Gyms

There are two main fitness chains in Bangkok- they can be joined for as little as 900 baht per month. Each chain has multiple locations in frequently traveled spots (malls, BTS stops).

California Wow

www.californiawowx.com/

True Fitness

www.truefitness.com/

If you prefer coping with the heat to run in the city, here are a couple parks that have running trails. There are always park police working, so it's very safe.

Lumphini Park
Located at the Sala Daeng BTS stop


Queen Sirikit Park
Located at the Phrom Pong BTS stop

Food

Soi Food
Almost every neighborhood has an area with soi (street) food.
How much:
Soi food- Can be as cheap as 20 baht (for chicken satay) or as expensive as 50 baht (for bigger dishes). Either way, street food will cost no more than 50 baht (about $1.50). Fresh fruit smoothies will cost about 20 baht (65 cents), and fresh fruit will cost about 10 baht (30 cents). Water, coke and tea from street vendors will cost about 10 baht (30 cents).

Thai restaurants
It's the same food you'll find on the street... just at higher prices.
How much:
Thai dishes will be anywhere from 90-200 baht at a moderately priced Thai restaurant, so up to $7.


Here are some of the staple dishes Thailand:

Mango Sticky Rice

Just as it sounds... fresh mango with sticky rice served with warm cream and crisped rice.

Som Tom

This is spicy papaya salad- very spicy and fresh.

Cow Pad

This is fried rice. If you want fried rice with chicken, you'd say "cow pad guy" (guy means chicken).

Pad Thai

This is probably the most famous Thai dish with noodles, peanut sauce, tofu and your choice of meat.

Pad Kra Preaw

This is a mix of pork and peppers with rice. It's a really, really spicy dish, so proceed with caution.

Tom Yum

This is lemon grass hot & sour soup, usually served with shrimp.

Health Insurance

Okay. Here's the big one... the question everyone's parents keep asking again and again. Will you be safe and covered in Thailand? The answer is yes and no. We do receive some health insurance over here, but it's not full coverage. This past year, one of the Baylor students had his appendix removed in Bangkok. Our health care covered part of the cost, and but his American insurance had to pick up the rest. I would suggest coupling your Thai insurance with traveler's insurance.

That being said... When you get sick where do you go?


I highly recommend Samitivej Hospital, Located on Sukhumvit 49 (Phrom Pong or Thong Lor stop on the BTS). It's one of the best private hospitals in Bangkok- it's absolutely pristine. They have an entire floor for foreigners where all the staff speak English. Everyone I know who's gone here has received excellent care.

www.samitivejhospitals.com/

Transportation

BTS (Sky Train)

Open: 6am-12pm
The sky train travels North and South in Bangkok.
Individual tickets can be purchased at station kiosks- prices are based on distance, from 15 to 45 baht.
You can also purchase BTS cards (20 rides, 30 rides, 40 rides) for discounted prices if you ride enough.


MRT (Underground Train)

Open: 6am-12pm
The MRT travels East and West in Bangkok.
Individual tickets can be purchased at station kiosk- prices are based on distance.


Taxi

Unlike New York City, taxis in Bangkok are not only yellow… they are also pink, green, orange and purple. Most likely, if you see a brightly colored car, it’s going to be a taxi. The taxi meters starts at 35 baht, and on a traffic-less night, you can get across the city for 100 baht. But traffic is usually terrible in the city, so taxis are the worst way to get somewhere quickly.
You cannot pay for a taxi with a 500 baht or 1,000 baht bill, because they might not have change. Make sure you bring smaller bills (20 or 100 baht) to pay.
At night, sometimes taxis turn off their meters and try to charge a flat rate, which is massively inflated. Walk down the road a little until you find a taxi willing to use the meter.


Tuk-Tuk

They will take you short distances, usually more quickly than taxis because they can fit in small areas. You’ll find tuk-tuks in touristy areas, major intersections and some public transportation stops. Negotiate the price before you get in. Don't ever pay more than 200 baht for a tuk-tuk, and sometimes you can get them as cheap as 40 baht (in non-touristy areas).


Motorbike

You can recognize motorbike taxis by their orange vests. You will spot them driving or sitting in groups at major intersections. They will take you short distances in about half the time of a taxi, because they can have a higher speed limit and drive between lanes of cars. This isn’t the safest way to travel, but it’s probably the fastest. Ask for a helmet! A motorbike ride for a short distance will be about 20-30 baht.


Busses

Busses are the slowest and cheapest form of transportation in the city. Some of the busses without air-conditioning are even free. When you get in, tell the cashier where you’re going and ask how much. A bus fare will typically be free to 25 baht.

Thai Cellphones

If you have an older phone and charger from America
…Bring it to Bangkok.

If you have an iPhone or Blackberry you want to use
…Bring it and you can get it unlocked to use the local network

If you don’t have an older phone
…Don’t worry. You are moving to the best city for cheap, older phones. You can buy phones at MBK (famous market-style mall at the National Stadium BTS stop) for as cheap as 500 baht. There are at least 50 kiosks where you can buy phones at MBK.



SIM Cards
You can buy a SIM card at any 7-11 counter (I use 1-2-Call, but any provider will work).
You can buy a SIM card at MBK when you purchase your phone.

Minutes
You can buy minutes in increments of 50 baht at 7-11. I found that 100 baht of minutes lasts me through the week. Tell the cashier that you want "100 baht, 1-2-call" and it'll work like magic. They'll hand you a slip of paper with a sequence of numbers. To top off your account press...
*120* (Enter in sequence of numbers) # Send

Calling Out
You can buy a calling card to call America- they are very reasonably priced, and you'll be charged for a local call. If you use Hatari calling cards, they have a "call-back" feature so you won't be charged for a local call (receiving calls costs nothing).

Calling In
Let's just say your Thai phone number is 0856286635
If your family or friends want to call you from America, they would dial 66-856286635. So add the "66" and drop the "0."