Cities: Bangkok

Of the cities that I have been to, three really stand out as my personal favourites. Bangkok, Xi'an and Rio De Janeiro. I have tried my best to narrow down to one but as each of these cities are just so different to each other its impossible. Looking back at the sentence I have just written I think it gives a good explanation as to why I loved each city - they each have a completely unique personality to them.

So many cities can fit into one of two categories and can almost be seen as pretty much one identi-kit building after another. One that springs to mind is Kuala Lumpur. Whilst I did enjoy the time I spent there, (the Petronas Towers are spectacular) I never got the feeling that the city had a personality. It seemed to me like a big patchwork consisting of influences from every culture that mixed together to create a clean, but not particularly engaging environment. Both myself and Lauren came away with the feeling that the city had lost all sense of being a Malaysian city, and tried far too hard to become a European metropolis, without any of the history.

One city that can in no way be described as soulless, however, is Bangkok. One one hand you have the incredible Grand Palace, Wat Arun and Wat Pho, and on the other you have Khao San road - both the most touristy and intensely Thai area I have ever been to. The buildings and temples are brilliant, as the locals are keen to point out. Although keep an eye out, as most of the time a friendly passer-by informing you about the opening times of a certain attraction is most likely a scout for the main scam in the city. DO NOT get a tuk-tuk without first arranging a price, destination and agreement by the driver not to take you anywhere else. Generally they will try anyway though - if that's the case, get out and get a taxi on the meter. To be honest, unless you want to go out of town or head to the financial district - walk. None of the main central sights are further than a 20 minute walk.

It is a sad fact that tourists are the prime target for dodgy tuk-tuk drivers and people looking to make a quick buck out of you - but don't let that put you off for a second. Apart from the few looking for any opportunity to rip you off, the vast majority of people are there to be friendly, helpful and love sparking up a conversation (whether you want to or not!)

The food in Bangkok is amazing, as expected, but try to find places just off of Khao San. The food is generally better quality and cheaper literally 5 minutes walk from the centre. The local specialities never fail to impress, just watch out for the Thai yellow/red curry. They bring about a whole new meaning to the words: Hot food.