Errands in Bangkok

Bangkok, Thailand
March 7, 2017

One thing about being "homeless" while traveling is that there's never any reason to wait to get home to do something - such as errands. Which means if you think you need a haircut, go find somewhere to get a haircuts. If you need to do laundry... you get the idea.

This can sometimes prove tricky, as you have no "go-to's" that you know you are reliable.  But, it almost always proves to be an interesting and sometimes rewarding experience.

I (Scott) had been putting off getting a haircut for weeks, with the busyness leading up to the move, so was pretty ready for a trip to the barber. Especially with temperatures in the high 90's, with high humidity. I popped into the old school-looking barber around the corner from our hotel, one of several we had passed in the neighborhood.

Night view, courtesy of Google Maps, since I didn't snap a photo

Between San Francisco, Mexico, and New York, I've gotten pretty used to getting my hair cut by people who don't share a common language with me, so was pretty sure this would be a smooth affair.  And photos on the wall that assured me I could look like an Asian pop star only enhanced my assurance:

And while I was hoping to get the impressive coif at the bottom of the corkboard:

as a teenage client was getting right before me, I believe my barber decided I was not of a proper generation for such a flashy 'do.  All said, it was probably better than most haircuts I've had in New York, and at $2.85 USD including tip, was more than a tad cheaper.  Although walking around later, I realized I had been charged 50% more than at several other nearby shops, and probably could have saved $0.90.  No photos on this post of my actual haircut - but there are enough photos floating around the social networks that I'm sure most people I know have seen enough of my mug.

One errand accomplished, another necessity was to get some laundry done before leaving the city for a couple weeks at the beach.  Our very friendly and helpful staff at the Villa Phra Sumen Hotel recommended a place just across from my barber, and provided a map, the Thai spelling of the shop, and a note in Thai for the owner pointing out that we'd like same day service.  Even with this preparation, we still had a hard time finding the place - but luckily, the kindly proprietor found us.  And spoke the best English of anyone we'd yet encountered in Bangkok, so no need for written instructions.  Another $2.85 for our wash and fold to be delivered, same day, to the hotel - and again, probably charged about 50% more than other local shops. But laundry guy was just so darn friendly, I'm happy to send business his way.

Paying the bills

Errands complete, we can move on to a well-deserved vacation to the beach!