Oh dear me. Time check: 445pm, and all my bags are still lying around unpacked. The original plan was to unpack, organise, and clean my room by... an undefined time, so technically speaking I haven't actually deviated from the supposed "plan" (or lack thereof), but I definitely did not expect to spend the whole day doing nothing? Sometimes time just flies by.
Anyway! I'm back in Singapore after a very exhausting four days in Bangkok. Every family vacation has its own characteristic element of chaos and the occasional friction, but it was a good trip all in all. It was actually my first time in Bangkok and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I mean, I knew it would be a crazy shopping paradise and that coming from a country with a relatively stronger currency meant I could really spend with no inhibitions. Thing is, the one thing that makes me feel almost guilty about spending that much (in terms of foreign currency) is the thought in me that makes me wonder why I get to have that kind of spending power? There's no real answer I suppose, apart from...the lot we get in life. The place and position we are born into. If I had been born someplace else into a different family my entire life would be different. Sometimes I wonder why I have been blessed enough to be born into a life where I can live comfortably, while another might have had to live a life of struggle, or a life in fear.
Personally, I find it confronting to visit cities like Bangkok where you see the rich and the poor, the high-rise buildings and the slums, the fancy restaurants and the street-side vendors all juxtaposed in one scene. The poor are almost always trapped in a cycle of poverty while the rich just get richer. As I walked down the streets one afternoon, I was plagued with thoughts about how unfair life could be, and how it's possible for some of the poorest people to survive. It seems impossible to me, but I guess the will to live or maybe the natural instinct for survival is a lot stronger than I can imagine. The root of poverty and the subsequent exploitation of humans is a problem I doubt anyone could ever solve. All these thoughts actually left my heart really heavy, but ultimately I knew in my heart that I didn't have the power to resolve these issues that are so deep and so entrenched within so many other issues like politics and organised crime and what have you...I told myself that it wasn't my responsibility.
But if everyone thought like me, nothing would ever change. I don't know what my responsibility is in this. Prayer? I just wish the government would do more for the people of their country. I don't know what could be done, but I'm not a politician and I don't have the abilities or the capacity to be one either...
Anyway...how terribly dreary. On a much brighter note, I just booked tickets to Hong Kong and I can't wait to revisit that city after 6 years? Maybe even 7 years! I love Hong Kong, even more so now that I've started watching TVB dramas again...hopefully I'll accidentally (on purpose) bump into Raymond Lam or some other TVB star on the streets of Hong Kong! Just kidding.
Some random pictures from Bangkok...I didn't bring my camera so I used my phone. These pictures are all up on instagram, so they're probably nothing new. I have more photos in my phone, but I'm too lazy to load them onto my computer now. I should probably start organising all my stuff before the day is over. Malas
 |
| Crazy traffic congestion |
 |
Bangkok Soi xx
|
 |
| (Part of the) Bangkok skyline |
 |
Some rural area in Khao Yai, was actually really nice
 |
| Obligatory touristy shot |
|
