So the story goes…

What was it that lured Ray to Bangkok in the first place? Was it sex and the city? Wine, women and song? Or a just plain old interest in the City of Angels-a literal translation of its other name-Krungthep. Certainly Thailand was on the list of one of the more fascinating places to visit, he’d rocked up from Kathmandu at the time, it had been a choice of heading back to the UK or using the little money he had left for a flight to Bangkok… the choice wasn’t that difficult.

Roughing it

He hadn’t known anyone in Bangkok, not a soul, but he’d been in India and Nepal for the past six months and had heard that Thailand was like Disneyland in comparison-thanks to the hospitality, warmth of the Thais, delicious safe food and the possibility of work.

His first task was to find rock bottom budget accommodation-which happened to be where all the other backpackers used to go; Banglampoo or better known Khaosan Road area which is a stone throw from the Grand Palace.  The guest house he had stayed at offered him a corridor dorm like bed at first, cheap for the price but no guarantee of a good nights sleep. After a while he’d managed to graduate to a room of his own-a tiny squalid roach infested room in the corner of the house with a table fan and no window-pure luxury! Those days were hard, but for 20 Baht a night what more could he expect? This was his first experience of renting in Bangkok. He did however; achieve exactly what he had intended on the budget available at the time. Eventually, Ray gets the job, moves to a condo, meets the rent, meets the girl and finally settles in Thailand. But behind the story of Ray, we can see just how easy it was (well if you can rough it a little) to make ends meet and still manage to make Bangkok our home. Nowadays, similar accommodation still exists in Bangkok but if you don’t fancy roughing it in the city, there is an extensive range of much nicer accommodation from quaint town apartments at moderate rent rates to the super deluxe condominiums that boast wonderful skyline views of the city.  In my book this would come under the category of comfortable living but for the sake of soul enlightenment?

Shopping the area

According to current statistics the city covers an area of 1537 square metres and is now networked not only by a rapid transport system, but also by a high speed global communications and intranet link. Is it any wonder that Bangkok attracts more business investment along with a new breed of executive class resident?

Of course, it would probably be better to do your homework before moving into rented accommodation, it’s not as final as say buying or leasing a property but it would still create a major hassle if you made a mistake. Check out the area you want to move to. How about the amenities, shopping, schools, fitness gyms etc? The more the merrier and the better the class of area. Compare hotel prices with renting, we know that hotels are more expensive but renting also comes with those extra costs like water and electricity etc.-check those out before deciding.  After you have done your homework you are ready to go to the next stage, use a reputable real estate agent to do the rest for you. Companies like Forbest Properties have an extensive list of apartments and condos for rent, a reliable and simple method.

A far cry from a rough and ready patch that Ray had lived in but then again, we shouldn’t forget the old saying  “Enlightenment must come little by little – otherwise it would overwhelm.”

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