Sunday, 13 May 2012

Curious Methods of Transportation

I took a songthaew (pronounced by us forgeniers as "songtaow") for the first time on Friday on our way to this small shopping and dining area called Festival Walk.  A songthaew is basically a converted pickup truck with a couple of benches welded onto the back of it.  They are cheaper then taxis and buses, have a set rout, and stop when you ring a bell.

Also, they have no doors.

When I took it on Friday I was a little freaked out (I am a nervous passenger on good day), but when we took it the next day to get to chatuchak market I was so much more comfortable that I actually fell asleep.

Here is a short video of my view from the songthaew on Saturday:



Just as I thought it would be, the traffic here is crazy.  This video doesn't quite capture it though, so I will try to get a better video of what the traffic is like later.

Along with the songthaew I have taken the public bus system, taxis, a motorbike taxi, and a tuk-tuk.  I was also on a boat for a party on Friday.  Now I just need to do the train system and a rickshaw!


Holding on tight at the back of the songthaew



A less scary ride on a tuk-tuk



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3 comments:

  1. manitoba_momma14 May 2012 at 07:21

    I have tried to post 2 comments but am having no luck. This is just a test.

    ReplyDelete
  2. manitoba_momma14 May 2012 at 07:31

    Yay my comment was posted. Okay now I'll retype what I wanted to say before!

    Your new apartment looks nice. I'm glad you got that sorted out. You are there for a long time so your room is super important.

    I really like your bedspread! I also noticed a couple of cute dresses you've been wearing and was wondering if you got them there?

    The video you posted with you in the converted truck does show some pretty scary traffic ... a motorcycle without his own lane goes in-between your truck and a car - yikes! I can only imagine what it would be like when the traffic is congested.

    I really, really, enjoyed video chatting with you yesterday. So much better than talking on the phone. Your Dad and I will have to get our own camera and we will have to do this with you rather than talking on the phone when possible.

    It is nice to see you out and about in Bangkok taking it all in.

    I'd like to see a picture of your apartment from the outside as well as a picture of the outside of your school and the inside of a classroom as well.

    Lots of Love Mom

    ReplyDelete
  3. Kelsey Romano15 May 2012 at 22:53

    Thanks about the bedspread. I sleep with a top sheet and that light pink blanket, only because it feels unnatural to sleep with no blankets. It's so hot though that I often find that my pink top blanket ends up on the floor.

    Yes, traffic is always scary here, even worse than the video showed. The motorcycles and scooters always swerve between traffic like that...actually it's like that from my experiences most places.

    Yes it was fun video chatting! We will have to do that more often.

    I will get those pictures for you! I will also take pictures of my students because here they do not have policies against that.

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