November 24, 2007 Bangkok (Thailand)

The end of one of my trips. Suddenly, an idea to start this trip came out a couple of months ago and suddenly, this trip will end up. I am in the Bangkok International Airport now. Last night I arrived at Kaosan Road, which is one of the busiest places in Southeast Asia. That small area was totally different from Cambodia and Laos. Many shops were opened until the midnight and many people hung around. Some tourists were walking with Thai women looking like prostitutes. I felt that town was like Kabuki-cho or other busy places in Japan.

At the beginning of this trip, I saw an English man in the Beijing Airport, as I wrote. He told me, “Bangkok isn’t your place to go. That city is just for sex. There is nothing to do for you.” Now, I can understand what he meant. Reading a today’s newspaper, I found Japan would support Thailand to build a new highway by using Official Development Assistance money. I am very sceptical about this project to help to construct such a huge infrastructure for the country. Is it necessary? Probably yes. Necessary for Japanese business. This investment does not mean interests free.