Our trip started off in the streets of Bangkok. My first real international city, and what better kick-off than the hub of Southeast Asia. Before we would be off in rural Thailand performing our service project, we had two weeks to actually traverse and experience the culture of the country.

I couldn't have asked for an easier first international trip. I was with a group of about 10 people from the USA, complete with Thai translators and tour guides to accommodate us. They took us from place to place, the YMCA had our schedule built out for the entire month. So besides the in-between free time we had to walk around and explore on our own, it was all taken care of.

We checked into our nice hotel and day after day, we would hit the sights. Our translators and tour guides took us from the Grand Palace, to the floating markets; winded our way through the Patong Night Markets and ate amazing thai cuisine - not to mention, the 40 cent beers! At the time, Thailand was just starting to recover from a recession, so the exchange rate was unbeatable - 40 cents to the dollar, and considering everything was already cheap in Thailand, we would all walk away pretty unscathed budget wise.

Massage was one of the cheapest and most prevalent offerings in Thailand - and I was happy to oblige. Due to all the walking (and me, on my first trip, still wearing heels while traveling) I quickly adopted two massages a day - for 50 baht or just over $1 USD. It definitely made walking the streets of Bangkok more bearable.

Massage wasn't always as pleasant, however, and my first full Thai massage was one of the weirdest experiences of my life. Since we were staying at a nice hotel, I figured getting a massage in the spa would have equally nice results. So one of the other YMCA folks and I signed up for a massage, and upon arrival we split into our respective rooms. I stepped into my room which was a big, grand cream colored spa that looked like a giant bathroom of a master suite. The masseuse proceeded to speak to me in Thai (which happened often on this trip) with me urging that I was an American that only spoke English. Eventually she communicated that I needed to get into the bath tub. "Oh, no thank you. I actually just showered. I should be fine," I replied. She started to get impatient with me, speaking between mixed Thai and English, urging me that I needed to strip down and get in the bath tub. "No really, I don't need a bath, I'm clean!" I kept saying. "Get in the bath tub," she kept saying more and more firmly. So finally I gave in, stripped down naked and got in the bath tub. She filled the tub with many two inches of water, and there I sat, in the tub, naked, in barely any water passing the time. She sat on a chair next to me just waiting. "How long do I have to stay in here?" I asked. "I'll let you know," she replied and there I sat motionless. After about 10 minutes, she stood up and said "Get out of the bath," and I stood, she toweled me off and directed me to go on the massage table.

Typically in the USA, you are wearing at least your underwear and covered with a towel as you lay on the table, but that was not the case here. There I lay, completely buck naked on this massage table, still a bit dripping wet, while this lady proceeded to put me through what I was told was "Thai massage" but I can only liken to some form of physical torture. She would bend my arms and legs in directions they were not meant to go, and proceeded to hack at my limbs with her strong hands quickly striking me with pain. She was standing on top of the massage table at some points, pulling both my arms back while standing on my legs to hold them down.

Needless to say, the Thai massages I received after that were not nearly as painful or weird as my first, but beware - the "thai massage" version can be a harrowing experience.

Bangkok was a great introduction to Thailand and the gateway to all of Southeast Asia, but although it was a great intro it was also a city that I grew to dislike. Bangkok by day was full of bustling neon cars, a smiley culture and a welcoming foray into the life of Thai's - and Bangkok by night showed the underbelly of the city - bustling neon signs exploiting human vices to it's seediest content. We walked the famous red light district and witnessed the exploitation of sex with each building with not just women, but children as young as 7 years old standing on the front porch to be sold. Hagglers would come out into the streets and try and drag you into the places to spend money, see the infamous sex shows or take on a prostitute. This was my first introduction to the real problems of the sex trade in this world.

Bangkok was lively, a real city like I've never seen - but dirty in many senses of the word and a city I have grown to appreciate but loathe. 99% of travelers I have come across since my time in Bangkok has shared the same sentiments - no one likes Bangkok.

After a week in Bangkok, we were ready to get out of the seedy city and into the more cultural areas of Thailand. We then proceeded to head north.