that.
My plan is just to 'punt'. Just show up early on Monday, get a bus ticket then when I show up there (wherever there is) work on getting a bus ticket to the border of Cambodia. And try not to get ripped off too badly.
This kind of 'fuck it, let's just go' travel might not be for everyone but it should be interesting.
If you ever need to travel to Khon Kaen, print out and cut out this business card. It seems everyone in town knows where this place is. For 380 baht, you just can't beat it. I like the hotel very much and the people are very friendly - though they don't speak a whole lot of English.
TV SHOW REVIEW
Blindspot
Girl chemically castrated of all her memories shows up naked and covered with tattoos.
Despite looking like a really thin model, somehow she is a fighting badass.
They team her up with a cop who goes with his instincts rather than procedure and likes to go into dangerous situations alone rather than have any backup. Because your gut and being alone work out so well.
It's another in the long list of 'buddy' movies pushed out by the lazy writers of Hollywood (or wherever this came from). Rather than have two guys or two girls, they will put in the 'will they or won't they' factor. See Bones.
Who did bone.
It's pretty average and worth watching if you are so bored you are thinking about cutting yourself. Watch this instead of self harming.
Though it may make you want to have shitty tats that are so obscure it takes some cryptographer to figure it out.
In addition to the rather blah main actors, the supporting cast is forgettable as well.
I shall not make any predictions about how long this series will go on because what I like - and what the average person likes - are way different.
I just don't see this as a quality product nor neat enough to push it beyond a 4/10. You can watch it to get through some time but you won't be excited about it.
