April in Paris…. Nope… April in Bangkok!
Apr 29th, 2011, 07:27 AM
#101
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HKG sidewalks are for walking, not for vendors selling food and various clothing and junk. I was very aware of that today as I walked from my apt on soi 8 down to Robinson Dept Store at Asok.
But this IS what makes Bangkok so much more Asian and 'exotic' than HKG. Yes, Bob, a Disneyland of sorts.
Today was a relaxing day for me. I needed to exchange dollars one last time (before Chiang Mai on Monday). VASU was paying 29.87 today. Walk-ups were more like 29.5 or 29.6. I also needed to add more time to my BKK cell phone # (which I've now kept for several years) so I went to MBK to do this on the 4th floor. Crowded as usual.
The Thais were all very interested in the royal wedding going on today. There were many parties going on. I guess because Thailand is another monarchy, that is what ties them to the Brits and their pomp and circumstance. And there are lots of expats here from the UK! DS was trying to get some work done in the office today, and the office staff was busy watching the wedding! I admit to watching some of the coverage here. But it was not the focus of my day.
DS and I had dinner with Dr Jack tonight. Dinner was at a military post. Jack is retired military. Everything tasted great. An American meal of ribs, baked potato, corn, salad, fruit, bread, and of course cold beer. We've done this dinner before, and it was always quite busy. Tonight there were lots of empty tables... wedding watchers??? Who knows!
I had to have my air con repaired today, and also the lock on my bathroom door. Adelphi is showing some wear, I'm afraid. It all works now, but the air con made a mess (puddle) on the kitchen floor. Hope that doesn't happen again. It's very hot and sticky outside so air con is much needed!!
Laundry is now caught up, I have enough to last the rest of my trip. I'm heading home next week on Tuesday.
Enjoy your day. I'm about ready to hit the sack here in BKK.
Carol
But this IS what makes Bangkok so much more Asian and 'exotic' than HKG. Yes, Bob, a Disneyland of sorts.
Today was a relaxing day for me. I needed to exchange dollars one last time (before Chiang Mai on Monday). VASU was paying 29.87 today. Walk-ups were more like 29.5 or 29.6. I also needed to add more time to my BKK cell phone # (which I've now kept for several years) so I went to MBK to do this on the 4th floor. Crowded as usual.
The Thais were all very interested in the royal wedding going on today. There were many parties going on. I guess because Thailand is another monarchy, that is what ties them to the Brits and their pomp and circumstance. And there are lots of expats here from the UK! DS was trying to get some work done in the office today, and the office staff was busy watching the wedding! I admit to watching some of the coverage here. But it was not the focus of my day.
DS and I had dinner with Dr Jack tonight. Dinner was at a military post. Jack is retired military. Everything tasted great. An American meal of ribs, baked potato, corn, salad, fruit, bread, and of course cold beer. We've done this dinner before, and it was always quite busy. Tonight there were lots of empty tables... wedding watchers??? Who knows!
I had to have my air con repaired today, and also the lock on my bathroom door. Adelphi is showing some wear, I'm afraid. It all works now, but the air con made a mess (puddle) on the kitchen floor. Hope that doesn't happen again. It's very hot and sticky outside so air con is much needed!!
Laundry is now caught up, I have enough to last the rest of my trip. I'm heading home next week on Tuesday.
Enjoy your day. I'm about ready to hit the sack here in BKK.
Carol
Apr 29th, 2011, 06:07 PM
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Hi guenmai! Nice to see your post here. And yes, I recall that you like to 'do' April in Paris. You should consider BKK again, although April is probably not the best time to be here. It really is sticky hot! Hey, just as a heads up, hope you can fly out to the Big Island in September for GTG!! Email me at yahoo, if you want details.
TravelDonna, HKG is very easy to get to from BKK. It is a nice 3-4 day trip (or longer, of course) and the weather was nice... not quite as hot as Bangkok. An interesting contrast to BKK, as has been noted in posts above.
Nicky, I agree it was a great day for the British. I did speak to a couple of people who said they had watched the festivities all day. One of them was an Aussie who lives here most of the time. My own viewing of the big day for Will and Kate was hit and miss. Kate looked fabulous! I hope you gave the Queen Mum our best wishes!
Today I'm heading back to the weekend market. I need to pick up a few things that I ordered last week from the denim bag lady. Hopefully she has what I want! She promised me, even though she has a large order(s) to fill, that I would get my half-dozen or so special requests. I've been buying from her now for about one year. She always remembers me. I'm really happy for her, if her business is expanding and she is getting large orders from other countries! That is the same sort of thing that happened for DS and the frog factory. They are now doing worldwide business, even including large orders going to China!
My air con seems to be working just fine this morning. No big puddle in the kitchen, thank goodness.
Pook, if you are reading along, sorry we have not had time to GTG here in BKK. I know you have been busy, and hope maybe we can get together at another time. I will possibly be back in July. There are a couple of publishing projects that will need attention by that time.
Bob, I'm still thinking about October as well. If I am here at the same time you are, then I know for sure you and K could actually meet Maeng and sample her cooking.
Speaking of Maeng, I am still clueless as to what will happen with the PL bar. June 15 is the last day they are on soi 11 in their current location. An interesting and crazy situation for everyone involved, which I will not go into here. I just hope they find a new location and can continue their business, which has been extremely successful. Maeng would also like to consider having her own restaurant. She is a fab cook, but starting up a new restaurant is a tough business in this city. The PL has the right mix of food, fun, people. Hard to duplicate that!!!
Time to get going!
TravelDonna, HKG is very easy to get to from BKK. It is a nice 3-4 day trip (or longer, of course) and the weather was nice... not quite as hot as Bangkok. An interesting contrast to BKK, as has been noted in posts above.
Nicky, I agree it was a great day for the British. I did speak to a couple of people who said they had watched the festivities all day. One of them was an Aussie who lives here most of the time. My own viewing of the big day for Will and Kate was hit and miss. Kate looked fabulous! I hope you gave the Queen Mum our best wishes!
Today I'm heading back to the weekend market. I need to pick up a few things that I ordered last week from the denim bag lady. Hopefully she has what I want! She promised me, even though she has a large order(s) to fill, that I would get my half-dozen or so special requests. I've been buying from her now for about one year. She always remembers me. I'm really happy for her, if her business is expanding and she is getting large orders from other countries! That is the same sort of thing that happened for DS and the frog factory. They are now doing worldwide business, even including large orders going to China!
My air con seems to be working just fine this morning. No big puddle in the kitchen, thank goodness.
Pook, if you are reading along, sorry we have not had time to GTG here in BKK. I know you have been busy, and hope maybe we can get together at another time. I will possibly be back in July. There are a couple of publishing projects that will need attention by that time.
Bob, I'm still thinking about October as well. If I am here at the same time you are, then I know for sure you and K could actually meet Maeng and sample her cooking.
Speaking of Maeng, I am still clueless as to what will happen with the PL bar. June 15 is the last day they are on soi 11 in their current location. An interesting and crazy situation for everyone involved, which I will not go into here. I just hope they find a new location and can continue their business, which has been extremely successful. Maeng would also like to consider having her own restaurant. She is a fab cook, but starting up a new restaurant is a tough business in this city. The PL has the right mix of food, fun, people. Hard to duplicate that!!!
Time to get going!
Apr 30th, 2011, 03:26 AM
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dogster, I thought of you today. I ventured out to Central World for the first time this trip, to have my Haagen Dazs fix there. I recalled meeting you for the first time at this particular HD. You slipped thru the shrubbery and sat down and we got acquainted! BTW, the progress is moving right along on the replacement ZEN store (burned by red shirts one year ago). It will surely be open the next time I'm in BKK.
Bob, I can understand K's love of Platinum. I went there today, also first time this trip, and picked up some new bling from the 5th floor. The second Platinum building is now open and full! I buy almost as much 'stuff' here as I do at MBK. The atmosphere is bright and vibrant.
Found a new interesting (small) shopping venue... it is down in the subway at Kamphaeng Phet station... called Metro Mall or something like that. Maybe 2 dozen small shops with various bling... one shop has 'antiques' or at least collectable items. Takes about 5 minutes to walk thru this new venue, but you will only find it if you are down in the subway! And it's only at Kamphaeng Phet (the station that is inside the weekend market). I did not buy anything, as I was on my way into the weekend market at the time, and knew that I would be carrying a big bag of denim bags.
I have a tough choice for dinner tonight, and it will depend upon schedules. If Dr Jack is available, we (DS and I) will take him to Via Vai for pizza. Maeng called to say that she is ready to prepare her crispy pork for us tonight! It's so tasty.... a really tough choice. Part of me wants pizza (my favorite food), but part of me wants Maeng's crispy pork! I will let you know which one it ends up being. Depends on Jack!
So far, so good, with packing everything in my suitcases. I've leearned how to nest and stuff the denims so they don't take up lots of void space (they are stiff satche styles). If I stuff them with other items I can get everything home with me.
I'm watching a re-run of the big royal wedding. CNN Int'l doesn't have anything else to report on, I guess!
Bob, I can understand K's love of Platinum. I went there today, also first time this trip, and picked up some new bling from the 5th floor. The second Platinum building is now open and full! I buy almost as much 'stuff' here as I do at MBK. The atmosphere is bright and vibrant.
Found a new interesting (small) shopping venue... it is down in the subway at Kamphaeng Phet station... called Metro Mall or something like that. Maybe 2 dozen small shops with various bling... one shop has 'antiques' or at least collectable items. Takes about 5 minutes to walk thru this new venue, but you will only find it if you are down in the subway! And it's only at Kamphaeng Phet (the station that is inside the weekend market). I did not buy anything, as I was on my way into the weekend market at the time, and knew that I would be carrying a big bag of denim bags.
I have a tough choice for dinner tonight, and it will depend upon schedules. If Dr Jack is available, we (DS and I) will take him to Via Vai for pizza. Maeng called to say that she is ready to prepare her crispy pork for us tonight! It's so tasty.... a really tough choice. Part of me wants pizza (my favorite food), but part of me wants Maeng's crispy pork! I will let you know which one it ends up being. Depends on Jack!
So far, so good, with packing everything in my suitcases. I've leearned how to nest and stuff the denims so they don't take up lots of void space (they are stiff satche styles). If I stuff them with other items I can get everything home with me.
I'm watching a re-run of the big royal wedding. CNN Int'l doesn't have anything else to report on, I guess!
Apr 30th, 2011, 04:59 AM
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Carol,
Sorry to be such a recluse. Just came back from Bumrungrad today and everything went well - phew! I've been following along your trip report and enjoying it.
Next royal wedding is Jigme from Bhutan. That should be a big event in Thailand as well!
Sorry to be such a recluse. Just came back from Bumrungrad today and everything went well - phew! I've been following along your trip report and enjoying it.
Next royal wedding is Jigme from Bhutan. That should be a big event in Thailand as well!
Apr 30th, 2011, 07:03 AM
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hanuman, it's really good to see your post here. I'm glad everything is OK... thanks for letting me know. Hugs to all of you!! You are in my prayers!
(Gpanda, I said another prayer for you, btw, as I passed by Erewan Shrine today)
hanuman, I'm not sure the Bhutal wedding will be on all the CNN/Fox networks. I'll probably miss it... sorry 'bout that.
Brad and I ate at Via Vai tonight, just the two of us. Jack could not make it. Pizza was good... I have a few left over slices in my fridge for 'lunch' tomorrow.
The good news is, there will be a big group of us at Maeng's tomorrow night for crispy pork. It isn't technically my last night in BKK, but it IS my last night in BKK, for getting together w/friends. Monday is a day trip to Chiang Mai (you know how those run, if you've read my reports in the past) and then I'm up early early on Tuesday to fly home! Probably no sleep after getting off the plane from CM. Time to pack, visit Maeng, shower, and head to the airport. The flight to NRT is at 6:05am. We'll be back from CM sometime after 11:30pm... you get the picture. No time for sleep. (trying to sleep would not be a good idea.... I would not want to wake up!!!)
As usual, my two weeks in BKK have flown by. Tomorrow (Sunday) is my last shopping day. My bags are filled, with only enough room to fit in the 'necessities' from CM!! (haha0
The wine and grappa from dinner are going right to my head... I'll be asleep shortly! Enjoy your day. I'm going to get some shuteye!
C
(Gpanda, I said another prayer for you, btw, as I passed by Erewan Shrine today)
hanuman, I'm not sure the Bhutal wedding will be on all the CNN/Fox networks. I'll probably miss it... sorry 'bout that.
Brad and I ate at Via Vai tonight, just the two of us. Jack could not make it. Pizza was good... I have a few left over slices in my fridge for 'lunch' tomorrow.
The good news is, there will be a big group of us at Maeng's tomorrow night for crispy pork. It isn't technically my last night in BKK, but it IS my last night in BKK, for getting together w/friends. Monday is a day trip to Chiang Mai (you know how those run, if you've read my reports in the past) and then I'm up early early on Tuesday to fly home! Probably no sleep after getting off the plane from CM. Time to pack, visit Maeng, shower, and head to the airport. The flight to NRT is at 6:05am. We'll be back from CM sometime after 11:30pm... you get the picture. No time for sleep. (trying to sleep would not be a good idea.... I would not want to wake up!!!)
As usual, my two weeks in BKK have flown by. Tomorrow (Sunday) is my last shopping day. My bags are filled, with only enough room to fit in the 'necessities' from CM!! (haha0
The wine and grappa from dinner are going right to my head... I'll be asleep shortly! Enjoy your day. I'm going to get some shuteye!
C
Apr 30th, 2011, 11:49 AM
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Have so enjoyed this trip report. Carol you really do fit a lot into a short time. I'm so envious that you may be back there a couple more times this year. For sure we must get together, either in Chicago or BKK.
I got up at 4:45 AM yesterday and watched the Royal Wedding. I really loved it all. It made me quite homesick and must confess to shedding a tear or two.
Hope all goes well with your CM whirlwind visit, and then a safe trip home.
BTW, it sounds as if your DS works and lives in BKK now. Is that correct?
Sue
I got up at 4:45 AM yesterday and watched the Royal Wedding. I really loved it all. It made me quite homesick and must confess to shedding a tear or two.
Hope all goes well with your CM whirlwind visit, and then a safe trip home.
BTW, it sounds as if your DS works and lives in BKK now. Is that correct?
Sue
Apr 30th, 2011, 04:52 PM
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Sue, DS comes to BKK to do work. He doesn't live here full time. Most of his work is at home in the USA. He comes to BKK for publishing projects. He has been working with the same printing company for a number of years.
May 1st, 2011, 05:53 AM
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My phone alarm will sound at 5am so I'm going to hit the sack prretty shortly in order to get some sleep.
Not much on my list for CM this time, K, but you never know what else will catch my eye. I shall report on it tomorrow night.
Not much on my list for CM this time, K, but you never know what else will catch my eye. I shall report on it tomorrow night.
May 2nd, 2011, 05:54 AM
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Really enjoyed this trip Carol. Sounds like Maeng and you make great travel companions. It will be interesting to see what size suitcase she travels with next time,lol.
Hope you made your purchases in CM. Going to be a long night tonight.
Aloha!
Hope you made your purchases in CM. Going to be a long night tonight.
Aloha!
