Bangkok – Day 2

We woke up around eight the second day and just lolled around until Yumiko left for work. Had cereal and bread for breakfast. Don’t expect bad foods in Y’s fridge! I tried to call a tour agent to arrange for transport and a guide in Khao Yai, but our timing could not fit their schedule. He did give me some advice on how to get there and things that we can do on our own in Khao Yai. We’d have to just wing it there.

Next we pored over our Bangkok tourist map we got in the airport and made some quick plans on how to do the temples and visit Chatuchak market that day. We decided to do the temples first and visit the market later. Hopped on to the Skytrain and took it to the last stop in Saphan Taksin. From there we walked over to the Central Pier where we could catch a public boat heading towards the Grand Palace.

Got a bit confused there, but the marine police guy was helpful and told us where to get the boat as there were 2 piers. We couldn’t even differentiate which boat we were supposed to take, there were so many and everything was written in Thai! Got on the next boat that landed and lucky for us, it was a tourist boat which had a guide who highlighted interesting buildings along the bank and what to expect at each pier. Excellent, I’m impressed. Thais have a knack for keeping things clean and simple, it seems. The fare was just 18 Baht, abt RM 1.80.

We landed at Pier 9 and decided to 'do' the Temple of Dawn first. Crossed the river on another boat for 3 Baht and walk around the temple grounds. The decorations were beautiful! Took a break and enjoyed some Neslo from a vendor afterwards. Their technique for making drinks was quite different, but the results were good :-)

Went back to the other side and had lunch at a restaurant by the pier. Have to say that makan is tricky here, pork is sold virtually everywhere... Decided on rice with prawns for me and veges for Sali. Then we went to Wat Po , jalan2 there.



Next wanted to visit the Grand Palace and Emerald Buddha, but they were closed on Sundays. Some guy tried to con us into taking the tuk-tuk to some obscure Buddhas, but warning bells made me say no and we went back to the pier.

On the way back, it started raining and by the time we arrived at Central Pier, it was pouring!! Decided to go to Siam Square first because Sali needed to buy some contact lens cleaner. Had to find out way through the downpour between several shopping centers before we could find what she needed. We found prices there were VerY expensive compared to KL. She had no choice, though. By 4.30 the rain had abated a little, so we took the train to Mochit, which is the last stop, and headed towards Chatuchak Market for some heavy duty shopping.

We went round the vast market square looking for souvenirs and stuff. We didn't cover much, though. The interior reminded me much of the Geylang Market in Singapore. Just bought a shirt for Abah, cotton pants and silk handbag for myself, a bit of stuff for the house, and some bookmarks to give away. Really should have bought more, but by six, people were starting to shut down and I had no more energy to bargain, even...

Took the train back to Chitlom and back to the house. Were too tired to go out and ended up eating sandwiches at home. Y's housemate Kalpana stopped by to pick up her things and we chatted for a bit. Everyone slept early for a change that night.

End of Day 2

~ To be continued...