Bangkok 2
Trip Start
Sep 03, 2007
1
182
220
Trip End
Jun 17, 2009
Bangkok,
Thailand
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Another hour and we reached the Cambodia - Thailand border. Our bags were loaded onto a hand cart and disappeared as we queued to clear the Cambodian side, before a five hundred metre walk through no man's land and Thai immigration. Forms filled in and after a Thai immigration officer's approval, we identified our luggage at customs and loaded it onto another waiting coach, the whole exercise taking less than an hour this time. At this border stop we had lunch and then drove on towards Bangkok on a decent road.
The countryside slowly changed to become dryer and the trees increased
Bangkok
. There was also a strange absence of the hundreds of motor bikes we had been seeing in Cambodia. At 3pm we stopped at a big service station for fuel and a drink, just as rainclouds gathered. Soon it was raining heavily and we plodded onward. By 5pm we were entering the Bangkok suburbs and just before 6 we had crawled through the choking traffic in China Town and reached the hotel, a distance of some 350 km from Battambang.
Our final dinner was in the 'Khao San Road', a renowned American war R n R location and now backpacker area, full of shops, bars and restaurants. To get there we caught a local bus, whose driver had been watching too much Formula 1 racing and charged through the busy, rainy streets. This lively road was buzzing on Saturday night with hundreds of people and music blaring out from CD stalls and live bands in the bars.
After a very tasty supper in a Thai restaurant, we caught tuctucs back to the hotel. Now these guys were not like the Vietnamese / Cambodian motorbike and trailer combo but the infamous, all in one, Bangkok three wheeler, who hurtled through the wet city streets, making the bus journey seem like it was in a pedal car
Wat Phra Kaew
! We made it back to the hotel in a tenth of the time and to calm our nerves went up to the roof top bar for a nightcap and a view over the city. There were not as many lights as other cities but maybe that was because it was nearing midnight and they had switched off most of the temple lights.Saturday 28th September
An easy start and we treated ourselves to a good breakfast, where we said goodbye to most of our group. Thanks Andrea, for a very interesting trip. We had a room booked at our original Bangkok hotel, as well as two cases in storage, so we caught a taxi across the city and settled in.
We had made plans to have dinner with Nim, because it was her birthday and we went out and found a card and a present for her.
The afternoon was spent sorting out our cases, paperwork and sending clothes to the laundry. At 3.30 dark clouds gathered and the regular thunderstorm ensued. We enjoyed a drink in the hotel bar before catching a taxi across the city, which was congested because of the rain, back to Khao San Road, where we met Nim, Andrea and Minae
Royal Palace View
.A local restaurant was found and a merry birthday evening was enjoyed. A quick coffee and liquer back at the hotel and then a good night's sleep.
Monday 29th September
A sightseeing day. Catching the MRT train we travelled to the waterfront and caught a ferry upstream to Pier 8 and the 'Wat Po' temple. This was one of the bigger temples that dot the city and there are over two hundred statues of Buddha here, including an enormous reclining gold Buddha. At midday it was very hot, I would guess mid 30's and we kept in whatever shade we could find.
Next door was the 'Grand Palace and 'Wat Phra Kaeo' temple, which we had been unable to see last time. Unfortunately they are closed on a Monday, so this was one visit that was not meant to be. We crossed the river and visited the 'Royal Barge Museum' with its fabulous, ornately decorated, state barges.
Coming out of the museum we looked for a way to get back across the river and were approached by a man offering a long tail boat ride, just what we wanted
MRT railway
. We agreed a price and boarded a boat, which manoeuvered out of the canal system and into the river, which was fuller and flowing faster than on our last visit. It seems there has been much rain recently in the area, as we saw coming across Cambodia and severe flooding in Vietnam, causing loss of life. Our boatman carefully navigated the choppy river, with its huge barge traffic and cross river ferries and we arrived back at 'Sathon Pier' to catch the train back.At the hotel it was time to pack and then enjoy a pleasant dinner in the hotel restaurant, situated on the sixth floor roof, in the warm Bangkok night air.
