One Night in Bangkok…
When last I wrote, we had just left Nepal for Thailand. Our plan was to spend several days in Bangkok, then take an overnight train to Chang Mai in the north for a week, before rounding out our time in the land of smiles with 2 weeks in the south on Phuket.
With nearly a full month in Thailand, there is so much to share! I’ll start at the beginning, with Bangkok. Upon arrival, we made our way through the airport (with Ava stopping to exchange some of her own money for local currency) and were greeted by a representative who showed us to our pre-arranged (required by the government) transportation to the hospital for a COVID test and then onto the government approved hotel (a very lovely Sheraton) for quarantine until our test results came back. Our results were in by the next morning and we were free to explore the city.
Given the chaos and litter in Nepal, Bangkok was a welcome sight! The streets were spotless, even the alleyways were kept clean by constant sweeping. The people were overwhelmingly nice and so happy to have tourists back in the city. On multiple occasions random strangers stopped to ask us where we were going, offer suggestions or insider tips, and help find transportation, with nothing obviously in it for them (i.e., they weren’t providing the transportation or selling us anything).
Thanks to the recommendation and help of a lovely gentleman who saw us walking around a closed temple, we secured two Tuk-tuks and visited a temple only visited by locals. While there our two drivers guided us through the proper way to enter the temple and complete a blessing. On our way out, we met a local man who directed us to a local tailor for custom made high-end clothing (think Armani suits) at a fraction of the cost.
Surprisingly, Ben, Paul, me, and my mother and father all had custom items made. Two suits for Ben and my dad, a suit, dress, and two shirts for my mom, a dress coat for Paul and a dress for me! Sophia and Ava got dresses off the rack. What was most impressive was that 4 hours after finishing taking our measurements, we were back in the shop for a fitting! It was incredible!
That night we met up with a local guide we found on Airbnb for a food tour of the largest Chinatown market in the world. The kids were less than impressed with the food, but the adults thought everything was delicious. While we could have navigated the night market on our own, there is no way we would have tried all the local dishes our guide introduced us to.
The next day, we took took a bike/food tour of the old city side of Bangkok. It was a great way to learn more about the history of the city and of Thailand. While I knew that Thailand used to be known as Siam, but I never put together that the word Siamese came from the a merging of Siam and Portuguese peoples after Portugal began trade and diplomatic relations with Siam. And despite their strong influence in the country, Siam remains the only nation in the region to avoid ever being colonized by foreign powers.
On our last morning in the city, we toured the Grand Palace, which is truly stunning. Honestly, I think it puts Versailles to shame. While not as large, the gold, jewels, and intricate designs adorning ever surface are gorgeous and beyond compare.
That evening we headed to the train station for our overnight train to Chang Mai (which came highly recommended from a friend back home). We booked three cabins, each with bunk beds and a sink, for the 13hrs trip north. It really was a fun experience, though we didn’t realize there was no food car (we have been spoiled with European trains) and so had to buy a bunch of junk food 10mins before the train departed to serve as dinner. After a restful sleep (for some), we awoke to the lush green vegetation surrounding Chang Mai, ready for a week of new adventures.
