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WACKY AND WONDERFUL, DATELINE BANGKOK-- RHKKMK
I wrote this a few days ago so it is dated..
48 hours of unbelievable conincidences....awake at 6AM, there was a bleakness to the bangkok sky from our riverfront room on the 7th floor of the royal river hotel (nothing royal about it---included in n/w package so it was free, except for the $40 upgrade fee i paid so as to avoid the horrible room they put us in)..i began composing in my mind...wanted to be funny, informed and informative....i opened the drapes wide to a grayish day---AMAZING THAILAND... all i could think of was: WHO 'DA THUNK... 3 amazing things had happened in 2 days...unbelievable really... ok make it 4---wacko jackson is aquitted--just reported on TV... on sunday we went to the amazing indian buffet brunch at the Rembrandt hotel on soi 18, sukhumvit rd....a favorite...our second visit... after our delicious luncheon, i said to karen lets stop off at Emporium as we have a skytrain pass and it is easy on and easy off...we did...we entered the store directly from the sky train stop on the 2nd floor....as we were rounding the corner, someone said to me..."bob"...i kept walking...it was repeated...we rounded the corner and were about to go up on the escalator and a man again said "roberto"...karen said who is that??... i did not know but we made eye contact and turned around and approached him.... pause and transmit |
i approached this kindly looking man..who looked like a well fed thai (sorry ken)---but much less well fed than me...
i said do i know you??, and he sort of looked at me...he said something that my half deafness and the noise of the busy mall did not allow me to hear....i thought hard...nothing...i said..i don't think i know you...he repeated: "Kuranosuke".....OH MY GOD...a real live fodorite...it could have been orgy also but he was not wearing a red T shirt... we spent several minutes comparing notes and catching up on restaurants, etc...he told me that he had spoken to me the day before at the thai craft association sale at the ambassador hotel but that i had ignored him...so rude of me...what is the chance in a city of 20 million that i would meet someone twice in 24 hours...unbelievable...still don't know how he knew us...but maybe he looked at my pics last year on shutter fly and just remember a rotund westerner...i do stand out in bkk.... from there we headed to soi 93 sukhumivt where karen was ready to purchase 3 lengths of fabulous upholstery fabric from jim thompson for 3 projects awaiting our upholsterer when we return...success there of course at a huge savings over the main store price....hundreds of fabrics to choose from at savings from 50-90%...other items were gathered as well on the 3rd floor general merchandise sales floor...3 other floors of fabric... i also spotted a wonderful pink cotton which i made karen buy for yet another blouse for the dress maker to whip up at river city...karen said...do you know that this is the same fabric we picked up last year at the suriwong rd outlet...i said no...i can't remember this morning... more to come |
on monday we took the royal river boat to river city to deliver the pink fabric to js thai silk (opposite the info booth on the first/ground floor at the sheraton end of the building---ms yai is our lady there)...we were sitting and talking to ms yai when in strolled a blonde woman...oh my god, it was a new Australian friend we had made at the jw marriott in phuket the week before....now what is the chance of running into someone in a city of 20 million at one of the 10,000 or more tailor shops in bkk???? we had not discussed this shop....karen remembers that jeannette said she would be spending one nite in the terrible ROS (stop yelling kathie) before returning home...she had ordered a number of things from ms yai and was there to get them and to see if they could help her find a sling for her husband who had hurt his shoulder....karen assisted with making one out of cloth...we were delighted to see her but more amazed that this could happen
and thirdly B E D continued |
roberto; a well fed thai, are you kidding? more like a sumotori wannabe.
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THAT'S BED SUPPER CLUB ON SOI 11 SUKHUMVIT...
this is the trendy side of this neighborhood near to the bumbargarad hospital and the ambassador hotel... near to Q bar and next door to korena restaurant... raves it has received and RAVES IT DESERVES... i had made an internet reservation and followed up with a phone call upon arrival in bkk... weekdays they offer a fixed prices meal at 1090 B --about $27 per person.. the building is unusual...it is all white..it is oval in shape and is perched up on a pedistal...up the right side of the building on the outside is a grand staircase...there is no sign by the way that we could see, but you can't miss the building ...when you enter everything is white save the staffs apparel and the colored lighting which changes... there are two levels...on the right is the large 2 level bar which we only peeked into on the way out....we are way too old for this scene... the dining room, or better the bedroom, is all white and at first kind of eery...it is two levels...we were "seated" on the lower level at the far end on the left...imo, perfect for me as i could rest my legs over the side of the mattress....the mattresses are about 50 feet long and maybe 6-8 feet wide and have white thick sheets on them...they are about 3 feet off the floor...there are many pillows of different sizes and shapes to proop yourself up with...each "couple", and it seemed to be all couples, sharred a bed tray table upon which drinks and your food was served...the music was loud but not obnoxious...there were graffics, etc being projected up on a huge screen over the entry door...a dj was just in front of us...they were western and changed once during the evening....they were very much full of themselves... we got into it...lots of goings on and interesting people...both western and asian...the couple next to us were asian...he from CA and she from bkk---not a bar girl however... the |
in the middle of the floor there were two large semi opaque blocks of what looked like ice....the colored lites shown off of them...more later...
we ordered drinks from the extensive menu....they also have you order your complete meal up front....there were 3 choices for each of the 3 courses... we ordereed: karen: mushroom/spinach salad with figs which was molded with slivered almonds on top for a starter...followed by pepper coated seared tuna (rare) cut into wedges and stood up on their side with the point upwards so as to show the pink...it was accompanied by passion fruit polenta (very tasty and i don't like polenta) and more almonds...her dessert was soft centered chocolate cake placed on a bed of vanilla and berry sauces and garnished with fresh strawberries and rasberries and mint leaves... bob had: a smoked salmon salad pilled high with watercress and other greens..followed by penne pasta with bite sized pieces of filet of lamb (medium rare) with spinach and a lite tomato sauce based in wine...this was a treat because lamb is not allowed in our house or on karen's table usually... i had the same dessert... the meal was fantastic, well presented, warm and absolutely DELICIOUS....everything carol said it would be....we were very pleased... as 61 year olds we did not feel out of place either although we were by far the oldsters there that nite... we spent maybe 2.5 hours there... there were two masseurs who circulated and did their thing if you wanted...one male, one female ... we understand that there is some form of entertainment each nite...in our case it centered around the blocks of ice....two asian men spent one hour or more making them into a sculpture of a mythical horse statue...perhaps 7 feet high....it was fascinating and they used all hand tools... the music changed as the dj staff changed and so did the graphics.... by the way people took pictures although i thought i had read it was not permitted thanks everyone....we give it a 10 i forgot to mention that when kuranosuke met us the first thing he commented on was the fact that i did not have sandles with socks on....i did most of the time.... fashions are changing here and more skin is showing and it looks more like NY all the time...i will stick with my sandles or reg shoes and chinos and polo/sport shirts...karen wore slacks/or 3/4 length pants most of the time and a blouse...she wore only sandles with a heal strap, although we think that is an urban myth.. we did not do sightseeing however... this will be all until i get home monday nite...i hope to report more later next week bob the prasart museum is a must on anyones trip...will report later...it is 40 minutes outside of town and takes about 2 hours to visit...1/2 realy from start to finsih....we loved it... |
ken...glad i did not offend you
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Loved your posts. Amazing story about Kuranosuke. Can't wait for the rest of your trip report. Enjoy your remaining days in Thailand & have a safe trip home. I missed your photos. Can you post the web site again? Thanks!
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kuranosuke, tell us how you knew who Bob was!!
tres bizarre. |
Bob-
Great report. Glad you took my recommendation about Prasart. I cam't understand why more people don't go but, in a way, glad they don't since the lack of tourists makes it that much more special. Also glad Carol and I convinced you that Bed Supper Club was more than a gimmick and also would be comfortable for a big "older" man. Looking forward to more details about your trip. Did you get to meet Prasart himself? How's Poon? Did you use her? |
Bob, really enjoying your mini reports. Eric and I will definitely have to go to Bed when next in BKK. I hope I can convince him to go--I may have to ask you to send him an email ;-)
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Bob
I'm enjoying your reports. Sounds like you two are having an amazing time. Thanks for the great review of The Bed Supper Club... my favorite BKK restaurant. I'm so glad you and Karen enjoyed it. When my DH and I go, we too are the "oldsters" there, (he is 62 and I'll be 60 in NOV)with most folks being in their 30's, I'd say. But we don't fell at all out of place. The ice sculpture "thing" sounded very interesting. We've had a live jazz band, a pretty girl walking around posing and blowing bubbles from a bottle, and a pretty girl walking around, striking a pose, and spraying perfume into the air. An interesting place for sure! kuranosuke... DO tell us how you were able to pick Bob out of all those millions in BKK. Carol |
Bob
I'm enjoying your reports. Sounds like you two are having an amazing time in Thailand. Thanks for the great review of The Bed Supper Club... my favorite BKK restaurant. I'm so glad you and Karen enjoyed it. I could picture all of it in my head as you were describing the stairway, the room, the big screen, etc. If I knew HOW to post them, I'd put my photos out there for everyone to see. I've taken a number of pics at the Bed, including a good photo of the outside. When my website is ready, I'm going to put travel photos on it. When my DH and I go, we too are the "oldsters" there, (he is 62 and I'll be 60 in NOV)with most folks being in their 30's, I'd say. But we don't feel at all out of place. The ice sculpture "thing" sounded very interesting. We've had a live jazz band, a pretty girl walking around posing and blowing bubbles from a bottle, and a pretty girl walking around, striking a pose, and spraying perfume into the air. An interesting place for sure! kuranosuke... DO tell us how you were able to pick Bob out of all those millions in BKK. Carol |
OK... the first post said there was an ERROR and didn't post, so I edited a bit, and then I thought I was posting for the FIRST time. Duh... sorry
Carol |
I had a very similar experience in Bangkok! It goes beyond being described as coincidence!
Two months earlier I had met Dawn Rooney (fmous author) at an organised event and had taken her "Guide to Angkor" book for her to sign. Out of over 60 people attending only I and this other guy had brought a book with us for her to sign. Fast forward to Siem Reap and I bump into Dawn Rooney! I acted like a star struck groupie! (Perhaps that wasn't too much of a coincidence) But then fast forward to Bangkok and I bumped into the other guy who was at the event! Having shared the briefest of moments then to have met them both during this trip was just so astonishing. It was quite absurd really. I’m sure no one would ever believe us, it would just sound too far fetched! __________________________ Cambodia Trip Report http://www.colin-julie.com/travel.htm |
Wonderful report, Bob. Don't know how we are going to fit all the great Bangkok restaurants into our schedule. Look forward to hearing more.
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Bob is now enjoying the Calypso Cabaret and we will get a report from him- as he says he will either thank me or blame me depending on their reaction to the show!
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Bob, great post! I guess I really will have to try Bed.
And I love the meeting of Fodorites - life is stranger than fiction. |
How hilarious to run into Kuranosuke in Emporium. It reminded me of an incident in Bangkok. A Thai friend and I went to the weekend market early one morning. My friend and I were standing in one of the shops and I was telling her a funny story about something or the other when this man overheard it and started laughing. He and I started to talk and then his wife came over and we all started to talk. Well, we found out that we were from the same city. So, we talked a while and then went separate ways. Well, about 3 hours later, my friend and I decided to jump on the skytrain and go to Emporium because I wanted to go to both the Propoganda store and the Jim Thompson store. While in the Propoganda store,I hear a voice calling me and I turn around and it's the SAME couple we'd met at the weekend market! We just laughed hysterically. They had been over to Lemongrass restaurant,their favorite, but it was closed so they decided to just hang out in Emporium.So, we exchanged phone numbers and went on our way again. Well, my friend and I walked around the mall, for about an hour, and then decided to eat at Greyhound Cafe. We were seated in the back section in a kind of a hidden section. You can't see the door of the cafe from there. About 20 minutes after we had been seated, a couple was seated at the table directly across from us and as we looked up, we caught each other's eyes and it was the SAME couple again.Well,we haven't been out of contact since that day! Happy Travels!
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"Life is stranger than fiction"....how profoundly true!
Bob: Sounds like an incredible trip so far...glad you loved the Bed! Anxiously awaiting more of your report when you get back. Aloha! |
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