We started our four–day trip to Thailand at 3.30 am from our home, reaching the IG international airport in 30 minutes. By 6 am we had cleared immigration and rushed to our favourite place, Carnatic Café, for a filter coffee before boarding the Indigo flight at 7.50 am. We landed at Suvarnabhumi airport, Bangkok at 12.10 pm, Thailand time. The immigration area was packed with people and it seemed unlikely we would get out in the next few hours. But after an hour we were able to clear immigration, pick up our baggage, which for once was waiting for us, rather than the other way around. Our representative from the hotel, Grande Centre Point, was waiting for us patiently and she escorted us to our cab. It took us an hour to reach the hotel, but the drive was wonderful.
Our room was on the 36th floor, and had an old-world charm. Besides the refrigerator and microwave, there was a washing machine, a wash basin with a dining table along with the beds and sofas in the huge room! It was past lunchtime and we were famished. The hotel has a Thai restaurant on the ground floor – Arun, and this became our go to place for Thai meals. My lunch comprising Pad Thai noodles, mushroom soup, mango sticky rice and watermelon juice was delicious. After a short rest we headed for the Lumphini Park, a 20 min walk from our place. The entry area to the garden was lined with vendors cooking street and people enjoying their meal. In the garden, though it was full of people out for the evening, the atmosphere was quite peaceful. The garden encloses a huge lake and besides water birds there was a family of monitor lizards residing there. After spending an hour walking and relaxing surrounded by greenery, we walked back to the café next to our hotel, Blooms & Brew, where we had coffee, mushroom puffs and cinnamon rolls. Right next to this café is a Seven Eleven where we bought sandwiches and Strawberry shake for our dinner.
Next day, after a hearty breakfast at the hotel, we left by a Bolt cab for the Grand Palace, earlier home to the Royals of Thailand. It was a 10-minute drive. Having a guide to show us around was a good decision as our guide Peter helped us understand the various aspects of the Grand Palace grounds, which took us close to two hours. It was interesting to see how the epic Ramayana was interpreted in Thailand and is also the country’s national epic. The Thai monarchy connects itself directly with Rama of Ramayana and uses the title Rama with their names. In fact, Ramayana is known as Ramakien here and their ancient historical capital was Ayutthaya.
I had also heard the story of the discovery of the Emerald Buddha and was interested in seeing this famous statue. The temple (Wat Phra Kaew) itself is quite imposing and the paintings on the wall depicting Buddha’s life are exquisite. The Emerald Buddha is much smaller than what I expected but it was lovely to see the statue resplendent in its summer attire. No cameras are allowed inside the sanctum so the pictures of the Emerald Buddha had to be clicked from outside the entrance and weren’t very clear.
Once we had had our fill of the Palace grounds, we took a tuk-tuk ride to the Temple of the Reclining Buddha (Wat Pho) which was 5 minutes away. The 46-meters long gold-plated reclining Buddha is really worth seeing, more so as it beautifully mirrors the last stage of the Buddha’s life and he has a serene expression accepting what is to come. The soles of the feet are inlaid with mother of pearl and depict sacred symbols. As expected, the area around the temple is serene and there are several pagodas in the courtyard surrounded by trees.
We returned to our hotel at 1.30 pm, after which Tathagat left for the Bangkok Convention Centre for his conference. I left the hotel at 4 pm for the Commons at Thonglor. This place was recommended by a friend and I decided to take a look. I was not disappointed. It’s a unique set-up. It is a partially open-air mall, very trendily designed, pet friendly and green. The relaxed atmosphere does rub off on you. I was there at a time when the evening crowd had not come in, so it was really quiet and I could explore the various floors taking my time. I returned to the hotel at 5.30 pm and soon set off for the Convention centre which was located at the Central World which is a huge business and shopping complex in the heart of Bangkok. It took me 15 minutes to walk there while enjoying the sights. While returning, we took a cab back and had a delicious meal at Arun and retired for the night.
The next day, after a rather heavy breakfast, we left the hotel at 10.20 am for Wat Arun – the Temple of Dawn, located on the banks of the Chao Phraya river. This 17th century Buddhist temple has been named after the Hindu god, Aruna, another name for the Sun. Its central prang or spire which rises to around 80 meters in height is encrusted with porcelain and this creates a magical light around the spire when sunlight hits it, especially in the mornings and sun set.
We booked a river cruise from Wat Arun, which works on the Hop On and Hop Off system. Our first stop was IconSiam which is a huge mall and it took us 15 minutes to get there on the motor boat. Here we explored SookSiam on the ground floor, which gives a complete picture of what Thailand has to offer. I had a delicious mango and coconut ice cream and bought several packets of vegetable and fruit chips. The area showcases Thailand based on regions and what each region has to offer. We left after three hours and this time got off at Asiatique which is known for its night life. Unfortunately, our timing was wrong as we landed there in the afternoon and the place wore a deserted look. We waited at the dock for half an hour for the boat to return and once again got off at IconSiam. From here we hired a cab and returned to our hotel. We went to the rooftop swimming pool and relaxed before taking a long walk towards the Central World Mall and back. Dinner was at Arun again and I was getting spoilt with the excellent Thai cuisine.
Next morning, after breakfast, we left for the Pratunam market just 10 minutes away. The busy market reminded me of Sarojini Nagar and Lajpat Nagar markets in New Delhi. I bought some clothes which this market is famous for. Next to this market is the Platinum mall and we decided to walk around this area. Tathagat decided to get a massage while I explored and had a lovely coffee and bruschetta. The one thing that really tries your patience in Bangkok is the traffic. If you are waiting for a cab, then prepare to wait for a long time which we did before we were dropped off at our hotel at 1.20 pm. In the evening we had a dinner engagement at the Bangkok Convention Centre organized for the delegates invited for the conference and their families and it was fun. An accomplished singer was singing songs from yesteryears that went down well with the guests. We were back before 9 pm and packed up.
Woke up early the next day and were ready by 7 am and had a light breakfast at the hotel. The cab was waiting for us and we reached the airport in 45 minutes. As usual, we were too early and the counters were yet to open, so we relaxed over coffee and then went through the security check. We were done with all checks by 9.50 am and explored the airport which is quite huge and we purchased some food stuff. We boarded at 11.30 am and landed home at 2.30 pm IST.
Looking forward to sharing another trip with you soon …
very well written… i literally travelled with you.
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