Blogs from Bangkok, Central Thailand, Thailand, Asia - page 696

It's really hard to keep track of time out here. I was hanging out with some of my new found Canadian friends yesterday trying to figure out what day it was. Is it Sunday? No, it's Saturday. No, I really think it's Sunday. What about the date? 7th? 8th? Not sure. Well, as I sit here in front of the computer, it's now Monday morning (that means it's Sunday afternoon in California!). Yesterday was an eventful day and I have to admit, I'm a bit sad to leave Bangkok. Later this morning I have a flight to Phuket (pronounced Poo Ket), an island off the west coast of Thailand that was moderately impacted by the tsunami. Although heading to the beach is always a good thing, I'll miss some of my new found friends... Let's rewind ... read more

On 2006 Jan 5 Thursday, in ChiangMai Sleep in, got up and pack using the new backpacks (with wheels). After checkout, we walked to the market and bought a pair of sandals for Phyllis. The old pair broke in two. Since we still have a few hours left before we get picked up for the 7:00 pm bus to Bangkok, we went for a 2-hour massage. Knowing the cost of massage will be high in Bangkok and in the islands, this maybe the last time for massage in Thailand. At around 6:30 pm, a tuk-tuk picked us up to a gas station where we board the bus to Bangkok. The bus has a capacity of about 35 passengers and quite spacious. The journey took about 10 hours, and the bus stopped twice, the first time for ... read more

Only one night left, and since Christine and I are flying out at 8am tomorrow morning, we really don't have the whole night. We have to be at the airport tomorrow morning by at least 5am, and the airport is minimum an hour from our hotel, so we are going to have to get up at 3am! I am considering not even going to bed tonight. That way I will be exhausted on the plane and not worry so much about the bumps. In other words, I won't be such a baby during turbulence :) Anyway, I must say, the best night's sleep I have had yet on this trip was last night. I am sure the alcohol helped a bit, but for some reason, the sleeper car bed was the most comfortable I have had ... read more

That's the best way to describe Baiyoke Sky Hotel. I'm on the 68th floor (rooms only go to floor 74; restaurants and other facilities occupy the upper floors with observation decks on the 77th and 84th floors - the latter is an outdoor revolving one). The room is extremely luxurious with a huge bathroom, a separate office area, a dining alcove, dessing area, and two windows overlooking Bangkok far below. I'm wearing a really cool Baiyoke bathrobe as I type this. My room is so high that my cellular service is very intermittent, however (Tim and I tried to call each other several times but after the signal kept dropping, I finally called her successfully from the bathroom phone - the bedroom phone had interference). Riding in the second elevator from the 18th floor lobby, my ... read more

Ok forget frankie goes to hollywood for now. I'm sure every second blog in the Bangkok section is called "one night in bangkok" (including my other one). It's good to be not sick anymore (after a good relax and a long perusal of "lonely planet") and it's fantastic to be a bit more clued-up about the place we're staying in. Purchased a bus map for 69 baht (hehe) and that has saved a lot of cash - plus the price was hilarious. The way that the bus map works is all the route numbers are above each stop so you find where you want to go and where you're at now, if any numbers match up you yell out "bingo" (not quite) and wait for that bus to come along. Only costs you about 6 baht ... read more