Arrived at Bossotel Inn, BKK at abt 10am. Mike, who arrived in BKK the nite before, joined us with his backpack. We decided to lunch at Khao San Rd, where Mike stayed the nite before. It was a backpackers' galore at Khao San and you kinda feel like the beach is nearby cos you see foreigners walking around topless (the men that is). Had a good thai meal. Weather in BKK was terribly hot tho. It was scorching hot, dry and humid at the same time. Quite awful really.
June wanted to see the Grand Palace. So we headed there. It was my third time at the palace. When we arrived there, a guard stopped me as sleeveless tops were disallowed. Arrgghh...we knew that we had to wear long pants but didn't realise abt the sleeveless tops. Bahh... I had to buy a blouse from a nearby shop as I refused to use the ones that they were lending to those like me. Sigh.
After the palace tour, we went for a thai traditional massage. It was pretty good. Then we took a thrilling ride on a tuk tuk to Suan Lum for dinner and the nite bazaar. We had another great thai meal. The nite bazaar was quite interesting and had a number of quirky stuff. We made a few good purchases. By the end of the nite, we were beat. The original plan was to check out the salsa bars but we were too exhausted.
Day 2: Roadtrip in thirsty car to Ayuthaya and The Dome at State Tower
The Lonely Planet guide suggested a train ride to Ayuthaya, the ancient ruin city. We arrived at the train station and were told that the train ride would take 2.5 hrs without aircon (yucks!), the next train was at 2pm (it was 12pm then) and the temples close at 5pm. It wasn't worth it. Then the tourist information centre recommended a private taxi which will take us there and back and tour a few temples in the area. After much bargaining, we got ourselves a deal at 600baht per head.
On the highway, the driver pulled aside and said that the car had overheated. With raised eyebrows, we suspected that we were gonna be in for a loooong ride. Shite! The poor driver had no water to cool the car or fill up the radiator. It was also in the middle of nowhere. The driver took his empty mineral water bottle and went to the drain to get filthy water. Eeuuuu... The green looking water looked so dodgy. But after a few refills, the car was able to start. Phew! But after a few km's, the car heated up again. And the driver had to get some more green dodgy filthy water from the drain. The car stopped a couple more times before we finally got to Ayuthaya. OMG what an experience.
There are at least 7 temples in the area but they are not closely located. The first one we visited wasn't that interesting. The second one was the largest temple ruin there and it was quite a spectacular sight. We visited a couple more ruins then decided to head back to BKK.
The ride back was as 'interesting' as our ride there. The car went thirsty on us at least 4 times until we reached our hotel. Hmmph. But the driver felt so bad for us and kept apologising that we didn't have the heart to be upset. On the contrary, we found it to be quite a hilarious adventure. Hehe.
We met some of Mike's friends for dinner. After dinner, Mike took us to witness the magnificent view of BKK from The Dome at the State Tower. It was an awesome view alright. The Dome is located on the 64th floor of the State Tower. Flute, the Champagne Bar is on a balcony that looks out to the city of BKK. It was beautiful. Drinks were however extremely costly. But it was definitely worthwhile standing out on that balcony.
Then we decided to check out Patpong. It was quite an interesting experience. We had walked all the way from Silom since Mike convinced us that it was closeby, based on his map. But it turned out to be a blardy long walk. Tsk...tsk.... But when we got there, it was as if time had turned back. The entire place was so brightly lit with so many activities going on as if it was only 7pm (when it was near midnite) There was a large market with peddlers calling out to us to buy their stuff. Then there were these men who tried to lure us in to watch thai girls shows. They were rather aggresive and kept tugging at and following us. Some bars had their doors opened, so we could see the girls dancing on poles. But they had pretty bored expressions on their faces. I'd actually watched one of those thai girls shows on my last trip and had been quite grossed out. So I wouldn't have enjoyed watching it again. We didn't go for it but what an experience just walking on that street and observing what had gone on. The sight of fat ugly old farangs (thai term for mat sallehs) with pretty thai girls who clung onto their arms was everywhere. How disgusting - ugh!
Day 3: Bargaining at Chaktuchak
It was a full day of shopping. Chaktuchak market was not quite what I had expected. It's helluva huge market with thousands of peddler lots and the market is sectionalised based on the different products that were being sold. But it was like walking into a maze cos there were so many rows of little shops and quite a few shops carried the same things. But stuff there were really cheap and if you had the patience and endurance to walk in the sweltering heat, you may be able to get quite a few good purchases.
After 6 hours of non-stop walking, we were done shopping there yet we prolly had only covered a third of the market. Mike's friends brought us to dinner - yet another yummy thai meal. It seems that everywhere we went, the food was good. After dinner, we went to Sukhumvit to check out the Bed Supper Club - it's the latest and happening club in BKK that emulates a New York concept where beds are put in place of sofas. As it was a Sunday nite, it wasn't happening inside. We just had a look around and left cos we were too cheap to pay the 500baht cover charge. Haha.
Day 4: Floating on Damnoen Saduak
It was an early rise as we had to leave BKK by 7am to get to Damnoen Saduak for the floating market. We had a deal with a taxi guy who agreed to tour 3 places for a total price of 1,500baht. Once we got to Damnoen Saduak, we had to take a long motor boat that took us to the floating market. The boat didn't travel too far before the motor suddenly stopped. OMG! We could not believe it. First a thirsty car, now a hungry boat?! We were beginning to wonder if we were jinxed. Hmm... But after a few chugging sounds, the engine started and we were on our way again. Unfortunately, it stopped a few more times before we got to the floating market. Luckily, the market wasn't too far away, so it was a just a short ride.
The floating market was a nice authentic experience. Eventho it had been commercialised quite a bit as similar peddlers from other markets are seen on both sides of the river calling out to tourists to buy stuff, it was still an interesting market. Especially the part where boats were selling food. We bought 3 bowls of 'kuay teow teng' (rice noodles in soup) from one of the boats and it was good stuff. The market wasn't a big one and we were done with it in less than an hour.
Our taxi guy then took us to a woodcraft factory followed by a wax museum. We had no idea that Thailand had a wax museum. It was apparently a new one. I made a remark wondering how this museum would compare to London's Madame Tussaud's Museum and the other two laughed at me, chiding that it was Thailand and not London. But we were pleasantly surprised and impressed that the wax figures were frikin damn real. Gez who had the last laugh. Muahaha...
The last stop was supposed to be a rose garden but we decided to skip that as we didn't think much of it, particularly when we were told that the entrance fee for it was 400 frikin baht per head. Later back in KL, we were told that the rose garden should not have been missed. Aarrghh.... Oh well...
When we got back to BKK, we decided to check out Siam Paragon - it's BKK's newest and largest shopping centre. We took the skytrain there. Siam Paragon was enormous. Once we stepped into it, I felt as if we were in another city cos the place was so v.modern and the boutiques were fashioned after western concepts. There were designer brands that have not even reached KL. Prices of goods here are also on the extreme end, except for bras. Interestingly enough, bras of regular brands cost less than they do in KL. So June and I went bra-shopping while Mike went his way, checking out the mall.
We got back to Silom for a foot massage. It was a fantastic massage, much better than the first one I had. Then we hopped on a tuk tuk to Chinatown for dinner. Mike brought us to a Chinese Thai restaurant for a seafood meal. It was yummilicious. After that, we went to nearby shop to buy foodstuff that we could bring home. There was this crispy fried version of our local 'bak kua' (meat jerky) that was awesome.
Later we went back to Patpong as June needed to get a bit more shopping done. The place was still buzzing with activities eventho it was a Monday nite. Got the shopping done and went back to the hotel. Our last nite in BKK and we'd spent most of our cash shopping and touring. Mike had to stay on for one more nite as his flight was on Wednesday morning. We pooled all our cash so that we may pass him some cash to spend on his last day and nite in BKK. It was pathetically funny. Haha.
Day 5: Bye bye Bangkok
*Sob*Sob* Our last few hours in BKK. Penniless (almost), we just went to the alley for cheap thai food. Hehe.
We got on the plane at abt 3.30pm and got home safe at abt 6.30pm. Sigh....farewell BKK!
Mike's last nite in BKK: Lucky streak
On day 4, we had gone on the internet to try look for Mike cheap accommodation for his last nite. We managed to get one from the Lonely Planet website at The Urban Age for 200baht. What a steal!
After we dropped Mike off near his hotel on our way to the airport, he went on his way looking for The Urban Age. It was apparently located at a tiny alley off Silom Rd. As he was searching for the signboard, a lady suddenly went up to him and asked him if he were Michael Tan. Naturally, he was a bit flabbergasted. It turned out that The Urban Age was under renovation and the owners felt bad that they were still receiving customers from the Lonely Planet despite them notifying the administrators to update their status on the website.
The building that was to be the hotel was a mess and certainly not fit for occupancy. The owners then offered Mike a clean room that was close to completion since he only needed to sleep in it for a few hours before his flight early next morning. They felt so bad that they decided to offer the room to him for FREE. Not only did he get the room for free, they also offered him complimentary airport transfer. Such an irony. So he ended up having extra cash left in spite of early concerns of not having sufficient cash to last. Haha.
It was an awesome trip. With funny adventures to boot. Excellent company, fantastic food and fabulous shopping. A memorable holiday for sure!
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