American Dreamin'...

Bangkok, Thailand

August 17, 2007
N 13°43.165
E 100°31.552

After another day at the Indian Embassy we finally secured our visa for India. Nothing like cutting it close since our flight to Bombay is today. We decided to celebrate our new visas by heading up to the 31st floor of the Hilton for Happy Hour. Why not, especially since it is free, right?

Ascending in the elevator, we stopped at the 27th floor and on came Patrick and his friend, Janis. The previous evening we noticed Patrick and his American accent as we made our way back to our room. We had a brief “elevator conversation” and learned he too was traveling for an extended period of time and his friend Janis, from the Bay Area, was meeting him in Bangkok.

We grabbed a table overlooking the skyline of Bangkok and a few adult beverages and immediately started chatting about our travels and upcoming adventures. After a few minutes Christian, another American from Reno, Nevada joined us. He too is traveling for an extended period of time.

We all commented how rare it is to meet other Americans while traveling abroad. During our travels through South America and South East Asia we have met no more than a dozen Americans. Let alone Americans we consider “travelers”; people traveling for more than six months at a time. It’s even rarer to meet American backpackers and travelers at a swanky Hilton Happy Hour. Of course we were all using Hilton points, credits, and any other sorts of credit possible to avoid paying the exorbitant rates, and all of us were taking advantage of the free drinks, breakfasts and afternoon tea.

Our party then grew to six when yet one more American, Jenny, Christian’s travel partner, joined us. After making sure we all got our fill of free beverages, happy hour came to a close and the crew (all feeling very good now) decided to hit the streets of Bangkok. We wandered down to the pier, jumped on the hotel shuttle boat, crossed the river, and boarded the Sky Train. We found ourselves very close to the location where we enjoyed the woo-hoo show the previous night. Of course we continued drinking, trading stories, sharing dinner, and simply enjoying the company of other Americans.

Many may not understand how lonely it can be for American travelers today. Americans used to be warmly received in nearly any country. There used to be a sense of excitement when fellow travelers or locals discovered you were from the States. People wanted to talk to you and find out what it’s really like in the fabled land of America. Now it’s different; today the world’s perception of America is not a good, and it’s rare to receive a warm reception. Everyone seems to have an opinion about America; however, the majority of the people we meet have never set foot on American soil, or even took the time to have a proper conversation with an American.

A stereo-type has evolved over the past five years that all Americans are arrogant war mongers. And nearly all conversations ultimately lead to the war in Iraq and George W. Bush. No longer do people have sympathy for America and the heartbreaking events of September 11th. Now it seems America is feared, rather than revered.

This obviously makes it very difficult to engage in conversation with non-Americans. Occasionally we find travelers receptive to the idea that the majority of Americans are not fond of war and sincerely regret the tragic mistakes in Iraq. When we stumble upon these unique people we do our best to repair the damaged image of America; attempting to provide a fairly unbiased perspective on America and issues that we’re faced with in today’s world.

It was wonderful to finally meet a few American travelers, listen to familiar accents and stories and especially not have to discuss international politics. It was a nice ending to our perfect time in South East Asia.

Goodbye Bangkok, hello Bombay.