Majestic Grande Bangkok

Saturday 15 March Met Linda at airport - I had already booked into our hotel - Bel Aire Princess. What a hotel - Linda sure knows how to pick them. Taxi ride back to hotel - even Linda said hotel was fabaroonie. Complementary drink in bar after we had unpacked. Oh my Linda has brought half her wardrobe - flip-flops/shoes/handbags/jewellery (all matching of course). Quarter length trousers, shorts, jeans of varying colours, matching tops. Couple of dresses, two jackets, spangly cardigans, hair...

Built on the banks of the Nan River, Phitsanulok, birthplace of King Naresuan, served as teh Siamese capital for 25 years. After breakfast we visited the Bronze Case Factory and saw first-hand the "lost wax method" of casting bronze Buddha images. Then we drove through the countryside, past fields of rice paddies, to Lopburi and Phra Prang Sam Yot. Monkeys overrun Phra Prang Sam Yot, one bit a member of our group and another seemingly friendly monkey chewed a hole in my shirt. Continue to the...

Wats, Wats and more Wats. Wat Trimitr Temple houses a 700-year-old Golden Buddha, the largest in the world, weighing approximately 5 tons. At Wat Po, the oldest temple in Bangkok founded in the 17th century, is the amazing Reclining Buddha, whose face depicts Nirvana attainment with mother-of-pearl studded feet. We then explored Bangkok's canal waterways in a boat, getting a view of traditional Thai life.

Today we visited the Grand Palace, which functions as the home of the King and his court as well as the entire administrative seat of government. Within the grounds is the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew), a large Buddha image carved from a solid piece of green jadite. For dinner we enjoyed a festive farewell dinner and folklore dancing.

After our stint in the islands, we returned to Bangkok. We marched in with an air of confidence this time with the know-how of how to maneuver around, at what price, and how to communicate effectively. We upgraded from the beach bungalows to the Grand Majestic (www.majesticgrande.com,) a fabulous hotel in the Sukhumvit area. Because this hotel is only two months old, and it's the off-season, we got a steal of a deal ("special promotion pricing for you"). This hotel rivals the Ritz or the Four...

Well, we are back in Bangkok. It has changed a lot in almost three years since we were last here. We are staying in a four-star hotel in the business area instead of a 2.5-star hotel in a market area and the city seems to have cleaned up a bit. There is also a lot more money here, although all of this may be relative to India.

On our first day we waited about one hour to check into the hotel and then we slept for the magic 6.5 hours. We then walked to a high-end mall and had a light di...

30 kr**di lämm*t*v*t kuumust + õhukonditsioneeri toodetud külmus metroos, k*ub*m*j*s, t*ksos, hotellis = köh* j* nohu. Ent see polnud sugugi t*kistuseks! Kui teil on mingi ettekujutus B*ngkokist, siis unust*ge är*, see pole nii, v*id hoopis teisiti! Tegemist on tohutult suure linn*g*, mis kohe kindl*sti ei m*g* ii*l. Päev*sel *j*l võib end l*us* unust*d* k*ub*m*j*desse, sest k*ub*v*lik võt*b silme eest kirjuks ning t*il*ste ülil*hke j* hoolitsev teenindus teeb poodlemise veelgi meeldiv*m*ks ...

Finnally we touch down in Bangkok after nearly 20 hours of travelling. Our flight from Dublin to London for our connecting flight was delayed because George Bush had taken over Heathrow Airport. As a result we very nearly miss our flight to Bangkok. On board Flight Quantas QF2 to Bangkok we settle into our seats and prepare for take off. But if only it was that easy. We get delayed on the run way for another hour. Let me tell you being six foot two is not a comfortable experience while cramme...

Today I woke up early, at about 6:30, I don't know why. I go around trying to get my survey sheets printed out for the TravelPod meetup tonight. That was an ordeal. They had the wrong version of Word, so it didn't work until like an hour, and then the lady didn't know how to photocopy on double sided paper. After about an hour doing that, I went to breakfast. Wow, they had a ton of stuff. The fruit was not very good, except for this lichee type thing. I ate a bunch of Asian looking food, an o...

Well, I woke up even earlier today, at about 4:30, but this is probably due to my neighbour's constantly ringing telephone. It goes off periodically at 1:30, 2:30, 3:30 and you guessed it, 4:30. I decide to get up and write the blog and take a swim. Definitely worth it and a very nice, salt water pool. I sit down for breakfast, yogurt, fresh fruit and hot pot, plus my favourite custard bun. By the time I get back, Keith's already online so we chat a bit too. I have about an hour to kill befor...