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From Manila we arrived at Bangkok past midnight. Travel tip at the airport – book your arrival time early, so that you will catch the lined taxi cabs at the airport which are only up to 12 am. Because arriving past midnight at the airport will cost you to pay more than double the normal fare for taxi cabs. Luckily, our hostel is near the grand palace so there is no way that we will get lost and I have some google maps printed beforehand.
On our 1st and 2nd day we decided to leave Bangkok and go to Cambodia. You may refer to the link below for my travel blog in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
<a href = ”http://definitelyfilipino.com/blog/2011/08/11/siem-reap-cambodia/“>Siem Reap, Cambodia c”,)</a>
Day 3 The Grand Palace
We arrived at Bangkok around 2 am fresh from the exhausting trip we’ve had from Siem Reap. We woke up at around 8 am be ready for our next itinerary – The Grand Palace, it is in proximity to our hostel.
Grand palace is the official residence of the Kings of Thailand from the 18th century onwards, its counterpart is our Malacañang Palace in the Philippines. The entrance fee is 350 baht or about P500 in Philippine money. So many magnificent temples to visit in this place, mainly due to the richness of their culture. Everywhere you go there are temples shimmering in gold and mirror decorations. You can only take picture of the grand palace outside because inside is off-limits. There are many local soldiers guarding the area. The weather in Thailand is almost the same as the Philippines it is also hot and humid but I think it is hotter in Thailand.
It’s time to have a taste of Thai cuisine. We were lucky to discover Elle Tha Pra Chan- a clean and nice restaurant near Wat Pho and the Grand Palace. We ordered Pad Thai, Chicken Curry, the famous Tom Yum Soup and spicy mixed seafood. It was so authentically delicious and cheap that we want to come back to Bangkok, nothing compares to their gastronomical food.
Day 4 – Wat Pho temple, Wat Thai and Chatuchak
Wat Pho temple – the most visited of all Wats (temple), it is famous for it’s colossal reclining Buddha, covered and adorned with gold leaves, it’s feet and eyes are from the mother of pearls decoration . You will pay for the entrance fee (about 100 baht), fall in line for about more than 1 hour depending on the number of visiting tourists. Before we arrive at Wat Pho some crooks got in our way. While we were walking a guy wearing an army suit pointed to us to the wrong entrance door in Wat Pho. This police officer is conniving with the local tourist guides and tuktuk drivers to lure you to go to an expo market. The tourist guide told us that Wat Pho is close for about 1 hour due to renovation, he is very kind and so accommodating to unsuspecting people like us. He even given us a free map because I asked the direction going to Chatuchak after visiting Wat Pho. He insisted that instead of waiting for 1 hour we must go to an expo market where souvenirs, gems, jewelry etc. are at a cheaper or manufacturer’s price(which are mostly fake) then he called a tuktuk which suddenly appeared on our side in just a matter of seconds.
Luckily I have done my researched on the internet and was aware of their scam. According to my research once you get to this expo market, the driver will get a gas coupon or commission from the stall owners and they will give you a hard sell on their bogus products. I declined the offer to go to that store but those guys are insisting that we go, so I made a strategy. I asked the driver to drop us first to a nearby temple before going to the expo. He dropped us to Wat Thai temple. We tricked the driver to wait for us in the entrance, fortunately there is another door for our escape route. Wat Thai is a solemn and beautiful temple and its main attraction is the gigantic sitting golden Buddha.
Unlike other Wat (temple), Wat Thai does not charge hefty entrance fees and it is very quiet. It has the same beauty as other temples that charges a fee and majority of the people are locals offering prayers, incense and flowers. Like Filipinos, Thai people are also devoted to their religious beliefs.
We got back to Wat Pho thru another tuktuk and while walking we saw the same guy wearing an army suit bearing a signage “this way to wat pho entrance” again and this time he has lured many unsuspecting tourist to go to the tourist guides and tell them that the temple is close for 1 hour due to renovation. We just walked straight ignoring those crooked guys and at last we arrive at Wat Pho temple. I am well-informed on some scams doing research on the internet and be forewarned, because I was a victim before by a different kind of scam upon our arrival to Macau (another story).
Inside Wat Pho temple you can also find the Thai massagers. A lot of tourist also flocked in this place to experience the genuine Thai massage. We decided also to pay and wait for our turn for the massage. The massage is really relaxing and kind’a rejuvenating, we were in a supine position. I can hear my bones cracking upon stretching. Unfortunately, I was wearing my favorite maong (jeans) during that day. It was so unfortunate because that pant has a hole in the butt area due to constant wear that is has teared already. So during the stretching I was really ashamed because I can hear those massagers talking in their own dialect and silently laughing because of my maong pant.
It is 4:00 pm and I asked Jen that we need to go to Chatuchak to find some souvenir items. The traffic in Thailand is so horrendous during that day that some people preferred to walk instead of being stuck in traffic. We rode a bus after passing the bottleneck and we arrive at Chatuchak before dusk.
Chatuchak market is the outdoor shopping mecca of Thailand. I think it is one of the largest in the world because you can find almost anything you are looking for. This is where you will literally shop til’ you drop because of the vastness of the area. Be it clothes, souvenirs, pets, paintings or artworks, jewelry, gadgets etc. The stalls are group or classified according to sections. There is also a map that will guide you in the alleyways. For one zone or section you can find all the stalls selling only clothes, on another zone stalls selling only artworks, and so on. This is the place where you can brush up your negotiation skills and get ready to walk away when the deal fails to go your way.
Day 5 Dusit Zoo
From our accommodation, Dusit Zoo is just nearby so we decided to go there. The zoo didn’t look very far away on the map so we decided to walk than be cone by a tuktuk or taxi. It took us 20 minutes walk, luckily most of the pavements were shaded by trees so we didn’t feel the scorching heat of the sun. The zoo cost 100 baht per head for the entrance fees. This zoo is comparable to our Manila Zoo even the animals are almost the same the only difference is that the reptiles in this zoo are found in a big cave house fully air-conditioned wherein you can view different kind of snakes like the big anaconda. In other places you can watch tigers, leopards, bears, hippos lots of monkeys and birds as well as elephants.You can also see a turtle and a crocodiles sharing cage!
There is a bird show and a sea lion show but we’re not able to watch because it has time schedules.When we got to the bird sections. I was quite disappointed because the window glass are filthy. A funny thing happened, I was seeking to see more exotic animals when all of a sudden this monitor lizard out of nowhere appeared in the pavement we were walking into! This animal escaped from its house and seeking to find food in the area!
Stunned for a while, I instantly asked my wife to take a camera shot of me and this reptile together . See my picture above and this monitor. The monitor lizard walked in the grass area where a lot of people are resting, sleeping while some do picnics under the trees shades! Instinct tells me to warn this people but it was so fast! I was able to warn only a few. This lizard is actually heading to have a swim in the lake. I laughed for long, because this animal scared a group of people doing picnics near the lake especially a guy who actually shrieked when he saw this creature face to face. Frightened by this man’s girly scream that the big lizard went to dive as fast as it could into the lake. By the way no one was hurt by this wild creature.
Me and my wife enjoyed every moment we spent in Thailand and Cambodia, it is fun remembering every time we see these pictures.
Till our next travel adventures, thanks for reading… c”,)
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Ha!! Grabe ang baha…
God is merciful. He will hear our prayers….
God is merciful. He will hear our prayers….
Ala ng baha jn…
#prayforthailand
#prayforthailand