Hi Ho Hi Ho - It's Off to Chiang Mai We Go !!!
Mar 12th, 2008, 07:20 PM
#22
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Our Day with Sgt Kai
When I asked Tong if she would recommend any guide from Cm, she gave us SGt Kai’s info. He was very prompt with his replies, willing to work with me on the details of our visit.
Decided we were going to take it easy for all our days out with the guides so specifically asked SK to pick us up at 9 AM. KT & I went down for brekkie in the buffet included in our agoda room rate. They had an extensive choice of everything you could think of. There was no designated Non Smoking area by the riverside so decided against being smoked out while enjoying my smoked salmon & eggs on wheat among other treats.
Kids got up late as usual & their HI room rate did not include brekkie so they raided the bakery again & bought juices & breads to fill them up before our long day with SK.
This trip was basically a Conference for work & as always we extend our trips on both ends to enable us to have special family times together. We checked out with no hassles. At a little past 9 AM, we are greeted by a smart looking, gracious gentleman who introduced himself as Sgt Kai. He ushers us into his clean a/c'd car, very comfortably sitting all of us.
We drop off our suitcases at the Empress Hotel. We are an NPO so cost effectiveness is a corporate consideration that's why they chose this venue. They had rooms available for us to check in. All our in-country arrangements were done by a private travel agency who stayed in house to facilitate our meetings & to handle hotel matters.
We again book 2 rooms & requested for interconnecting ones- I was very thankful for their flexibility & the rooms’ availability except for one problem - they put us in the Smoking Floor. We get enough smoke here in TKY that we do everything we can to get away from it. Not wanting to keep SK waiting, I alerted the desk that we needed to move when we returned in the PM.
We took a drive & swing by a Military Housing Area where SK worked in the past. He was in the Army for 20 years & spent a significant number of them riding then training mules to bring equipment up the mountains. His later years were spent working in the Vet dept. Noted that the housing areas were very clean & well kept so unlike those in the Phil.
SK drove us up the hills & took us to the Hmong Village - I was not quite sure if we were going to be able to do this since he mentioned that the tribes around were very commercialized. We only wanted to visit places not warming with tourists. We could picked up some treats for the kids. We got there & to my surprise the village was quite modern. However,although the streets were cemented & they had cable as well as running water, they mostly lived in a one BR house which was heated by their cooking set up. They were not decorated at all & had no windows to keep the cold out. We saw many young folks riding in their spanky new motorbikes. We also saw a few new pick up trucks that they use to transport their produce. We visited a number of homes & SK was well received by the folks there. There were a lot of young & old women hand sewing their own finely detailed strips to be sewn into their black pants or jackets. I asked about the jackets if they were available for sale & they said there were some sold at the Walking Market. These ones were for their personal use. We gave treats to the kids we saw playing in the streets , in their front porches & called out a few others from inside their homes.
On our way down to Doi Suthep we dropped by 4Seasons to see if I could say hello to Jodo whom I never got to ask under what name they registered under. I I got there & this very patient receptionist went our of her way trying to help me out with their guest whose names resembled Jodo in any way, she even checked the names of those leaving that day since Jodo said they were doing that. Sorry !
4 Seasons in beautiful. Set among rice paddies with water buffalos hanging out under the shade. It was a gorgeous place. It was getting hot so we all got a nice table overlooking the view & got cold fruit shakes, iced coffee for both KT & SK & the only drink that did not work well was my Pandanus/lychee drink - too bitter- needed a lot of sugar. They had lots of complimentary snacks/chips that you could enjoy with your drink. It was a real good treat !!!
Off to Doi Suthep - we were among hundreds of people in the Temple that day. Lots of buses everywhere. We took the lift & not the stairs. SK took us up & described the buildings & the scenery in the viewing platform. Although it was a pleasant day- we were not able to see much because of the smog hovering over the city.
We learned that SK's daughter is BKK Philharmonic's First Chair at 19 !!! She has been there for the past 2 years enjoying her young life as a professional violinist. Asked if she was going to be playing while we were in BKK but she wasn't. With his interest in music, KT decided to give him a copy of the Black Gospel CD/DVD we had just produced this past year for him to enjoy. He dropped us off back to the hotel to prepare for our long awaited night out to the Sunday Walking Market.
I still wonder who Sgt Kai's "Uncle Bob" is since Bob says it's not him.
Working on the pictures still. Walking Sunday Market on next ..........................
When I asked Tong if she would recommend any guide from Cm, she gave us SGt Kai’s info. He was very prompt with his replies, willing to work with me on the details of our visit.
Decided we were going to take it easy for all our days out with the guides so specifically asked SK to pick us up at 9 AM. KT & I went down for brekkie in the buffet included in our agoda room rate. They had an extensive choice of everything you could think of. There was no designated Non Smoking area by the riverside so decided against being smoked out while enjoying my smoked salmon & eggs on wheat among other treats.
Kids got up late as usual & their HI room rate did not include brekkie so they raided the bakery again & bought juices & breads to fill them up before our long day with SK.
This trip was basically a Conference for work & as always we extend our trips on both ends to enable us to have special family times together. We checked out with no hassles. At a little past 9 AM, we are greeted by a smart looking, gracious gentleman who introduced himself as Sgt Kai. He ushers us into his clean a/c'd car, very comfortably sitting all of us.
We drop off our suitcases at the Empress Hotel. We are an NPO so cost effectiveness is a corporate consideration that's why they chose this venue. They had rooms available for us to check in. All our in-country arrangements were done by a private travel agency who stayed in house to facilitate our meetings & to handle hotel matters.
We again book 2 rooms & requested for interconnecting ones- I was very thankful for their flexibility & the rooms’ availability except for one problem - they put us in the Smoking Floor. We get enough smoke here in TKY that we do everything we can to get away from it. Not wanting to keep SK waiting, I alerted the desk that we needed to move when we returned in the PM.
We took a drive & swing by a Military Housing Area where SK worked in the past. He was in the Army for 20 years & spent a significant number of them riding then training mules to bring equipment up the mountains. His later years were spent working in the Vet dept. Noted that the housing areas were very clean & well kept so unlike those in the Phil.
SK drove us up the hills & took us to the Hmong Village - I was not quite sure if we were going to be able to do this since he mentioned that the tribes around were very commercialized. We only wanted to visit places not warming with tourists. We could picked up some treats for the kids. We got there & to my surprise the village was quite modern. However,although the streets were cemented & they had cable as well as running water, they mostly lived in a one BR house which was heated by their cooking set up. They were not decorated at all & had no windows to keep the cold out. We saw many young folks riding in their spanky new motorbikes. We also saw a few new pick up trucks that they use to transport their produce. We visited a number of homes & SK was well received by the folks there. There were a lot of young & old women hand sewing their own finely detailed strips to be sewn into their black pants or jackets. I asked about the jackets if they were available for sale & they said there were some sold at the Walking Market. These ones were for their personal use. We gave treats to the kids we saw playing in the streets , in their front porches & called out a few others from inside their homes.
On our way down to Doi Suthep we dropped by 4Seasons to see if I could say hello to Jodo whom I never got to ask under what name they registered under. I I got there & this very patient receptionist went our of her way trying to help me out with their guest whose names resembled Jodo in any way, she even checked the names of those leaving that day since Jodo said they were doing that. Sorry !
4 Seasons in beautiful. Set among rice paddies with water buffalos hanging out under the shade. It was a gorgeous place. It was getting hot so we all got a nice table overlooking the view & got cold fruit shakes, iced coffee for both KT & SK & the only drink that did not work well was my Pandanus/lychee drink - too bitter- needed a lot of sugar. They had lots of complimentary snacks/chips that you could enjoy with your drink. It was a real good treat !!!
Off to Doi Suthep - we were among hundreds of people in the Temple that day. Lots of buses everywhere. We took the lift & not the stairs. SK took us up & described the buildings & the scenery in the viewing platform. Although it was a pleasant day- we were not able to see much because of the smog hovering over the city.
We learned that SK's daughter is BKK Philharmonic's First Chair at 19 !!! She has been there for the past 2 years enjoying her young life as a professional violinist. Asked if she was going to be playing while we were in BKK but she wasn't. With his interest in music, KT decided to give him a copy of the Black Gospel CD/DVD we had just produced this past year for him to enjoy. He dropped us off back to the hotel to prepare for our long awaited night out to the Sunday Walking Market.
I still wonder who Sgt Kai's "Uncle Bob" is since Bob says it's not him.
Working on the pictures still. Walking Sunday Market on next ..........................
Mar 13th, 2008, 12:17 PM
#25
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BMT-thanks. I can assure you that even when Pandas embark on a subsidiary mission, they never lose sight of the ultimate goal. It's made much easier by everyone pretending to be pleasant towards the POB. It lures him in.
Mar 13th, 2008, 04:09 PM
#26
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Empress Hotel & the Sunday Market
We did a lot of room shuffling- moved out of our smoking floor to a non smoking floor. Luke kept sneezing & rubbing his eyes when ever he was in the room. It turns out, our both our BR tile grout were riddled with Mildew.
I called Housekeeping the next morning. They did make a valiant effort of cleaning unfortunately the fungus was already deeply imbedded into the grout that nothing could be done. The Head of HK came upstairs with me & she denied that the remaining spots were mildew. Exasperated, I spoke to our Travel agent & asked that I would pay for a deluxe room transfer. An assistant checked the room & gave us a complimentary upgrade to a Deluxe. This hotel clearly caters to meetings & conferences & does all they can to give their oldest rooms to groups. The Deluxe for a $10-$20 difference will give you – a room with new wallpaper, clean carpets, even the towels were fluffier. My girl friend who was in a top floor suite commented that my room was way nicer than hers. Luke’s allergy misery was quickly solved after that.
Met up with a lot of our international colleagues we have not seen in years. We rode the tuk tuk & met up at the Night Market. It looked like the whole CM was there. Enjoyed all the delicious food that CM had to offer- fresh fruit, juices, BBQ'd pork, noodle soups, pad thai, little coconut based desserts & a whole lot more. Found a lot of bargains & bargained for a lot of our friends. Depending on how nice the merchant was- I would return the BHT 20-30 -discount they gave me . KT & the kids left hours before but Anika & I stayed. It was a real fun night with lots of interesting & unique stuff the kids bought. Got a whole lot of Pashminas & silk scarves for gift giving. Got one nice wrap around pants for myself.
For the next 4 days, we had meetings, seminars & workshops till 4:30 PM. We had our buffet meals at the Chinese restaurant on the 2nd floor where they set up the Travel Agent office. Food was surprisingly good- not all of it but I liked what I got. Lots of variety-Thai & international fare, fresh fruits & veggies. The whole hotel has obviously seen better days but our rooms were pleasant to get back to at the end of the day.
Activities for the Kids
Our kids together with 40 others assisted by a Youth Group from the US were also busy with their own activities. My kids enjoyed their days out on their own "Amazing Race",around CM, a visit to MaeSa for an Elephant show & ride, a visit to an orphanage to bring gifts for the kids, a trek up all 309 steps of the temple, they also went shopping in the all day market as part of their AR feat.
After lunch they came back to the hotel for swimming, games & other activities. They would all have dinner together, by the end of the week Victoria would be joining us more for meals, they would again have more things to do– have a singing program, play more games down at their own pad which used to be the hotel disco or party room. They said this is the most fun with friends they've had in a long time. I'm so glad !!!
We did a lot of room shuffling- moved out of our smoking floor to a non smoking floor. Luke kept sneezing & rubbing his eyes when ever he was in the room. It turns out, our both our BR tile grout were riddled with Mildew.
I called Housekeeping the next morning. They did make a valiant effort of cleaning unfortunately the fungus was already deeply imbedded into the grout that nothing could be done. The Head of HK came upstairs with me & she denied that the remaining spots were mildew. Exasperated, I spoke to our Travel agent & asked that I would pay for a deluxe room transfer. An assistant checked the room & gave us a complimentary upgrade to a Deluxe. This hotel clearly caters to meetings & conferences & does all they can to give their oldest rooms to groups. The Deluxe for a $10-$20 difference will give you – a room with new wallpaper, clean carpets, even the towels were fluffier. My girl friend who was in a top floor suite commented that my room was way nicer than hers. Luke’s allergy misery was quickly solved after that.
Met up with a lot of our international colleagues we have not seen in years. We rode the tuk tuk & met up at the Night Market. It looked like the whole CM was there. Enjoyed all the delicious food that CM had to offer- fresh fruit, juices, BBQ'd pork, noodle soups, pad thai, little coconut based desserts & a whole lot more. Found a lot of bargains & bargained for a lot of our friends. Depending on how nice the merchant was- I would return the BHT 20-30 -discount they gave me . KT & the kids left hours before but Anika & I stayed. It was a real fun night with lots of interesting & unique stuff the kids bought. Got a whole lot of Pashminas & silk scarves for gift giving. Got one nice wrap around pants for myself.
For the next 4 days, we had meetings, seminars & workshops till 4:30 PM. We had our buffet meals at the Chinese restaurant on the 2nd floor where they set up the Travel Agent office. Food was surprisingly good- not all of it but I liked what I got. Lots of variety-Thai & international fare, fresh fruits & veggies. The whole hotel has obviously seen better days but our rooms were pleasant to get back to at the end of the day.
Activities for the Kids
Our kids together with 40 others assisted by a Youth Group from the US were also busy with their own activities. My kids enjoyed their days out on their own "Amazing Race",around CM, a visit to MaeSa for an Elephant show & ride, a visit to an orphanage to bring gifts for the kids, a trek up all 309 steps of the temple, they also went shopping in the all day market as part of their AR feat.
After lunch they came back to the hotel for swimming, games & other activities. They would all have dinner together, by the end of the week Victoria would be joining us more for meals, they would again have more things to do– have a singing program, play more games down at their own pad which used to be the hotel disco or party room. They said this is the most fun with friends they've had in a long time. I'm so glad !!!
