Back to Bangkok for the umpteenth time

---

Geo: 13.7308, 100.521

Although we arrived in BK in the early hours of the morning the temperature was still in the 30s. As always we received a warm welcome at the Mandarin Oriental, one of my favourite hotels, and were given a Riverview room on the 12th floor. I love the little things such as the orchid attached to a card with some literary quote about sleep laid on the pillow, the constant tidying of the room as soon as you walk out of it and on our final evening the floor butler had even cleaned our hairbrushes! One downside was that the new General Manager has changed the rules about the cocktail party, which was always on a Tuesday. This week he had it on a Wednesday so we missed it- very annoying!
The buffet breakfast on the terrace overlooking the river is always a delight. I love the varieties of exotic fruits that are always found in Thailand.
Our first foray was to take the Oriental shuttle to River City as there were certain things we wanted to buy. However, apart from very expensive antique shops there was little to see, indeed several of the shops were empty. I wondered if they were suffering from competition from the huge Malls which have gone up.
Back at the Oriental we flunked out by the pool as it was very hot. After a while there was a huge tropical storm with thunder, lightening and a big down pour. Initially we stayed under our Cabana by the pool but eventually had to make a run for it. At least the storm cooled the air slightly. A lovely lunch was had in the Verandah restaurant and then it was back to the pool as the sun had come out again. We tried the hotel's Thai restaurant across the river in the evening, which was ok but we weren't that hungry so we repaired back to our room to finish the complimentary bottle of wine.
On our last day we still had the shopping to do so this time we took the Sky train to the last stop at the National Stadium. It only costs 30 Baht and change is given at the ticket office so you purchase the ticket from a machine. Why they cant sell you a ticket at the office I have no idea. The trains are larger than the London tube, spotlessly clean and mercifully well air conditioned. If you can tear your eyes away from the TV screens bombarding you with adverts which are only marginally worse than Aussie ones, look out at the BK skyline. The small wooden shacks and houses are fast disappearing and being replaced by huge modern tower blocks. You could be anywhere apart from the red tiled temples dotted between the high rises. We went to the MBK Mall where we hoped to buy a camera lens but the prices werent that good. Most of the floors sell goods which are Tax repayable at the airport. On the top floor are the small stalls which used to be at street level, no tax repayable but you can bargain the price. I am useless at bargaining but was happy with the price paid for a tablecloth and handbag. You can get down to street level to the noodle bars etc but most people walk along the skyway above the roads. We tried to find places we had been to before but the whole landscape had changed yet again and we failed to find any of them. It was so hot we repaired back to the Oriental for a beer instead.
On our last evening we went to the Sky Bar on the 64th floor of the State Tower building. We decided that it wasnt called the Sky bar for the view but more for the prices- about £15 for a glass of wine! Furthermore the bar is on a shelf projecting out from the tower and has no seats and is crowded so we were going to leave when they showed us an alternative bar with settees also outside but this was also crowded. We ended up at the Dome bar which at least still had the view but was airconditioned. Prices the same, the best value being a single Cointreau on ice, but who can drink just a single?
Finally we found a really good value restaurant called the Mango Tree close to the hotel. It serves lovely food and the house white is drinkable. A small band plays in the background so we stayed there all evening.
BK is noticeably more expensive than it used to be and is expanding at a rapid rate. May be this will be our last trip here but we shall see.

---