{"id":3761,"date":"2024-12-09T19:16:00","date_gmt":"2024-12-09T19:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/?p=3761"},"modified":"2026-02-24T13:30:58","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T13:30:58","slug":"the-exciting-exhilarating-exhausting-moving-picture-bangkok","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/2024\/12\/09\/the-exciting-exhilarating-exhausting-moving-picture-bangkok\/","title":{"rendered":"The exciting, exhilarating, exhausting, moving picture &#8211; Bangkok"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>City lights, bright, windows luminescent orange, or white,<br>Towers, bridges, city streets, a colour explosion.<br>Dark but so much to see and can be seen,\u00a0<br>Night is just a concept here where sleep does not occur,<br>For some yes, but these streets never stop, the life never fades,<br>Changes, metamorphoses, as the glow of day becomes that of night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"473\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241030_120709-1024x473.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3777\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241030_120709-1024x473.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241030_120709-300x139.jpg 300w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241030_120709-768x355.jpg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241030_120709-1536x710.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241030_120709-2048x946.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241030_120709-130x60.jpg 130w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"473\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241108_181357-1024x473.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3766\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241108_181357-1024x473.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241108_181357-300x139.jpg 300w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241108_181357-768x355.jpg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241108_181357-1536x710.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241108_181357-2048x946.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241108_181357-130x60.jpg 130w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Time, like the streets, so fast,\u00a0<br>Pace changed from Lanta island life,<br>The calendar plays on fast forwards as we move among the madness,<br>Yet somehow organised, a rhythm to the streets,<br>Train, bus, taxi, tuk tuk,<br>Scooters buzz by as feet pound the pavements,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Novelties become noise. Ears, eyes, head fatigued,<br>But a moment in an oasis, sought out, revived,<br>And the charm twinkles once again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tour today, boat across the river,<br>New alleys, graffiti streets, art by design,<br>Art without design &#8211; the route itself,<br>Cafes and coffee shops hidden, unless you know where to look,<br>Amongst the mechanical debris of the past, life flourishes,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:100%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"473\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"3767\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133000-473x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3767\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133000-473x1024.jpg 473w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133000-139x300.jpg 139w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133000-768x1663.jpg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133000-710x1536.jpg 710w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133000-946x2048.jpg 946w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133000-28x60.jpg 28w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133000-scaled.jpg 1183w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 473px) 100vw, 473px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"473\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"3768\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133556-473x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3768\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133556-473x1024.jpg 473w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133556-139x300.jpg 139w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133556-768x1663.jpg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133556-710x1536.jpg 710w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133556-946x2048.jpg 946w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133556-28x60.jpg 28w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_133556-scaled.jpg 1183w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 473px) 100vw, 473px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Old streets here, hipster corner there,<br>Street food carts, booming golden shopping centres,<br>A thirty minute walk along the pulsing streets,\u00a0<br>No doorways &#8211; too hot,<br>In England there would be walls, here everything open,<br>Maybe everyone welcome,\u00a0<br>In these city places, so many faces,<br>One large sprawling body, yet a million souls within.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"473\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241121_112840-1024x473.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3772\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241121_112840-1024x473.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241121_112840-300x139.jpg 300w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241121_112840-768x355.jpg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241121_112840-1536x710.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241121_112840-2048x946.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241121_112840-130x60.jpg 130w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Open-air barber shop<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG-20241103-WA0002-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3771\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG-20241103-WA0002-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG-20241103-WA0002-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG-20241103-WA0002-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG-20241103-WA0002-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG-20241103-WA0002-107x60.jpg 107w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG-20241103-WA0002.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Buying rice pancakes at our local market<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"473\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_150651-1024x473.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_150651-1024x473.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_150651-300x139.jpg 300w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_150651-768x355.jpg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_150651-1536x710.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_150651-2048x946.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241107_150651-130x60.jpg 130w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Up-market shopping centre<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Roaming, exploring this endless maze,\u00a0<br>Entering the markets of Chinatown,<br>We follow in line, one way or the other,\u00a0<br>Don\u2019t stop or get out of step, the whole passage will stutter and falter.<br>Things, so many things, colours, trinkets galore,<br>So many eyes gazing, glazing, but barely one stops to look,<br>The attraction is being here, being in it, observing without partaking.<br>Does anyone ever sell anything? Surely they don\u2019t sell enough, how do they survive,<br>Surrounded by their pile of stuff?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Large roads lead to back alleys,<br>Shop here, houses there, sometimes one and the same,<br>Tin roofs sit beside skyscrapers,<br>Everywhere, everything, a juxtaposition,<br>City bling and poverty, ways of life old and new,\u00a0<br>All play their part in this reality,<br>The exciting, exhilarating, exhausting, moving picture &#8211; <br>Bangkok.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"472\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241027_200828-1024x472.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3770\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241027_200828-1024x472.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241027_200828-300x138.jpg 300w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241027_200828-768x354.jpg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241027_200828-1536x709.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241027_200828-2048x945.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/IMG_20241027_200828-130x60.jpg 130w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">View from our balcony &#8211; embracing our month of big city life<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>City lights, bright, windows luminescent orange, or white,Towers, bridges, city streets, a colour explosion.Dark but so much to see and can be seen,\u00a0Night is just a concept here where sleep does not occur,For some yes, but these streets never stop, the life never fades,Changes, metamorphoses, as the glow of day becomes that of night. Time, &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3779,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[317,24],"tags":[383,384,253],"class_list":["post-3761","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-musings","category-thailand","tag-bangkok","tag-city-streets","tag-thailand","latest_post"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3761","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3761"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3761\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3780,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3761\/revisions\/3780"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3779"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3761"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3761"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3761"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}