One (no four) Nights in Bangkok - October, 2015

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1(no 4) Nights in Bangkok



This next adventure goes West (to hang out in the East) - always good to switch it up for variety. Another fairly decent 7:30am departure flight, so I didn’t have to drag my butt out of bed at zero dark thirty, as I usually do. I picked up some type of bug while in Turkey and am now fighting a low grade fever, plus coughing like a 2-pack- a-day smoker. Obviously more alcohol is required to kill all germs present. Soon as I board my first flight, I’ll be ordering double shots of bourbon. First leg has me back in Seattle for the 5th time in the past six weeks – it’s almost getting old, except for my favorite window seat in the Delta Sky Lounge. I left Vegas in warm sunshine and brilliant blue skies – Seattle greets me with rain, heavy overcast skies and the mercury hovering in the low 50’s. But on the positive side, Bangkok is close enough to the equator that it will be heat, humidity and sunshine day after day after day – something to rely on.



By the time I landed at Narita, I had coughed and hacked my way across the North Pacific – my fellow passengers must have been convinced they were flying with Typhoid Mary. My chest ached from shoulders to belly button and I sure didn’t need an early Halloween mask – I already looked like death warmed over. I had a 2-hour layover in Tokyo which gave me the opportunity to lie down in the Sky Lounge, but then it was back onboard my final flight. It is a 7-hour run across southeast Asia to reach Bangkok and I was more than happy to land 30 minutes early – I have been traveling now nonstop for the past 22 hours. We were the only international flight landing which made clearing customs and immigration a breeze, and as I hadn’t checked any luggage, I was able to quickly exit into the Arrivals Hall to find my car service driver waving my name sign above his head. I adore this country, all this hands together as if in pray and bowing, only bolsters my god complex (which doesn’t take much, I admit). My driver didn’t speak a word of English, but I gave his bowing top marks. I had forgotten how oppressive and suffocating Bangkok’s humidity is and upon exiting the terminal, it hit me like a roasting sauna. Thankfully bowing man had the Mercedes sedan right at the curb with the a/c blasting and we were off to downtown. It’s a 50-minute drive from the airport to my hotel – it took most of that time for me to stop sweating and dry off.



Bangkok boasts a number of Hilton brand hotels – many of which I have stay in previously – but the jewel in their crown for this region has to be my all-time favorite, the Millennium Hilton situated on the banks of the Chao Phraya river which is the city’s main waterway. It is a 31-floor building and I had been upgraded to a deluxe suite on the 29^th, with sweeping views of the river and downtown – it’s simply breathtaking.







Their Executive Lounge has a 360-degree viewpoint from the top floor and probably wins first prize in my estimation for the best one in Asia. But that is for tomorrow – first I need to settle into my room. Within minutes my door bell rings and in comes my floor’s concierge with my hand luggage and proceeds to unpack it! Someone wants to hang up my jeans and tee shirts, who am I to argue? That was quickly accomplished and he selected two pieces which were badly wrinkled from the trip and informed me he would press them and return within 20 minutes, which is exactly what happened. Geez, I could get used to this – I’m definitely in danger of being severely spoilt on this trip.







The bathroom is to die for – all glass enclosed with brown bamboo blinds for privacy. No super bright lights, but lamps glowing a soothing yellow against the glass walls and orchids placed on countertops. Can this get any better, but of course it can. The shower had the requisite waterfall shower head (my personal favorite as many of you already know from previous blogs), and luxury toiletries abounded. Large bath sheets hung from heated towel racks and from inside the room, I could see right across my entire suite to the massive picture window on the outside wall. Concierge man asked if there was anything else and as I was about to say “no thanks”, when he asks if he can draw a bath for me – is this guy for real? Again, who am I to argue? Go for it dude. Next thing I know, he has the bathtub 2/3 filled with piping hot water, Jacuzzi jets bubbling, bath oil poured and orchids floating on the surface, before he says good night and leaves. There will be no living with me after this trip, I will expect similar service back home – LOL. I can’t get out of my travel-stained clothing fast enough. Sinking up to my chin in hot perfumed water- it damn sure doesn’t get any better than this. I almost fell asleep in this watery paradise but finally dragged myself out and wrapped up in the warm bath sheet like an Egyptian mummy ready for burial. I couldn’t stay awake any longer and the Hilton Heavenly bed was calling my name.



Morning arrived before I could turn over twice and in spite of a banging headache, aching lungs and blocked sinuses I HAD to have some coffee. Just two floors up to the Executive Lounge and upon being greeted by a bowing receptionist, I was escorted to a window table directly over the river. It took 2 cups of excellent coffee and 2 glasses of fresh-squeezed orange juice before I could even think about food. Not feeling all that well, I settled for fresh fruit with plain yogurt and read the International New York Times to catch up on world events. Watching the river is always entertaining – river traffic is heavy, especially with barges plying their trade and dragon speed boats, whipping from one side to the other, transporting passengers from pier to pier. The Millennium Hilton has its own private pier and shuttle, which I will be using in the coming days.







As a side note, today is a very special one. I celebrate emigrating to the USA many moons ago – hard to believe I have come as far as I have – time flies when you’re having fun, that’s for sure. I have a few sightseeing events planned and the first one starts at 3pm this afternoon. I needed the morning to recover as much as possible from the past two days….



My tour guide arrived early and met me down in the hotel lobby at 2:15pm – works for me, I don’t have enough energy to last too much longer today – I will be crashing in a matter of hours, that’s for sure. I chose this relaxed afternoon cruise for this exact purpose, I knew I would still be in recovery mode. First one of the dragon long boats came alongside the Hilton pier and other than an older white guy sitting up front and the boat driver, apparently I was the only other guest on this shindig – I like that. It was overcast but still quite warm – thankfully the humidity wasn’t nearly as overwhelming as it has been last night – I could even breathe (somewhat). Climbing into this speed boat was an adventure- once again, thank all the gods on high for stretch jeans. And off we went, throttle wide open and the bow lifting clean out of the water as we sped down the river, passing numerous other water vessels loaded down with tourists – I felt quite special, virtually having this dragon boat all to myself. We spent the next hour first on the river, before turning off into the klongs (canals), and into the residential areas. Talk about an eclectic neighborhood – falling down shacks next to Buddhists temples and even a couple of halfway decent brick-built homes – they had the entire spectrum covered. This is life on the waterways of Bangkok, exactly as you see it in endless movies.







From there we transferred to an old rice barge which has been refurbished as a tourist boat to cruise the river, and we spent another hour in a different section of the city. This time, I actually got served some alcohol (Thai whiskey) along with fresh juice and fruit as snacks. This barge brought me back to the Millennium Hilton pier by 4:30pm and I was about to head back to the room for a shower and a nap, when I remembered the executive lounge was in the middle of serving Afternoon Tea. Again I was seated by the window and in seconds, here came the tea pot, the scones, the strawberry jam and the clotted cream – they have this English routine down pat. It was jasmine tea and delicious. I spent a pleasant hour watching the incredible views over Bangkok from the lounge, before returning to my room and jumping into the shower. It’s a very early night for me – I have a full day sightseeing planned tomorrow and the tour bus arrives downstairs at 7am.



I managed to stay awake until almost 9pm before finally crashing last night but as with the previous nights, I spent most of it coughing, wheezing, trying to clear my sinuses and generally feeling “under the weather” such is life on the road. Today’s day tour was starting early, so as soon as The Flow Restaurant down on the first floor opened, I headed down there for breakfast. It was just sunrise as I grabbed a waterfront table right next to the shuttle pier – it was a perfect morning to eat outside and the humidity was bearable this early. This is one beautiful restaurant and serves meals from 6am thru midnight – the food is fabulous.







Just before 7am the Tour East shuttle bus drove up to the hotel entrance – I had three other companions for the day – an American teacher currently living in Indonesia and a retired Australian couple doing their “after working all our lives dream vacation” trip. It was a 3-hour drive to our first stop – the Allies cemetery where almost 7,000 sailors, soldiers and airmen from the UK, Australia and Holland are buried - I dozed most of the way, as I have done this trip before. While the other three wandered around this hallowed ground I sat in the shade of a giant banyan tree, storing my energy for the upcoming day’s activities. After seeing Gallipoli last week, this particular cemetery pales by comparison.







From here it was just another 30-minute drive to Kanchanaburi Province and the home of the JEATH Museum which resides on the banks of the River Kwai. This is an open-air museum with its structures a realistic representation of a prisoner of war hut. It was established in 1977 by the chief abbot and is now run by the temple. The museum collected various items connected with POWs during WWII, who were forced by the Japanese Army to build the Death Railway linking Thailand with Burma. An original survey by Japanese engineers of the time, predicted it would take five years to construct this 415km long stretch of railroad – the POWs were forced to work 14/16 hours a day to have it finished within 16 months. Completion date was December 25, 1943.







Approximately 30,000 allied prisoners started this project in 1942 but they died so fast due to malnutrition, disease, exhaustion, cruel treatment and lack of medical attention, that 200,000 impressed laborers from India, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Burma and Thailand (all conquered countries) were brought in to bolster the work force. Some of the actual photographs taken by the Japanese of this POW camp are horrifying – they resemble the pictures of German concentration camps in Europe during the same war. Letters written by prisoners to their families are also on display – they tear your heart out. In the outdoor courtyard is a large unexploded bomb which was dropped by the allies to destroy the famous bridge over the River Kwai and the railway track, to stop the transportation of the Japanese Army between Thailand and Burma.







Leaving the museum behind, we walked down to the river’s edge where we boarded a high-speed boat for a 20-minute ride to the famous Bridge. It was really hot in direct sunlight and the humidity would choke a horse but once we got going (at least 50mph), the corresponding breeze was delightful. We were really hauling ass up the river – zipping by ramshackle huts built on stilts and floating sampans packed with people selling everything under the sun.







At the bridge, we collected our tickets and made our way to the station where, promptly at 11am, a diesel train came around the corner pulling rail carriages at least 75 to 100 years old, all built of wood. These were the actual train cars used by the Japanese for transportation. We had window seats and for the next 1.5 hours we journeyed thru the Thai jungle, passing fields of rice (plain and sticky), groves of bamboo and endless vistas of tropical rainforest. It’s always hot and humid here, but we were moving fast enough to generate a breeze so at least we could breathe! We basically followed the river and at one point we crossed it, using a 200’ high wooden trestle bridge which gave us the ability to look back and down- talk about great photos – it was something out of a movie, I swear. We left the train at the Wang Pho station deep in the Thai jungle, only 25 miles from the Burmese border, and a short walk brought us to an open-air restaurant where lunch was served. I wouldn’t call the food outstanding – far from it – but it fit the ambiance of the place, which is all that matters I guess. The fresh mango and papaya served on palm leaves were the best part of the entire meal.







It was midafternoon by this point and we were all hot, tired and ready to call it a day – me especially, I was still coughing and running a fever - this is getting old real fast. We are approximately 195km northwest of Bangkok and it was a 4-hour drive back to the hotel, given the traffic chaos in the city. As we left the jungle, a family of monkeys ran across the road. When we stopped to take photos, they actually posed like models – I had to laugh.











The shuttle bus dropped me in front the Millennium lobby just before 6pm, too late to make Afternoon Tea up in the executive lounge, but my shower was calling.



It had been a long and busy day, but as I had yet to sample the pre-dinner cocktails and snacks served up in the lounge on this trip, I opted for a shower, change of clothes and headed for the elevator. It was dusk by the time I grabbed a bourbon on ice and walked out onto the restaurant deck, which has a 360-degree view of this exotic city. It’s breathtaking to say the least and as the darkness grew deeper, the array of dazzling lights magnified against the background of impending night. With the dual light reflections from the river, it’s as though I’m viewing a giant’s jewelry store, with thousands of precious gems scattered onto a black velvet surface - stunning. I was back in my room by 10pm and ready to crash.



Another night of little sleep, no rest and constant coughing. If this doesn’t improve, I will have to go see a “doc in a box” soon as I get back stateside. I had planned another full day of sightseeing but I knew I wasn’t well enough to do that – I need to get myself in reasonable shape ready for the upcoming long flights home tomorrow – don’t need another repeat of Typhoid Mary! So throwing on some clothes, I made a beeline for the elevator and spent a very relaxing couple of hours reading the Sunday Bangkok Post while enjoying a marvelous buffet breakfast in the lounge. Brought my laptop with me and after eating, went out on the deck and brought this blog up to date. I can see for miles from this lofty perch – the river winding thru downtown, the numerous skyscraper hotels scratching the skies, the endless streets pointing in all directions. This place boasts a fabulous outdoor infinity pool….take a peek:







Is this fabulous or what? Talk about poolside service with a smile – LOL



By the time most of you read this, I will be a mile high above Southeast Asia, en route to my first stop in Japan. Another trip completed – another blog in the bag. Had a fabulous time and now I start the countdown to my next adventure in November…..stayed tuned….it’s a new location for me and I can’t wait….only 35 days to go and counting…..cheers

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