Thailand Day 7 - Hangover Day in Bangkok (24th July 200)

Arriving Bangkok's Hualamphong Train Station, we were jolted from our slumberland by the sudden screeching of the coach coming to a halt at the scheduled time! Bangkok at 6.00AM felt too early to begin the day with. It would obviously be another uneventful day for us as we spent the day fighting hangover - a result of yesterday's delirious beer extravaganza in Phitsanulok! Interesting objects and landmarks that Bangkok promised so much did not attract the hallucinated heads in us. Fret we were not as we would be in this "City of Angels" for the next 3 days.




Still starry-eyed Andy caught us unaware with this unfocused picture! Couldn't blame him really! Perhaps the picture approriately summed up best our moods for the day: blurry views, clouded minds, lousy feelings, sleepy...this is what hangover is all about!




Each one of us took turn to watch our backpacks as two of us went to the toilet. The toilet were crowded (locals and foreigners) doing the DIY selfcare routine: brushing teeth, facial washes (yupp...men nowadays also do facial!), wiping themselves clean, changing clothes...even I saw a local policeman brushing his teeth and wetting his hair after his graveyard shift! There were actually 2 toilets at the station - one ordinary but big toilet that we went to (cost B10) and another one that looked poshy when I peeked inside and provided with hot water shower, hair blower, free use of towel, free small matchstick-sized soap...(cost B20 for the extra privileges).


Hualamphong Train Station

We left Hualamphong Station to go to Siam Paragon to regroup with Jeremy. Perusing the limited Bangkok city map we got from the airport days before, Siam Paragon seemed to be close by from the Station. We decided to walk.

We were lost in the Bangkok's myriad spaghetti-like thanons and sois (roads and streets). The lack of details on the map coupled with a clouded mind were quite a challenge! We would follow this certain road which looked like a shortcut to our destination only to be greeted with a deadend! Darn...I should have brought along my trusty Silva compass.



After walking for sometimes, we would rest whenever benches caught our eyes as our backs began to feel the strain of our heavy backpacks (mine was 15kg - no idea what I put inside!). We would recheck the map again to be sure we were going the correct way!


Even our precious derrières were not spared from Andy's naughty intoxicated mind!
To cross any roads in Bangkok is to go through the provided pedestrian tunnels or pedestrian walkway bridges.





We reached Siam Paragon finally after trudging for about 1 hour! The scorching sun made a sweat of us! This sweaty affair has somehow managed to reduce the effect of our hangover. Retracing our route from the station to Siam Paragon, we actually walked in a longer L-shaped route instead of taking a hypotenuse-like shortcut.




Double waitings! For Jeremy to show up and Siam Paragon to open!





Once inside Siam Paragon, we went straight to McDonald's. Jeremy appeared 10 minutes later. Feeling hungry, we scoured the menu and we ordered this burger. Looked like a typical burger in any fastfood outlet. What so special about this burger that is not available in Malaysia? Folks...you are seeing a pork burger! Tasted like any burgers - just damn delicious! (Cost: B59)





You know you are incredible very tired when you fall asleep inside McDonald's!




Having put our heavy backpacks at the Siam Paragon's counter for safekeeping, we explored Siam Paragon floor-to-floor. The variety and collection of goods sold were incredibly huge and all are branded too meaning this place was for the well heeled customers. Us backpackers were limited to just wash our eyes with gasped mouths. There was this one floor whose 50% of the floor space was occupied by golf sets!And I saw a 70-meter long display of golf sets of all brands imaginable. Tiger Woods, being a half-Thai with a Thai mother, must have done wonders to popularising the game of golf in Thailand.




Stumbled over this weird-looking chair with computer and associated paraphernalia similar to Formula One driver in paddock checking the timings of other drivers! After much observation later, this chair turned out to be a gamer's paradise. Sitting on the chair and playing Halo, the chair simulated the contour of battlefields. The chair would rock in rocky areas, felt the effect of flying when shooting at enemy targets below, etc! Hardcore Halo gamers (DARRV - inits of my colleagues) would surely love to try! (Pricey B100 per game. Minimum 4 persons!)



We succumbed to temptation over this yummy cakes as these were all we could afford!




Neal and I were tempted again by the nice food pictures in a Japanese restaurant inside Siam Paragon, so we might as well try just for the experience! Poor Andy doing his usual routine now whenever we went to! (B50-B65)




Towards the evening, we were too tired to continue exploring Siam Paragon. There are 2 or 3 floors not yet touched upon as our legs were slowly getting wobbly! So we went out to look for a reasonable hotel nearby. We were not disappointed as we found one with all basic facilities provided (air con, hot water, pail to wash our stinky clothes, tea-making facility) nearby National Stadium Skytrain Station with B600 rate for Double-bed (shared equally by all 4 of us: B150).

We took a well earned rest and fell asleep.




Woke up around 7PM and all of us went to look for dinner somewhere. We took the opportunity to scour the newly opened Central World Plaza. It was a huge mall but obviously very few tenants during that time. We stumbled upon food stalls behind Central World Plaze. We had our dinner there. (B45-B55)

to be continued...

Thailand Day 6 – Phitsanulok (23th July 2006)

It was uneventful day today as we woke up late. The weather was unbearable and unusual hot! We went to the Phitsanulok Train Station to purchase our ticket to Bangkok. We would spend the rest of the day drinking ourselves to drunk with our Thai peers. The beer was on us! Chang Beer: B330 per carton.


We took our breakfast at the same foodstall we patronized during Day 4. Breakfast in Thailand is like having lunch or even dinner! Rice or noodle topped up with sauted dish of choice: beef, pork, chicken, fishballs or meatballs. It has been like this for close to one week now and I was yearning for a simple bread and butter with creamed tea or coffee!




These were what we had! I was asking for the yogurt again but apparently there was no more stock! Neal had rice topped with stir fried minced meat and sliced cucumber and lot…yeah..lot of ‘bird eye’ chillies. Neal fell in love this dish…whooaaaa! I had beef noodle soup but I prefer Donggongon's Hin Loi ngiu chap anytime!




These human-powered trishaws still thrive in out-of-town places such as Phitsanulok. Colorful Tuk-Tuks line up the edge of the road adjacent to Phitsanulok train station waiting for passengers.




Lunch in a small café inside the train station. Cosy atmosphere. All of us had yummy strong-flavoured iced Nescafe as it was hot outside.




Group picture with our nice host, Nataporn and friends. They looked so happy but actually looked sad when we boarded the train!




Our ticket! Looked pricey at B379 (beat the hell out of the beer price!) but we took a first class air conditioned coach with reclining chairs.




Not hard to spot which train went our way.




Out of focus snap of tipsy Neal taken by an equally intoxicated Andy. Lesson learnt: Don't take photographs when you are drunk...haha! Me? I was dead drunk and fast asleep already.


to be continued...

Lucky Street Grilled Fish

Yesterday's was top-of-the-table English Premiership clash between leader Manchester United FC and second spot occupier Chelsea FC. Yeah...I am a diehard United fan even before Sir Ferguson became the Manager! Not wanting to miss this drooling encounter, I hooked up with Andy and Soo at our usual favourite place to view the match live on big screen. The game was hot and exciting and the one-one result was fair enough.

Despite the fancy name, Lucky Street Restaurant is just an ordinary coffeeshop with simple fares on the menu list! Its location is along the Jalan Penampang Lama not far from Yue Min Kindergarten School.

But if ever you happened to drop by that place at night, you might as well try this guy's grilled fish stall served on banana leaf. The home-made sauce used has an air of distinct aroma to it ! I can only say it tasted great. Pricewise, it depends on the size of the fish from RM5 to RM15. I brought my own 1.5kg fresh Jobfish that I caught during my recent deepsea fishing trip to be grilled there. Charge for ingredients and labour - RM6 with Andy picking the tab!

Nota Bene: I am not related in any way to the grilled fish guy!


UPDATE (11st December 2006): The fish guy is no more there! I asked around last night and the info I got was he went to Singapore for greener pasture!

My favourite blogging hangout!

"Don, where do you usually blog?"

Glad you asked! Frankly, I do not have internet connection at home and I don't intend to apply for one, at least not in the foreseeable future!

I didn't realise blogging is so strenuous as far as updates are concerned! It can be mind-numbing too if faced with a writer's block!

Not anymore!

My usual haunt is The coffee Bean and Tea Leaf Damai outlet. Their 11g wifi facility here is fast and data streaming is such a breeze if not exactly great. The wifi here is protected so potential surfers need to ask the counter for access code.



Nah...our cameo appearance at CBTL! While Andy is 'camfrogging' in Sign Language with his KL angel, yours truly is blogging this...!

Whooaaa...that's Christmas tree behind us?!??!!

Oh oh....I know I know Christmas is approaching...

If only we can hear *this* to light up our spirits...!

*this*
Silent night, holy night,
All is calm all is bright,
'Round yon virgin, Mother and Child,
Holy infant so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace!
Sleep in heavenly peace!
.........


Cheers to you all folks!

Thailand Day 5 – Daytrip to Chiang Mai (22th July 2006)

Located 700km north-west of Bangkok, Chiang Mai's climate is cool and forgiving unlike the past few days in Central Thailand. Bookworm travellers might find this place like a kid to a candystore - bookshops predominate instead of glitzy shopping centers. For those wanting to learn more about Thailand culturally, there are classes in Thai language, Thai cooking, Thai massaging, meditation and even hill-tribe trekkings. Extreme sports like mountaneering, rock climbing, abseiling, shooting the water rapids are abound for those adventurous! Souvenir hunters are not to be left out...read on!

Thank goodness…we didn’t have the usual beer session last night as we would have to wake up at 3 am for the 5-hour journey to Chiang Mai. The cold air of the morning dawn was cold and biting as the Isuzu Hi-Lander 4x4 mazed its way through the darkness! However everyone of us were well prepared with windbreakers. Jeremy was not with us this time as he went to Bangkok last night for an appointment with his friend.


Our trip-by-pickup was unlike the previous trips where we travelled during daytime under the hot scorching sun, our Chiang Mai journey was in complete darkness! Given the condition, we hardly 'talked' with one another. Opportunities to chat (yeah...we sign!) only came when beams of light shined upon us from vehicles following behind!


We stopped by a roadside petrol station near Lampang for refuelling. Some of us went for light snacks of hotdogs and instant hot coffees, not forgetting the anxious rush to the loo. Hotdogs were DIY. Type of flavours included beef, pork, and chicken. Vegetables provided: lettuce, minced onion, sliced tomato and sliced cucumber. We topped our hotdogs with veggies as much as we liked to - there's no minimum amount! Then dressed our creations with sauces: thousand island, tartar, tomato or chilli! Whoooaaaa...great taste! Cost: B19


Two hours later, Chiang Mai town beckoned in the distance! First order of the day was to have a proper breakfast! Us budget travellers headed to the foodcourt where foodstalls abound.

Doi Suthep
First thing in the morning: visited Wat Phra That Doi Suthep perched on a hilltop. This wat is one of the North's most sacred temples and the most touristed too as indicated by the throngs of tourists around. There were Middle Eastern tourists too with their long flowing black robe one-piece dress!arms of many tourists



The main attraction of Doi Suthep!

The site's was 'chosen' by an honoured Buddha relic mounted on the back of a white elephant; the animal wandered until it stopped (and died) on Doi Suthep, the relic's new home.

The short journey to Doi Suthep goes through a hairpin-curved 16km road that ascends the hill to a long flight of steps, lined by ceramic-tailed dragons, that leads to the temple and expansive views of the valley below







Dragon with multiple heads greet visitors.




One of the many souvenir stalls at the foot of Doi Suthep.


Chiang Mai Zoo
With Doi Suthep sightseeing done, some of us wanted to visit the Zoo which is just down the road as they wanted to see for themselves some cute animals that they could only see in Animal Planet channel.





Pygmy hippopotamuses open their wide mouthes begging for titbits - in this case, sweet yam that one must buy (B20 per bundle) from the animal's handler! Gracious ziraffe obliging for a photogenic shot!


Humboldt penguins moved so fast in their air-conditioned enclosure. The moist on the glass wall prevented a good photo opportunity. If only my compact got a fast shutter speed!




The star attraction of this zoo! Despite the separate entrance fee (B50), it was a bit congested inside as there were swarm of tourists taking endless snaps of the pair of pandas! (NOTE: Camera flash is not allowed when taking photographs!)




It was fun and enjoyable to watch these cute and adorable creatures with their playful antics and chasing each others around the enclosure. This was the second time I have seen pandas in person, having done so before years ago at Washington DC Zoo!










After Doi Suthep and zoo walkarounds, our stomaches started to make growl! Whooaaa... time for light snack of noodle soups at this foodstall (again!) outside a shopping center!



Insect food galore ala Fear Factor! Dunno what type of bugs are these but I don't want to know anyway!




Close-up shots of these critters!



"When in Rome, do as the Romans do!" All of us except for Thien (he chickened out!) just went for the experience without any second thought! Want to know what it tasted like? Yummy and crunchy!


Chiang Mai Night Bazaar
Chiang Mai Night bazaar is in fact the biggest tourist attraction, covering multiblock area, as we saw so many farangs (foreigners) looking for bargains! But beware though, as prices are very touristy (READ: expensive), so best to haggle as low as you believe is low enough. This bazaar offers a huge variety of Northern and Northeastern Thai goods: seua maw hawn (blue cotton farmer's shirt), Northern and Northeastern Thai hand-woven fabrics, hill-tribe crafts, woodcarving (figurines, elephants, Teak salad bowls...), antiques, teak hardwood furniture, textiles, jewellery, pottery....the list could be very long as I have not covered all areas! You'll find also some goods from India, Nepal and China on sale here.



Shopping for souvenirs for loved ones back home in Sabah!




Some of the surprises at the bazaar!




We were so darn tired, we actually did not have any problem taking 40 winks in the small space at the back of the truck on the way back Phitsanulok!...haha!



Our 3 AM supper upon arrival in Phitsanulok.


Regrets:
Our only regret was the lack of time as we were on a dayrip. We would have liked to spend 2 more nights here so as to give us more time to visit some of the popular places around Chiang Mai. Well, I think I will want to Chiang Mai again in the near future!

to be continued...

Thailand Day 4 - Daytrip to Tak Province

The town of Tak, west of Thailand, is about 2½ hours drive away from Phitsanulok town. Tak is not particularly interesting except as a point to visit Lan Sang and Taksin Maharat National Parks to the west and Kheuan Phumiphon to the north. During our visit to Kheuan Phumiphon (Bhumibol Dam), there are very few visitors underscoring the 'remoteness' of Tak Province.

Again another of our usual foodstall breakfast nearby. we just wanted to try different foodstall as 'variety is the spice of life'! Food price here was somewhat on the high compared to yesterday's. Somehow, by our standard, it was still cheap. Fried rice with veggies and pork or chicken went for B20 (B25 with beef). I only had yogurt for breakfast and finished 3 cups as the price was darn low at B12 each. I love to eat this stuff but KK's price of RM3.80 (or B38) scared the shit out of me!




After our quickie breakfast, we were on our way to Tak using this pick-up! Oh boy...11 passengers in all! Some 2km near Phitsanulok town, the poor pick-up began chugging under our combined weights and it was not a good idea to proceed further using this pick-up. By a stroke of luck, Nataporn managed to borrow a Nissan truck from his friend in town!




Combo pictures showing us and a handsome Thai friend sitting at the back and the rest inside the cabin.


It was not all bed of roses sitting at the back though as we constantly shift seating positions just to make our joints comfortable! Standing, squatting, stretching our legs, trampling on one another legs, et cetera...we have done all imaginary positions...whoaaa! Veteran backpackers on the back of a truck we soon to become!




Sitting at the back has its rewards too like getting to shoot these two beautiful dames tailing our truck!






Midway on our journey, we stopped by 7-Eleven store for some hot coffee and hotdogs and also to answer the call of nature. Ahhh...we Malaysians were stumped to see this toilet. Unique and bold design yet properly thought-out considering the hot climate! Perhaps this is the solution for KK's smelly public toilets, huh?




The road to Tak passed through Sukhothai Province and rubber trees pepperred both sides of the road through the length of our journey. So it was no surprise then that Thailand is listed as the world’s numero uno for rubber production! Malaysia used to be among the top but I am not so sure now!




Reaching our destination, we were greeted by marvelous sight of this massive man-made dam. South East Asia's biggest dam, Bhumibol Dam was built in 1964 across the Ping River which is a tributary of the Great Chao Phraya River. This dam was conceived to provide irrigation and electrical generation. However, other benefits soon come into play such as flood control, fishery, navigation and tourism.

My compact digital camera with 35mm at the widest angle doesn't do justice to the vastness of Bhumibol Dam. So I resorted to cropping the picture from the signboard so you get the idea how big the dam is!




Combo pictures of left-side and right-side of the crest-shaped dam.




Oh no...not again! This is a cured dried meat from boar. Part of our lunch, it tasted yummy and about right - not too salty. Some of us bought a lot to take home to Sabah. B80 per kilogram.




We had our lunch at this foodstall nearby the river just down the road from the dam. However food prices here are a bit on the touristy side.




We ordered fish tom yam and it was darn VERY HOT! Just look at the bowl and count how many 'bird eye' chillies are in there? Neal braving the soup and later his face turned red...ahah! Later we would bestow him the title "Bird Eye Chilly Champion"...whoaaa!


As the clock ticked towards the evening, we have to rush back to visit the Sukhothai Historical park before it got dark. We reached there around 7.45 pm and straighway rushed to photograph the ruins as condition was getting dark and camera flash was not helpful due to the vast expanse of the ruins. We resorted to high ISO and exposure compensation settings. So the pictures you see here are grainy and blurry!

Wat Mahathat, the largest wat in Sukhothai dated back 13th Century. This wat is surrounded by brick walls and a moat, said to represent the outer wall of the universe and cosmic ocean. There are 198 chedi (stupa) within the monastery walls - a lot to explore in what many consider was the spiritual and administrative centre of the old capital [Source: LP Thailand - 9th Ed]

The Sukhothai ruins are one of Thailand's World Heritage sites. The temple architecture here is of the classic lotus-bud stupa, whcih features a conical spire topping a square-sided structure on a three-tiered base. [LP Thailand]

The huge Buddha on the right evokes the feeling of awe despite the late hours of the day. We would explore this place walking at a faster pace and be done with in 30 minutes. Still, the feeling of setting my feet here and the thought that these ruins were once the spiritual and administrative centre of the old capital of Thailand was awe inspiring at best. I couldn't have ask for more.




We reached our base at Phitsanulok around 10.30 PM. we have a sumptuous dinner prepared by Nataporn's mother. The fresh fish was steamed without any ingredients save for the veggies placed on top during the steaming process. The steamed fish smelled good and tasted great with the aroma of the veggies...whoaaa.

to be continued...