Bangkok February 2016
February 12, 2016: Arrival, Floating Market, Mr. Reclining
And so there is the same struggle with the damn suitcases at the Bangkok train station. AlteCocker gets a porter for 60 baht (less than $2). Then there is a taxi driver who AlteCocker ends up hiring for the entire day (haggling with a cab driver who has a meter he doesn't use)—probably for too much money but, after dealing with the suitcases, it is a blessed relief. He takes AlteCocker to the Trang Hotel (price 3780 for 3 nights—that is about $100; not bad, huh?) where she drops off her luggage and then we are off to the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market—the granddaddy of such markets in Thailand--which is about an hour drive out of Bangkok. Unfortunately, AlteCocker is traveling solo and when we get there there is no one to share the motorized boat with her. The foreigner price is 2000 baht for 1 hour (about $55) and AlteCocker ends up basically chartering her own boat; no doubt she was ripped off. Was it worth it? The cab cost 1500 baht (but a couple of similar excursions cost a similar amount when AlteCocker did them in her first trip in 2014-2015 and it did include the drop off at the hotel). It was an expensive day, but she wanted to go to the Floating Market and she's been to the Floating Market. Would she do it again? Nope. It's the kind of tourist attraction you see once and you're done. Most of what is sold is cheap crappy Thai souvenir merchandise sold all over. AlteCocker buys a very small painting of a scene on the Floating Market--which is the only thing she wanted. Not expensive at 1000 baht ($30) but add in the taxi and the boat and it was not so cheap. However, after her bad experience with Mam Tours last year (read her old blog here), she was not overly excited about taking a van tour there. So, she paid through the nose but did not have the hassle. You win some, you get ripped off elsewhere.
The taxi driver drops her off at the Great Reclining Buddha and AlteCocker eats a quick pad thai from a woman at the entrance for 60 baht. She has a great spot and her business must be good. They work very hard for lunches that cost less than $2. It's great. Then it is time for Mr. Reclining. AlteCocker pays her respects and has a lot of trouble finding her way out of the complex. Mr. Reclining is humongous. The taxi driver said it would be a 100 baht fare to the Trang Hotel when he dropped her off. Well, the first tuk tuk predictably driver tries 300 baht. AlteCocker eventually finds an honest cab driver that actually uses his meter. The fare to the hotel was 65 baht. She gives him 100. He deserves something for honesty. Judging from what the fare was to the hotel and the hour long cab ride to the Floating Market (and then back again), the taxi was probably not overpriced. The fare for the boat still grates.
The hotel is a bit old but the price is right. AlteCocker has trouble with the TV (with only one working channel in English--a Japanese one) and then there is the predictable slow wifi. When she finally signs on, her neighbor reports that she tried to get into AlteCocker's Prius to drive it but the key would not work. She asks if there is a second key in the house. There is but, since the the Prius has not been driven while the snow melted, it might be a dead battery. It is something to deal with when AlteCocker gets back. Back to car aggravation, medical appointments and reality in a couple of days!
The rest of the afternoon is spent getting the blog up and dealing with the overweight luggage. Ugh!
The taxi driver drops her off at the Great Reclining Buddha and AlteCocker eats a quick pad thai from a woman at the entrance for 60 baht. She has a great spot and her business must be good. They work very hard for lunches that cost less than $2. It's great. Then it is time for Mr. Reclining. AlteCocker pays her respects and has a lot of trouble finding her way out of the complex. Mr. Reclining is humongous. The taxi driver said it would be a 100 baht fare to the Trang Hotel when he dropped her off. Well, the first tuk tuk predictably driver tries 300 baht. AlteCocker eventually finds an honest cab driver that actually uses his meter. The fare to the hotel was 65 baht. She gives him 100. He deserves something for honesty. Judging from what the fare was to the hotel and the hour long cab ride to the Floating Market (and then back again), the taxi was probably not overpriced. The fare for the boat still grates.
The hotel is a bit old but the price is right. AlteCocker has trouble with the TV (with only one working channel in English--a Japanese one) and then there is the predictable slow wifi. When she finally signs on, her neighbor reports that she tried to get into AlteCocker's Prius to drive it but the key would not work. She asks if there is a second key in the house. There is but, since the the Prius has not been driven while the snow melted, it might be a dead battery. It is something to deal with when AlteCocker gets back. Back to car aggravation, medical appointments and reality in a couple of days!
The rest of the afternoon is spent getting the blog up and dealing with the overweight luggage. Ugh!
February 13, 2016: Bang Pa In Palace, Ayuthaya, River Cruise
aToday AlteCocker took a van tour. Included in the tour were visits to Bang Pa In Palace, Ayuthaya, an assortment of Buddhas and finally a river cruise with a buffet lunch back to Bangkok.
The tour began, groan, at 6:30am. We were all picked up in vans and taken to a central point where we boarded a larger bus that was about half full. We had an English speaking guide who gave a constant commentary and was with us until we loaded the vans again after the River Cruise. AlteCocker booked this tour through Viator. AlteCocker recommends that you use this company which provides an excellent contrast to the totally chaotic Mam Tour company highlighted above.
Our first stop was Bang Pa In Palace, formerly used by royalty as a summer residence. This was a total surprise as it hadn't been listed in the itinerary. It was excellent. AlteCocker is only sorry that she did not rent a golf cart to get around. The grounds are extensive and it would have been easier on AlteCocker's back if she had opted to fork over the money for the golf cart. Sometimes trying to avoid another trip to the ATM isn't worth it. AlteCocker visited a museum and the two rooms on the ground floor of the old summer palace (one with a throne and a kneeling bench for the person pleading his case before the king). She missed the interior of the Chinese Palace. The guide did a guided tour but AlteCocker did not take it because she got confused after we entered and the guide was busy (presumably paying). She would not have missed the Chinese Palace had she gone with him. Oh, well, the people who did missed the museum. Despite missing the Chinese Palace, AlteCocker was pleased with her visit. There is only so much time on a guided tour.
The next stop was Ayuthaya, the old capital of Thailand, that was destroyed in the Burmese Wars. The Burmese won and and Ayuthaya was burned to the ground in 1767. The capital was moved to Bangkok after the demise of Ayuthaya. What you see today is ruins. Ayuthaya is a huge site. On the guided tour, we were shown the heart of the ruins, including a head of the Buddha that was overgrown by a fig tree--much like the ruins you see in some of the temples in and around Siem Reap, Cambodia. AlteCocker again got mixed up at the entrance and ended up with the guide from another tour group from the same tour company. No harm, no foul, as both guides were excellent. You could clearly see
Then we saw some Buddhas, including a huge outdoor stone reclining Buddha only slightly shorter than Mr. Reclining in Bangkok. Someone had made a huge orange robe for Mr. Outdoor Reclining so you can't see the details of the sculpture as closely as you can in the Indoor Reclining in Bangkok. On the other hand, you could get a photo of the whole megilla. For Mr. Indoor Reclining, you have to take the photos in bits and the feet are covered as they are being restored. AlteCocker did get a photo of Mr. Outdoor Reclining's feet.
We saw a massive bronze Buddha totally covered with gold leaf and another that was very old. AlteCocker avoided all the temples in Chiang Mai--having seen enough Buddhas in Chiang Mai on her first trip in 2014-1015--so she guesses she had to pay her dues on this tour. What is Thailand without elephants and Buddhas?
The tour concluded with a buffet lunch and cruise back to Bangkok. AlteCocker thought this would be relaxing and it was, but AlteCocker had done a night cruise and rode the water buses last year and some of it was repetitive. An attempt to take photos ended in a "battery exhausted" notice on her camera. There were enough photos from last year anyway. The buffet lunch was, well, a buffet. AlteCocker hates them. People line up and heap their plates as though it was their last meal. Since we were the last bus to get in, the lines were long. As is true with all buffets, the food was nothing to write home about and the amounts are huge. You don't do a tour like this for the food anyway. After the camera problem (she had more batteries in the camera case, but, alas, it disappeared somewhere yesterday), AlteCocker stayed inside and enjoyed the air conditioning rather than migrating to the upper outdoor deck. The commentary given by the narrator on the boat was excellent.
The end was at the cruise ship dock (same place as the night cruise leaves from). The van drivers were there holding up signs for their designated hotels. Instead of being the last one let off, AlteCocker was second to last when she finally arrived back at the Trang Hotel. She was so tired she did not even realize she was "home". It was time for a shower and the blog. Later she learned of Antonin Scalia's death. This political year is getting more and more interesting.
The tour began, groan, at 6:30am. We were all picked up in vans and taken to a central point where we boarded a larger bus that was about half full. We had an English speaking guide who gave a constant commentary and was with us until we loaded the vans again after the River Cruise. AlteCocker booked this tour through Viator. AlteCocker recommends that you use this company which provides an excellent contrast to the totally chaotic Mam Tour company highlighted above.
Our first stop was Bang Pa In Palace, formerly used by royalty as a summer residence. This was a total surprise as it hadn't been listed in the itinerary. It was excellent. AlteCocker is only sorry that she did not rent a golf cart to get around. The grounds are extensive and it would have been easier on AlteCocker's back if she had opted to fork over the money for the golf cart. Sometimes trying to avoid another trip to the ATM isn't worth it. AlteCocker visited a museum and the two rooms on the ground floor of the old summer palace (one with a throne and a kneeling bench for the person pleading his case before the king). She missed the interior of the Chinese Palace. The guide did a guided tour but AlteCocker did not take it because she got confused after we entered and the guide was busy (presumably paying). She would not have missed the Chinese Palace had she gone with him. Oh, well, the people who did missed the museum. Despite missing the Chinese Palace, AlteCocker was pleased with her visit. There is only so much time on a guided tour.
The next stop was Ayuthaya, the old capital of Thailand, that was destroyed in the Burmese Wars. The Burmese won and and Ayuthaya was burned to the ground in 1767. The capital was moved to Bangkok after the demise of Ayuthaya. What you see today is ruins. Ayuthaya is a huge site. On the guided tour, we were shown the heart of the ruins, including a head of the Buddha that was overgrown by a fig tree--much like the ruins you see in some of the temples in and around Siem Reap, Cambodia. AlteCocker again got mixed up at the entrance and ended up with the guide from another tour group from the same tour company. No harm, no foul, as both guides were excellent. You could clearly see
Then we saw some Buddhas, including a huge outdoor stone reclining Buddha only slightly shorter than Mr. Reclining in Bangkok. Someone had made a huge orange robe for Mr. Outdoor Reclining so you can't see the details of the sculpture as closely as you can in the Indoor Reclining in Bangkok. On the other hand, you could get a photo of the whole megilla. For Mr. Indoor Reclining, you have to take the photos in bits and the feet are covered as they are being restored. AlteCocker did get a photo of Mr. Outdoor Reclining's feet.
We saw a massive bronze Buddha totally covered with gold leaf and another that was very old. AlteCocker avoided all the temples in Chiang Mai--having seen enough Buddhas in Chiang Mai on her first trip in 2014-1015--so she guesses she had to pay her dues on this tour. What is Thailand without elephants and Buddhas?
The tour concluded with a buffet lunch and cruise back to Bangkok. AlteCocker thought this would be relaxing and it was, but AlteCocker had done a night cruise and rode the water buses last year and some of it was repetitive. An attempt to take photos ended in a "battery exhausted" notice on her camera. There were enough photos from last year anyway. The buffet lunch was, well, a buffet. AlteCocker hates them. People line up and heap their plates as though it was their last meal. Since we were the last bus to get in, the lines were long. As is true with all buffets, the food was nothing to write home about and the amounts are huge. You don't do a tour like this for the food anyway. After the camera problem (she had more batteries in the camera case, but, alas, it disappeared somewhere yesterday), AlteCocker stayed inside and enjoyed the air conditioning rather than migrating to the upper outdoor deck. The commentary given by the narrator on the boat was excellent.
The end was at the cruise ship dock (same place as the night cruise leaves from). The van drivers were there holding up signs for their designated hotels. Instead of being the last one let off, AlteCocker was second to last when she finally arrived back at the Trang Hotel. She was so tired she did not even realize she was "home". It was time for a shower and the blog. Later she learned of Antonin Scalia's death. This political year is getting more and more interesting.
February 13, 2016: The National Theater
AlteCocker thought she was going to The National Museum and National Theater this afternoon, but she had an unwanted problem with a very stupid taxi driver. He was told by the hotel where AlteCocker wanted him to go. When he passed The National Museum, AlteCocker did try and tell him that that was where she wanted to go. As AlteCocker then understood it, he said he would turn around and drop her on the correct side of the busy street. Instead, over AlteCocker's objection, he essentially dumped her at the Siam Museum 2-3 kilometers from where she wanted to go. At that point, AlteCocker just wanted out of the cab as trying to show him what she wanted ended in the taxi driver pretty much doing what he wanted. Many drivers are temporary out of towners and this was obviously one of them. Since she had a problem snaring another taxi, it ended in a very hot walk with a stop for ice cream. Yes, she saw some scenery but the end result was that she never went to The National Museum. Grr!
AlteCocker did get to go to The National Theater--and she thanks the Lonely Planet Thailand guide book for this one. On the first two Sundays of every month there are perfomances at The National Theater at 2:00pm. What AlteCocker saw today was a Thai opera/dance performance based on one of the Ramayana stories. It was entirely in Thai and she understood perhaps 6 words; there is nothing in English to tell you what was going on (the program is only in Thai). The program was 2 hours long with no intermission and no curtain calls. There was no opportunity to take photos of the costumes as photography is banned in the theater. It is a show basically for the locals because the foreigners generally do not speak Thai. There is no catering to Chinese groups who insist on rushing the stage and taking photos with the performers because the performers do not even take a curtain call--much less show up in the entrance for photos. If there were any tour groups at all present, AlteCocker did not see any/ It was obviously a bad guys vs. the good guys story; the costumes were fantastic--as was the dancing. One interesting thing is that much of the talking was done by 3 males and the dancers have to coordinate their movements to what the guys were saying--totally amazing. The women's voices were done by a prepubescent male. While not getting the fine details of the plot, it was still quite a show. The bad guys were the monkeys--costumed in those weird bad guy/monkey suits that you see at The Grand Palace. The finale was spectacular with puppets up in the clouds--and anyone who read the Burmese marionette story from last year knows how much AlteCocker loves puppets.
After the show, AlteCocker took a taxi back to the hotel and she will eat whatever she is going to eat at the hotel tonight. carefully saving 500 baht for the taxi at 4:00am for the 7:00am flight.
This post will close the series of blogs for this year's Asia trip. The plane to Tokyo will connect AlteCocker to Washington, DC. She sure hopes she does not have to pay for the 2nd bag again this year as she did last despite United's "two free bags" if you have our credit card policy. It simply does not work when another airline checks you in. Wherever the chips fall.
Now to finally knock down the luggage. The National Museum will have to be "banked" for next time--if there is a next time.
Thanks for reading.
AlteCocker did get to go to The National Theater--and she thanks the Lonely Planet Thailand guide book for this one. On the first two Sundays of every month there are perfomances at The National Theater at 2:00pm. What AlteCocker saw today was a Thai opera/dance performance based on one of the Ramayana stories. It was entirely in Thai and she understood perhaps 6 words; there is nothing in English to tell you what was going on (the program is only in Thai). The program was 2 hours long with no intermission and no curtain calls. There was no opportunity to take photos of the costumes as photography is banned in the theater. It is a show basically for the locals because the foreigners generally do not speak Thai. There is no catering to Chinese groups who insist on rushing the stage and taking photos with the performers because the performers do not even take a curtain call--much less show up in the entrance for photos. If there were any tour groups at all present, AlteCocker did not see any/ It was obviously a bad guys vs. the good guys story; the costumes were fantastic--as was the dancing. One interesting thing is that much of the talking was done by 3 males and the dancers have to coordinate their movements to what the guys were saying--totally amazing. The women's voices were done by a prepubescent male. While not getting the fine details of the plot, it was still quite a show. The bad guys were the monkeys--costumed in those weird bad guy/monkey suits that you see at The Grand Palace. The finale was spectacular with puppets up in the clouds--and anyone who read the Burmese marionette story from last year knows how much AlteCocker loves puppets.
After the show, AlteCocker took a taxi back to the hotel and she will eat whatever she is going to eat at the hotel tonight. carefully saving 500 baht for the taxi at 4:00am for the 7:00am flight.
This post will close the series of blogs for this year's Asia trip. The plane to Tokyo will connect AlteCocker to Washington, DC. She sure hopes she does not have to pay for the 2nd bag again this year as she did last despite United's "two free bags" if you have our credit card policy. It simply does not work when another airline checks you in. Wherever the chips fall.
Now to finally knock down the luggage. The National Museum will have to be "banked" for next time--if there is a next time.
Thanks for reading.