For the past couple days I have been in hot pursuit of a humble abode in this urban behemoth of a city. Sure, I did lots of apartment shopping via the internet before I left. But I knew that I would have to wait to actually do the real nitty, gritty pavement pounding. No amount of cleverly shot pictures or enticing facilities lists can make up for a first hand perspective of a place. Back in the US I had no concept of the distance between locations, the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ neighborhoods, or even the true size of the available rooms. So, as much as I delude myself into believing the hours I spent looking at hundreds of apartments online was constructive, it really comes down to seeing it in the flesh. All that research was simply to give myself a false sense of control.
Going out hunting was an intimidating, exhausting, and, in some instances, demoralizing experience. Granted, I learned my way around the BTS system and began to construct a mental map of the city, both valuable and necessary developments. But this was no cake walk. I was relying on a maps with missing scales and piecemeal thai. I was, without a doubt, at the mercy of Bangkok. For the most part, the City of Smiles was good to me. She offered many kind motor-taxi drivers, a few english speaking strangers, two well-timed rain showers, and a fair share of miraculous moments. I really can’t complain.
On my first day out I stubbornly insisted that even though I was experiencing raging jet lag and mild dehydration I should walk for the majority of the day. It was a great idea... in theory. My penny-pinching-self simply couldn’t justify spending a dollar here or there on a taxi. Needless to say, Bangkok demonstrated a host of reasons why I was being a stupid American. I got lost, sweat profusely, and ended up, quite literally, kissing the pavement. In retrospect, it was pretty amusing:
I had just successfully found and viewed two apartments within the hour, one of which had a smidge of potential... I was feeling good. So, like any person grasping at straws, I was slightly proud of myself. Proud enough that there was a cheery bounce to my walk as I made my way down a busy road while mentally stroking my ego, ‘See Kate, you CAN do this!’. I was confidently paging through the pages of PDF’s I had saved to my touch looking for the map of the next prospect... paying no attention to simple, but necessary, act of putting one foot in front of the other (save for the bouncing bit). Then, BOOM, I was on the ground. I had fallen flat on my face, my palms and knees breaking the fall, in front of about 20 people at a bus stop. Total ego buster. I hopped up, brushed off, swallowed my pride, and hailed the next taxi. Luckily, I only have a bruised knee to show for it. It is a lovely combination of lavender and chartreuse right about now.
Another comedic moment occurred when I was viewing apartments in the Victory Monument business area which is within comfortable walking distance of the university campus. In merely looking at a map this was an ideal spot for me to find a place. In reality the streets were choked with traffic and the sidewalks packed with constant people-jams. The buildings were aged, dingy and unkept. Prospects were fading but I soldiered on, envisioning a hidden retreat in the midst of the chaos. Fat chance. The place I was interested in was located on the corner of a bustling intersection. Cars were honking, jackhammers were banging and trains rumbled by. At this point I knew I would find no peaceful abode but decided to view an apartment anyways, just in case it was a diamond in the rough. I inquired and entered a well-appointed room. I made my usual inspection; assessing the density of the bed (most thai beds are unreasonably hard), verifying an American-style toilet, visually checking the AC unit, and looking at the view. I pulled the curtains back and in the middle of the window were two distinctly bullet shaped holes. You have got to be kidding me. I looked in the bathroom and there FOUR more. Surely, I was imagining this. There had to be some explanation. I inquired at the reception desk. The man giggled and explained that, yes, those were in fact bullet holes but not to worry as no one had died in that room. They were just from the ‘small protest’ ( a reference to what I know now to be 10,00 plus people gathering at that square) that happened in May and the tenant had been out when the ammunition had entered the apartment. ‘Grreeeeaaat,’ I thought, ‘that’s the kind of reassurance I was looking for. Not.’ His bright eyed, inquiring look seemed to wonder why I would not want to whip out my fountain pen and sign a contract right then and there. I quickly bid him adieu and nixed all other apartments in that area.
All in all, the good news is that I have narrowed it down to two apartments. I have probably viewed 20+ and might view a few more tomorrow. The only area I have yet to look in is the neighborhood where the other Mercer alum who are working with ServiceFirst are living. It is not convenient to my university but is accessible by BTS and there would be an added benefit of living near people I know. I am not sure, however, how much I will find there. Tomorrow will tell.
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