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Published: January 1st 2013
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We made it into bangkok and checked in at our hotel. This hotel is grand. I can't believe we got it for the price and it was so close to where New Year's eve was going to be celebrated. We had time to rest before our night "Illuminated Bangkok" tour. Our guide picked us up and we drove via taxis and tuk tuks to see the night lights of Bangkok. We ate a local dinner at out door stall restaurants and tried many of the local fruits. We were nervous about the food but our guide said that it was safe so we tried it. Dinner for 3 with 3 beers - about $9. Stuff can be cheap. We saw the palace and night, the flower market, other markets and scenery then returned to the hotel about 11:30.
The next morning our guide met us at 10:00 for a day tour of Bangkok. He was worried about the crowds and everywhere we went he said he'd never seen crowds like this. We went back to the palace but got to go inside, went to the standing Budda and reclining Budda, went to another market and tried a new fruit and
then had another great meal. We rode, taxis, tuk tuks and even a ferry for today's transportation. Having a guide was the best thing. He could get us places quickly, talk and negotiate with the tuk tuk drivers....
we got back to the hotel around 4:30. Time for a nap, then we got ready for New Years. I was a little nervous because I heard the crowd would be massive. We left the hotel about 9 and walked toward Central World. The crowd didn't seem so bad. We stopped at an outdoor bar/restaurant at the Renisance hotel and had a couple glasses of champagne, then headed to Central world. we'd seen a restaurant earlier near central world. I never thought we would get in but did and had a pizza and tomato and mozzerala salad and 1 more glass of champage. The price was much more than our cheap food but it was good and it was food. I thought wow, this isn't so bad, not to bad on the crowds...
Boy was I wrong. Before we went the last block to Central world I suggested to shelly we should have a meeting place in case we were
separated. We picked a place near the restaurant. Of we headed and the crowd started to form. It was tight and I didn't like it but it seemed, ok.... Then about 3 minutes before midnight, the crowd started to surge. I have never been so scared. I can see now how people get trampled. You have no control. Shelly and I got separated but never out of eye sight with each other. You had to go into mode to save yourself. brace your feet as far apart as you can. grab people, posts, anything to brace yourself... We gave each other eye contact and said let's get out of here. Slowly we made it out.
Well, I can say we had an adventure. Today we fly to ChangMai. I hope everyone had a happy new year.
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