{ Knock, Knock..! }

Bangkok, Thailand...

My junket 2 Bangkok was gr8..! It reminded me so much of Bali in one way or another... É only setback I faced is é lack of halal food ~ here pork, there pork, evrywhere pork²..!

Day 1 ~ Fri 19 May 2006
Due 2 sum technical fault, our flight, TR 118, was delayed 4 almost an hr... É scheduled time which was supposedly 2 b @ 1310 hrs was postponed 2 1400 hrs... We touched down Suvarnabhumi Airport @ 1520 hrs, BKK time (note : SIN timin' is 1 hr ahead), proceed wif transfer & only reached our hotel, Asia Hotel Bangkok, @ 'round 1630 hrs...

After unpackin' our stuffs, we recce 'round our hotel area... Our stomachs á oready grumblin' & callin' aloud 4 dinner... We settled @ a nearby restaurant 2 replenish our tummies & back 2 é hotel... @ nite, we went out 2 venture on our own instead of watchin' é Tiger / Cabaret Show which was recommended by our BKK agent, é gd peepz of Jetview Travel... We took é BTS Sky Train, from Ratchathewi 2 Sala Daeng 2 get 2 Patpong Nite Market... There @ Patpong, we had a feast of bogus sportswear & trainers sellin' @ cheap² prices..! Alongside é bazaar, there's bikini pole dancers gyrating in é sticky heat of open bars..!

Day 2 ~ Sat 20 May 2006
Early am we had our breakfaz @ é hotel... Our BKK agent then fetched us @ 0800 hrs 4 our ½-day city tour... 1st stop was River City Pier where we took a boat 2 several plcs such as Wat Arun where a pagoda stands (é tallest in Thailand) covered in bright ceramic tiles... It is known as é Temple of Dawn... We then proceed 2 é floatin' market where there's Thai women in their peasant's shirts & colourful sarong paddling thru é khlong (canal) wif fruits, spices, flowers, sweets & vegetables 2 trade... Our boat stopped further up by é river teemin' wif fish where we get 2 feed 'em wif bread... An enjoyable experience, u bet..! Shortly after, we left 4 é gem & leather factory where our land tour ends...

Our kind BKK agent was kind enuf 2 drive us 2 Chatuchak Weekend Market... Now here @ Chatuchak is a shoppers dream cum true where everthin' from cheap souvenirs, clothes, handicrafts 2 antique reproductions & even exotic animals can b found... É maze of narrow alley ways is not 4 é claustrophobic as a minimum of space is reserved 4 walkways... We were xtra careful wif our wallets & cash... Back in SIN, we were told 2 haf a gd sense of navigation as it's not ez 2 look 4 shop again if u've given up on a purchase... So there we were, shoppin' & bargainin' like mad till late noon... 2gether wif our purchases we then took é sky train from Mo Chit back 2 our hotel... We were very tired by then & our feet á beggin' 4 mercy..!

30 mins of rez & off we went 4 yet another shoppin' spree @ Pratunam Market which is bout 15 mins' walk from our hotel... There we find all sorts of T-shirts, clothes & accessories @ very affordable prices..! Much 2 our surprise, all dat shoppin' made us 4get bout food not until we came across A&W (yeay!!!) 2 haf dinner... From there, we hit é rds of Patpong, yup again, 2 shop, shop, shop...

Day 3 ~ Sun 21 May 2006
After havin' our breakfaz @ é hotel, we set off 2 Mah Boon Krong Ctr 2 look²-see²... This plc is so very Far East / Lucky Plaza... We then continued our journey 2 Chatuchak Weekend Market yet again 2 splurge... We left Chatuchak late noon, took é sky train from Mo Chit 2 Siam & carried on seeing é sights @ Siam Ctr & Siam Sq... 4 a 2nd time, all dat constant shoppin' kept our stomachs full & we merely had lite dinner @ KFC...

Then @ nite, we went 2 club @ HRC... Again, juz like in Bali, we njoyed é live band very much..!

Day 4 ~ Mon 22 May 2006
Our laz day in BKK... Bought our takeaway breakfaz from A&W (yeay!!!), a lil' walk down é lane, back 2 é hotel & start packin' our whole lot of stuffs... Checked out @ 1230 hrs, left our bags wif é bell captain & head 4 BKK's so-called Orchard Rd namely Siam Ctr & Siam Paragon... We were taken back by these megastores xpecially Siam Paragon... It juz started operatin' laz Dec & accommodates lotza retail outlets... On é 2nd floor, we actually saw open showrooms 4 Maserati, Lamborghini & Ferrari cars... Yeah, é plc's quite grand..! It even haf its own Cineplex which offers excellent value 4 money movie viewin'... We then moved on 2 HRC, diz time 2 buy sum souvenirs after which we continued 2 spend all our $$$ @ Mah Boon Krong Ctr...

Late noon, had our meals @ KFC b4 goin' back 2 é hotel... We were fetched @ 1645 hrs & ferried 2 é airport... We were quite early & while waitin', honey & myself can't stop yakkin' bout our adventures... Departed BKK @ 2010 hrs on TR 117 & arrived SIN @ 2315 hrs...

BKK is indeed rich in its traditional culture... Evrythin' dat one associates wif é exotic Orient glitterin' temples & palaces, opulent art á all 2 b found in abundance... Albeit tentatively in diz chaotic city & é senses é assailed by é many sights, sounds & above all, smells of diz bustlin' plc... We truly njoyed é entire experience includin' é motorbikes perilously weavin' in & out of é rush hour traffic laden wif vendors carryin' all manner of wares... A real eye-opener & a true slice of Asia nonethéless...

Contented vacationers, u bet..!