SE Asia 2014 Day 27

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This morning we leave paradise. It's sad, because we were just starting to know the names of several of the resort staff and a little bit about them. They are all incredibly cheerful and eager to help. In Thailand, people serving you put their two hands together as if praying and give you a little bow. And the staff here does this every single time they encounter you. Very sweet. I hope they do not think of us only as rich Americans.

Bouncy 45-minute ride to the airport. We have a better chance to see the Koh Samui airport this morning. It's actually really interesting, because it's completely al fresco, a sprawling series of interconnected buildings with roofs but no walls. Once you pass security, you're divided from the non-secure outside by a small moat. The design makes sense, because it never gets cold here, so all you need is protection from the rain. And nature supplies the ventilation.

Back to Bangkok. We are met by a driver and return to the same hotel we stayed at before, the Eastin Grand. Same inefficient check-in. I don't understand why they need a credit-card imprint when the room is completely paid for. They even require an email address. But, as before, the room is lovely.

The eight of us meet at 1:30 and take the sky train to the premier shopping district of Bangkok. There's a bridge from the hotel's 3rd floor that lets us directly access the station. 130 baht ($4.30) gets you a day pass. The sky train moves us very efficiently to the National Stadium stop, an area that boasts three different mega-shopping centres, each with a slightly different price demographic. We opt for the MBK Centre, which is frankly the low end one. It's like a super-size-me version of the Eaton Centre, with (count 'em) seven floors and a couple of anchor department stores. We spend 2 1/2 hours wandering around, enjoying a little slice of upscale Bangkok life, and we make some small purchases. Violet and I even enjoy a DQ blizzard.

We return to the hotel via the sky train and plan the evening. We decide to eat a restaurant called the Blue Elephant right next to the hotel, and then head to the Asiatique Market, which we visited last time in Bangkok, for some last-chance shopping. But when we go to the Blue Elephant, the restaurant is already fully booked for the evening. And it's a Monday! However, we mention to the proprietor that we are planning to hit the Asiatique Market, and he recommends a restaurant (his brother's, maybe?) in that complex. So we make a reservation at that establishment through the hotel for 7 pm and depart on our shopping adventure.

But first, a reunion. The Panda group that departed the week after us and who have been following more or less the same itinerary as us are on the Bangkok leg of their trip and are right now at the same hotel. They are mostly a group of retired Ottawa firefighters, and their tour leader is Tracy, who accompanied us on the flight over. We have several friends and acquaintances in that rowdy gang and enjoy seeing each other again and trading stories. A number of them who are not doing the Koh Samui option will be returning to Canada with us tomorrow.

We regroup at 6 pm and take the sky train in the other direction from our hotel to the banks of the river. There we board a free shuttle boat that ferries us across the river to the Asiatique Market. The boat pulls up to the pier right in front of the restaurant we had reserved. It's great when a plan comes together like that. The restaurant is named Baan Khanitha, and it specializes in classic Thai dishes. Both Violet and I opt for soft-shell crab (in green curry and black-pepper sauce, respectively). Everything is delicious.

We spend about a half-hour more at Asiatique, then retrace our steps (shuttle boat and sky train) back to the hotel. It's now about 9:30 pm, and we have a 3 am wake-up call to look forward to. We repack for the final journey home and hit the hay.

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