The first and second of Jan are public holidays in Thailand. 25th & 26th Dec are just any other day to them and they work. Despite the weather being around 35 degrees c during the day, the Thais still put up Xmas decorations in an attempt to woo tourists and make them feel at home. We spent the first 2 full days of my stay chilling and staying fairly local. Jan 1st could almost have been a day at home since the highlight was a trip to.... wait for it.......... Tesco's!!!! Lunch in the food hall was however, nothing like Brooklands, Weybridge or Addlestone. We proffered my clubcard on my smart phone app to see what would happen. The poor girls didnt know what to do and was going to find the manager to get it sorted, but Andy quickly saw when the joke had gone far enough, and proffered his local one. Dinner was at Best Beef, a BBQ kind of system, where you can eat all you want within a 2 hr frame liit. Oi, as is common with all Thai's loves this system of dining. I have put a review of it up on Trip Advisor, for those who want to know more.
I used the pool at Andy and Oi's condo as my hotel doesnt have one, I decided on Jan 2nd I wanted to go on one of the water taxi's that we saw plying the river alongside the pool, so late afternoon, this is what we did. For something like 50p each we had a long ride.It was maybe for an hour that the small boat plied its way through waterways that interconnect with the Chao Phraya river forming what is technically the Chao Phraya watershed. We wound our way down the backs of properties ranging from the lush and rich riverside mansions to the downright squalid shanties. Herons, dragonflies, lizards and rats were to be seen. I mused on the fact that one of my ex's got referred to as 'The Rat' amongst certain quarters, and wondered if in fact this does rats a disservice as they go about their business not intending to harm unless confronted or endangered themselves. We arrived at the end of the line and wandered down the road, which as it was dusk was beginning to come alive with one of the many night markets to be found in Bangkok. When we had seen enough, we jumped on a songthaew that took us right back to my hotel (http://www.thebedroomsbangkok.com/) where we had a meal together.
Jan 3rd, arrived and I wanted to do tourist things. Oi was meeting her sister, so Andy and I got the Skytrain to Saphan Taksin via the large shopping mall at Siam. By the river at Spahn Taksin, the great tourist rip off began. It sounded so good to go to a floating market by dragon boat, and even if £10 each was expensive, we were promised so much in a trip that would last between 90 mins and 2 hrs. we were ushered into a boat with 2 Hungarians. 4 up seemed to be the norm, but this was no dragon boat it was a slow and noisy river taxi type of boat. We spent 2 hrs doing much the same as we had done for 50p the previous day, but on a different river stretch. One big difference was that the temples are 2 a penny here. The floating market turned out to be one woman with a junk full of overpriced junk. I did however give in to a folding sun hat at 3 times the going rate for a couple of reasons. Firstly that I felt ineed of it then and there, and secondly it was such a good colour match to the outfit I was wearing, and indeed several others in my cases. We opted to get off the boat before the complete circuit at Wat Arun (The Temple of Dawn), an amazing structure covered in ceramic pieces that glisten in the sun. The whole complex is vast; dozens if not hundreds of prayer halls with their own buddhas inside for public use . Many had ceramics on the outside, and encircle the main 'pyramid' which dominates the skyline in this area of Bangkok. We found shires to Ganesh, demonstrating the Bhuddist acceptance of all religions, and felt if we looked long enough we would find one of my beloved Kwan Yin, but the heat was getting the better of me and I preferred to sit with an iced coffee and reflect on the beauty of the shrine as a whole. Andy went off to explore for a while and came back declaring he had found the perfect place to eat. Just outside a side entrance to the Temple were some Thai cafes. Theres no way you would've eaten there without some local knowledge. Without a word of English exchanged I had a delicious plate of glass noodles with prawns and veg with a welcome bottle of water, easy on the chilli and with no MSG for £1.50. Andy speaks Thai but isnt up to explaining the MSG thing. Luckily, as we were ordering a Thai friend of his called him and he asked him to translate for us!
We took a taxi back to Andy's, a slow long trip, that with reflection should have been better if we took the taxi to the Skytrain and then slummed it back across town. We cooked a chicken dinner English style back at his flat and so manged a full day without MSG. Oi was working so we left her a portion of sprouts, 'white carrots (parsnips) and stuffing (All brought with me from UK) to try. Nice enough was the verdict but why no chilli??
So now it was time for Andy to see me home to my hotel. Its not really far - under a mile perhaps, but in this heat its not easy to walk far. Motorbike taxis hang around outside many condo blocks. You dont have to be a passenger even, you can send them to pick up a pizza for you or get some shopping at a about 40p a mile. Andy asked me if I wanted a taxi car to get home (£1) or if I wanted to climb on the back of a bike it would be quicker and cheaper. Something told me to go for it, and I jumped on the back (well not quite as agile as that) and off we went down the busy Sukhumvit Road - no crash helmet or protective clothing, wind tussling my hair. It was an amazing few mins for me and I again experienced a freedom I have not had since I was about 17, and found myself watching dawn break over Skipsea Sands, with Bob Dylan's Mr Tambourine Man playing in the background, perfectly summing up the situation and emotion of the moment.
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Take me on a trip upon your magic swirlin' ship
My senses have been stripped, my hands can't feel to grip
My toes too numb to step, wait only for my boot heels
To be wanderin'
I'm ready to go anywhere, I'm ready for to fade
Into my own parade, cast your dancing spell my way
I promise to go under it.
>>>>>>>
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