Blogs from Bangkok, Central Thailand, Thailand, Asia - page 20

Morning in Bangkok at the breakfast buffet. A popular place especially at 7:30 in the morning. Sleeping is way out of whack and no doubt will be looking for some serious afternoon nap today. Not much luck sleeping on the long flight to Seoul, but couldn't keep awake on the short flight (4 hours) to Bangkok. Korean air has probably the worst airline food and TV/movie selection I've experienced yet. But for the price of the ticket, I couldn't beat it. I paid $200 more for the trip here than I did recently for a round trip to Atlanta. How does that make any sense at all? Seems the rains have been heavy in the north, and there is talk of flooding, but not in Bangkok. I did see shops have stacks of sandbags outside their ... read more

Day one is a real bitch. Whatever I got, the accompanying deep-down, throbbing, full-body ache is a new take on the overseas-disease-trying-to-kill-me experience. I also have a 103-degree hallucinatory temperature and a totally debilitating crown-of-thorns headache. But what’s really problematic is I’m supposed to be watching the 2-year old while mama is in Rome. I probably have dengue fever, so I need to not die before the nanny arrives. Day two dawns with vomiting– the kind where you don’t make it and end up dry heaving bile on the bathroom floor before crawling into the shower half-clothed to sleep because the tiles are cool against you face and the bed is a million miles away. The baby finds this behavior alarming, but this is tropical disease suffering luxury: there’s running water, electricity, air conditioning, and child ... read more

Heute auf dem Programm: Bangkok im Regen,,, Wir lassen es morgens ruhig angehen und laufen dann gute 12km durch die Stadt. Eigentlich wollten wir uns das Farang Viertel ansehen, aber irgendwann fängt es dann so an zu schütten, dass wir kapitulieren. Es dauert noch eine Weile ehe wir ein Pier finden um die Chayo Praha Fähre nutzen zu können. An Pier 5 vergeht mir dann kurz alles, als ich mitansehen muss, wie stümperhaft versucht wird eine Leiche aus dem Fluss zu bergen. Gar kein schöner Anblick. Im Regen trotten wir dann zurück zum Hotel und während ich mir eine Massage gönne, lenzt Netti ein wenig im Hotel. Abends geht es dann in die Khao San Road - ein wenig Nostalgie. Das Abendessen ist dann ganz wunderbar - besonders mein Rotes Curry, aber auch Nettis Langusten vom ... read more

Thailand is a world of natural and cultural wonders. Exotic, colorful, historic, Thailand offers a plethora of ancient ruins, rich culture, unusual foods, a rich colorful environment and an amazing opportunity to visit a location very different from home. Preparation is critical. Thailand is HOT and HUMID. It can also be very wet if you go in the wrong season. We chose to go in November, the beginning of the dry season. Stay away from July to October as that is the rainy season. March through June are the HOT, and I do mean HOT season. July through October is the monsoon season where it will rain heavily every day. So the best times are November through February. So choose wisely. Secondly Thailand can be dangerous. The country just lost their King and the government is ... read more

‘Did you see the girl who just walked past us?’ Me: ‘Yea, why?’ ‘I saw her glance at your belt buckle for a second’ Me: ‘Oh’ ‘That’s how people know you are from Chula’ Me: ‘So.. does it mean anything?’ ‘Well, people will look at you, admire your accomplishments. But if you do anything inappropriate while wearing this uniform, you will be judged and criticised for embarrassing the most prestigious university in this Kingdom.’ This is the conversation I had with the Thai friend who is now studying in SG, while we were hanging out in one of the shopping malls near Chulalongkorn University. It never occurred to me that I was being regarded as the elite of any country, at least not how I felt. In here, I am showered with the attention and admiration ... read more