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A Thailand holiday vacation 9 years in a row!

A Thailand holiday vacation 9 years in a row!

Old Dec 17th, 2014, 02:06 PM
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A Thailand holiday vacation 9 years in a row!

An emergency health situation just four weeks ago put this trip in doubt.. I am happy to report that I am getting stronger with each day, and feel confident that Bangkok is just what the doctor ordered. Our flight leaves in an hour. We are sitting in the first class lounge at Ohare as I type.

I managed to find saver award tickets last February for this trip. First class all the way. Chicago-Frankfurt-Bangkok. Once again we will experience the superb service on a Thai A380, up front, top deck, plus first class arrival service at BKK, which is hard to top.

I have ordered wheelchair service at Frankfurt because I know that it is a very long walk from gate to gate. Four weeks after having major surgery, I'm not quite ready for such a long hike. Hopefully my wheelchair arrives in a timely manner!

This trip is for relaxation and recovery, so not sure just how informative it might be for sights, restaurants, shopping venues, and the like.

I will be curious to see what our Bangkok apartment has to offer. DS is making arrangements and will pick us up at BKK airport and take us to our home for 9 nights. I hope we are at Column again, but will just have to wait and see!

Come along if you are curious about what happens on trip #36 to Bangkok!
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Old Dec 17th, 2014, 02:10 PM
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Carol, I am so delighted that you are taking this trip. No doubt it is just what the doctor ordered!
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Old Dec 17th, 2014, 02:15 PM
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Have a nice trip. Sorry to hear you had some health issues.
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Old Dec 17th, 2014, 02:53 PM
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Hi Carol. Enjoy your Bangkok vacation. Just what you need to relax and mend.
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Old Dec 17th, 2014, 03:26 PM
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Have a great time, Carol. Take it easy, enjoy the food and warm weather, and know that we are all so happy that you can do this!
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Old Dec 17th, 2014, 04:14 PM
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Happy to hear that you're traveling - have a great trip
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Old Dec 17th, 2014, 09:27 PM
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Have a great trip.
Very sorry to hear about your health issues, and wish you a full and speedy recovery.
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Old Dec 17th, 2014, 10:37 PM
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aloha carol, good news, you are on your way. have a great and safe trip.
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 12:49 AM
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Glad you are going to your home away from home Carol. Safe trip
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 02:11 AM
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Arrived FRA and was disappointed that no Thai Airways agent was there to greet us, as has always been the case in the past. Hubby says we should have parked ourselves and waited for one to show up. Instead we started walking... and walking... and walking. My stamina isn't great, and I tuckered out just before we reached the skytrain to terminal 1. We sat down next to what appeared to be a golf cart station. Mind you, I have never seen golf carts being used at FRA in the past. To make a long story short, we managed to get a ride for one portion of the trek between gate Z25 and gate B46. The rest was walking... because we got tired of waiting for the next golf cart to pick us up! On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rank today's experience a 2! Extremely disappointing. I blame Thai Airways first, for not meeting us.

We finally reached the (very nice) Senator Lounge close to our Thai gate and are enjoying tasty food and comfortable seating for a couple of hours.

Next leg of our journey is on a Thai A380 to Bangkok. I am in first class, hubby is right behind me in the first row of business class. One cannot always manage TWO frequent flyer tickets in first class, but we will manage. We have done this flight twice before and always enjoy the experience. First class arrival service at BKK (if arriving on Thai) is exceptional.

So far so good, even with all of the walking we have done. I am not exhausted. I am feeling stronger each day, and the walking was probably good for me. I am very excited about our Bangkok apartment! DS has posted pictures on FB and the place looks amazing!! We must have the biggest balcony in all Bangkok! Seriously! You could have a balcony party with 50 people! I will post my own pics on FB when I get the chance. We are staying at Column, which is on Sukhumvit soi 16, very close to Asok station. A good location.

More of my report as we get to Bangkok.

Carol
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 02:19 AM
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Have a great trip. Sorry to hear about your health issues, but at least you are on the mend - and able to enjoy your travels to Thailand. 36 visits to Bangkok! I? Amazing!

Paule
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 04:20 AM
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So glad you are feeling well enough to travel. Have a wonderful trip and enjoy the warm weather.
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 04:55 AM
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Carol. Glad you are doing so well after that long walk. we find if you need wheel chair service it is helpfull to mention it to the gate people as well as the flight crew when you board and they call ahead and recheck on the service at your landing point. Information does get dropped unfortunately. surprised at Thai , but at many airports it is the airport, not the airline that provides the service.
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 05:49 AM
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have a great thai break... take taxis, forget the skytrain..
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 07:28 AM
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Have a wonderful, relaxing time in Bangkok. Sorry it wasn't smoother for you at FRA...
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 08:12 AM
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Sorry they didn't meet you as they should have in FRA. The FRA airport is huge!

Yes, I love Thai Air's First Class Service in Bangkok!

I want to hear all about Columns.
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 11:41 AM
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Yikes! Frankfurt airport is huge. I've done it several times. Glad you made out OK. Have fun in Bangkok. Is your vacation still the same amount of days as previously planned? Maybe we could meet up one day. You can e-mail me. Glad you're on the mend.

Happy Travels!
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 02:58 PM
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Warm greetings Carol -- and welcome back to The Centre of the Known Universe (and that BKK TG F meet and greet / departure service -- I never tire of those moments). So glad to see you travelling once again. Best holiday and Friday morning wishes to you and all from our fine home of Singapore (and later, New Zealand, for holiday),

robert
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 05:01 PM
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Arrival service in BKK, superb as always.

Arriving during morning rush hour so a little bit longer ride into the city.

The apartment at Column is great! Two bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms, big livingroom/kitchen/dining... open concept. There is a third bedroom (kids room) with single murphy bed. There is also a laundry room. The balcony is larger than the apartment! It's huge!! The view is of Queen Sirikit psrk plus Sukhumvit, and the river is in the distance. There are fireworks at night for the King's birthday, launched just below our balcony. This will do nicely for the next 9 days!

Good to be back in Bangkok!
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Old Dec 18th, 2014, 06:04 PM
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Many apartment pics are on FB now.
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