Erawan House, Bangkok: A Rough Dawn Arrival
I don't know how many hours we drove, but it was 5 AM by the time I arrived in Bangkok. Catching a taxi at the Bangkok bus terminal at 5 AM is ridiculously hard, and even if they turn off the meter, you're just grateful they're giving you a ride at all. When we arrived and the driver asked for 300 THB, I felt a complicated mix of annoyance and sheer relief. After getting completely ripped off, I made it to Rambuttri (an alley near Khaosan Road), where, naturally, there wasn't a single room available. After lugging a 50-liter backpack on my back and a regular backpack on my front to six different places, I honestly considered just sleeping on the street.
Then, miraculously, I found exactly one room left at Erawan House and took it. It was 750 THB, making it the most expensive room I've stayed in, but the facilities were just so-so and my mood was equally mediocre. I ended up spending 1,000 THB just to sleep for one night. That's about 40,000 KRW, and seeing myself get upset over this amount makes me realize I must be fully adapted to Thailand by now. I didn't even take a single photo here. I woke up around 2 PM, figured the day was a wash, and wandered around Khaosan Road, but after going there for three days, it's just whatever now. From what I've heard, Khaosan guesthouses used to offer ridiculously cheap rates and served as a true basecamp for real hippies and backpackers. Now, they've added modern amenities and turned into 20,000 to 30,000 KRW rooms. Sure, by my standards, that's still incredibly cheap, but it almost feels like losing a piece of cultural heritage. Backpacking like a hippie is getting harder and harder these days.