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Bangkok, Thailand
Wednesday morning, we are up
early to pack once again for an 8:00 AM departure for the
airport and our flight from Agra, India to Bangkok, Thailand
by way of a refueling stop in Calcutta. They have changed
the name of the city but I like the old name.
The flight was, again, perfect
with no problems with the airplane. During the refueling,
I called Robin on the Iridium and had a great connection while
standing on the tarmac. The last leg took us over the Bay
of Bengal, the Indian Ocean, across Burma (they changed that
name too), and into Thailand. The airport in Bangkok is huge
and so are all of the airplanes. I'm glad we didn't have to
borrow a propeller from anyone because I think we had the
only two at the airport.
We could tell right away that
we weren't in India anymore. Bangkok is a modern city with
beautiful buildings and freeways with BMW's instead of camels
and cows. It took us a lot longer to get to our hotel transportation
than normal, not because of delays but, because of the sheer
size of the airport. It was about a 45-minute drive to the
Oriental Bangkok and, from the moment we arrived, we were
treated like royalty. The Oriental is everything we have been
told and more. Our suite was on the 15th floor with a view
right up the River of Kings.
The Oriental finished a $23,000,000
renovation less than a year ago and it sparkles. They are
celebrating their 125th year and they haven't lost a step.
The Thai's are the most accommodating, polite, pleasant people
I have ever met. When you meet them, they always greet you
by putting their hands in a praying position and bowing their
head in respect. It wasn't long before we were returning the
favor.
The hotel services were the best
we have encountered on the trip thus far. For example, I was
having difficulty in setting up my Internet connection. Two
very bright and beautiful Thai girls came to the room and
within minutes had me up and running (my computer that is).
It was the first time I had been able to use a local server
to send E-mail at high speed. None of the other hotels including
the Burj Al Arab had the expertise to make it work.
The restaurants included Lord
Jim's (seafood), the Normandy (very elegant French), Ciaos
(Italian), the China House (guess), and the Terrace (water
front al fresco) where they served an extensive barbecue buffet
with live jazz. There were several bars but our favorite was
the Bamboo Bar. Our waitress was a beautiful 44-year-old Thai
lady who had worked there for 15 years. The bartender had
been there for 25 years.
Thursday morning, we are met
by our guide, Chat, at 6:30 AM to begin our tour. We are taken
by long boat up the river and then a canal to visit a royal
barge museum and view Thai life along the water's edge. On
the way back, we visited a palace complex including Buddhist
temples and lots of decorative structures covered with colored
glass. It looked sort of like Disney World. If my description
seems less than complete, it is because I am in major overload.
We have seen antiquities from Spain, France, Italy, Greece,
Turkey, India, and now Thailand. I'm still trying to absorb
it all but am having trouble finding room in my brain. In
the evening, we dined at the Normandy with a wonderful night
view of the river and the new Peninsula Hotel on the other
side.
Friday, Tom and I departed at
6:15 AM for a round of golf at the Navantee Golf Club. Our
caddies are young Thai girls in brightly colored outfits with
wide brimmed hats. We weren't impressed by their skills as
caddies. We played a $5 Nassau and Tom beat me like a drum.
We decided to play another nine holes for $10 and I was able
to reduce my losses to $5.
That evening, Ashley and I ate
at the China House. Ashley decided on the Shark Fin soup for
her first course. What it turned out to be was elephant afterbirth
floating in a broth of West Texas Crude. At least, that's
how it looked from my side of the table.
Sunday evening, we had the barbecue
buffet at the Terrace at a table facing the river. As I was
surveying the array of food displayed before us, I asked another
guest, who looked like he might be American, if he could identify
a particular meat dish. He replied, "Swine", in an accent
that was clearly not American. I decided he was answering
my question and not expressing his opinion of me.
Ashley and I thoroughly enjoyed
getting Swedish massages at the hotel spa but we would not
recommend the Thai massage unless you are into pain and suffering.
The Swedish massage was the best I have ever had.
Till next time,
Pat
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