Jan 13 2014

Thailand Day 2: Shutdown Bangkok, protests, and temples

Today, we woke up a little earlier than anticipated, and decided to get going on our second day in Bangkok. I had planned on visiting several temples throughout the day, since they are such a huge part of Thai culture. Our first temple was Wat (which means “temple” in Thai) Benchamabopit, or more commonly known as just “Wat Ben.” This one–along with many of the others that I thought we would see–are located in the Dusit region of Bangkok.

On our way out the door, the concierge indicated that taxis would be very reluctant to travel to the Dusit region today due to the protests. We had heard about the protests before we even left the United States, but didn’t have a firm understanding of the level or intensity. I had researched some of the issues, and found that the some of the Thais even considered the intended political regime to be tyrannical, and that’s why they were so adamant about standing up to the government officials.

We found a taxi that would take us to Wat Ben, but we couldn’t actually get all the way up to it as the roads were closed off to cars. When he let us out, we thanked him for being kind enough to take us that close, and we started walking the rest of the way. Unfortunately, many of the roads were even blocked off to pedestrians, so we didn’t actually make it to Wat Ben.


Shutdown Bangkok – Protests on 13 January 2014
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What we did witness, however, was significantly more incredible than a tour of the temples could have been. We were in the city when many Thai citizens were demanding governmental reform, and were attempting to shut down the city–thus, why many of the available t-shirts said “Shutdown Bangkok – 13 January 2014.” We got to see, first hand, what happens when citizens feel that they are being treated unfairly. Personally, I was honoured to have the experience, and got to see how a photojournalist feels in the middle of such an event. It is something that I may never get to experience again during my lifetime, so I wouldn’t trade it for anything.


Tee from Shutdown Bangkok Protests
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One of the many tents in which Thais were camped out for the protests
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Though we didn’t get to see Wat Ben, or several of the other temples, we did get to see Wat Saket, which is considered to be one of the most holy of places not only in Bangkok, but in all of Thailand. This beautiful temple holds an enormous solid gold Buddha, and is home to The Golden Mount. Visitors can climb the steps to the top of The Golden Mount (for a mere 20 baht per person), and see the stunning views of surrounding Bangkok. Also atop the Mount are some statues honouring many of the Hindu gods. Before leaving The Golden Mount, I stopped and bought a statuette of the Buddha. I tried to get one that was a little more unique than the ones that can be found essentially everywhere in Bangkok (and throughout the world, for that matter).


Young boy Buddhist monk meditating in front of a Bodhi Tree
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We then departed Wat Sraket and headed for The Grand Palace, which is home to many more temples and Thai holy places. However, it was completely shut down due to the protests. Thinking that we could still take a ferry across the river to Wat Arun, we hopped in a tuk-tuk to get to the pier. Instead of taking the ferry, though, we ended up going to Wat Pho, which is the Temple of the Reclining Buddha. After taking off our shoes (as is customary), we entered the ornate temple, and saw a MASSIVE statues of Buddha lying down with his head resting on his hand. I can’t adequately describe how large this statue really was, and the pictures don’t do it justice. This is one that you simply have to see in order to believe.


Wat Pho – Temple of the Reclining Buddha
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Before leaving Wat Pho, we also saw a beautiful statue of Buddha with Mucalinda (the naga [or snake-like being with seven heads]). It was incredible to see the craftsmanship that went into this treasure of Buddhism.


Buddha with the seven-headed naga behind him
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Feeling a bit worn out after a long day of walking, and some disappointments with not being able to see all that we had set out to see, we took a cab back to the hotel. We spent a little more than hour at the pool, which was outstanding, albeit a little chilly in the water. We then freshened up, and decided to head out for dinner in the Asok Midtown area of Bangkok.

We started out by walking down Sathorn Road toward Lumpini Park. At Lumpini Park, we decided to pay the 20 baht per person to take the MRT (the underground rail system that is very similar to the Tube in London) to Sukhumvit station near Asok Tower. When we arrived, we had to walk another 500m or so, which took quite a long time as the protests were happening there. Unfortunately, the restaurant was also closed for this reason, so I went with the backup plan. We hailed a taxi, and went to the Garden of Dream restaurant. It was interesting to go to an Italian restaurant here, and the food was fairly good. I found the prices to be a bit high given the quality of the food, but our server was very friendly, and it was an experience nonetheless. I ordered fish and chips, and she ordered artichoke and tomato pasta. I ended up getting pesto fish with roasted vegetables, which was probably better anyway.

After dinner, we headed back to the hotel via taxi. I’ve found that taxi drivers in Bangkok (especially after the ones to and from dinner this evening) drive incredibly fast, but yet, there don’t seem to be as many collisions as one would anticipate.

We got back to the hotel, went up to the pool area bar, and had a couple drinks and some snacks. I wasn’t impressed with the service or the food and drinks in the pool area this evening, so we went down to the one in the lobby (called Swizzles). I thought that their drinks were MUCH better, and they were more fairly priced. Also, they let me start a tab instead of paying for each item individually. We finished off the evening with a few cocktails and some of the best mango sticky rice that I’ve ever had.


Mango and sweet sticky rice at Swizzles – Eastin Grand Sathorn hotel in Bangkok
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Overall, despite the disappointments with not being able to see all the temples (Benchamabopit, Phrakaew, Arun), today was an incredible day—one that I won’t soon forget.

Jan 12 2014

Thailand Day 1: Snakes, Jim Thompson, and Siam Niramit

Surprisingly, we awoke earlier than intended, and decided to seize the day. We headed down to the 5th floor for the included breakfast, which was massively diverse! The Eastin Grand Sathorn hotel offered everything from some Americanised, “Western” dishes like omelets and pancakes, to wok-fried vegetables and noodles, to an assortment of danishes. Absolutely incredible, especially since it was included with our reservation!

My favourite part was actually the fresh fruit and juices. They had fruits like pineapple, papaya, dragon fruit, and freshly-squeezed orange and guava juices. They also came around with some nice coffees and teas.

After breakfast, we started walking toward our first destination, which was the Queen Saovobha Memorial Institute herpetarium. Using GPS and Google Maps was surprisingly simple thanks to T-Mobile’s Simple Choice plan (which allowed us to have unlimited data whilst in Thailand). Though the data connection was too slow to actually display the map data, I was able to still get turn-by-turn directions and see streets.

On our way to the Queen Saovabha Snake Farm, we came across this neat little street market. Vendors were selling a variety of fruits, clothing, and trinkets. We didn’t buy anything, (or spend that much time looking, for that matter), because we had to make it to the Snake Farm by 11:00 for the show.

We made it about 10 minutes before the show started, and purchased our tickets for 200 baht each, and took our seats. The handlers were incredible, and did all that they could to get the snakes closer for our viewing. The information was provided in both Thai and English, so not only was it visually stunning, but I also learned a lot about the snakes that are native to the area.


Green viper at Queen Saovobha Snake Farm
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Snake getting ready to strike the handler at Queen Saovobha Snake Farm
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After the Snake Show, I changed things up a bit from the schedule, since we wanted to head back to the market that we had seen on the way. By the time we got back, many of the vendors were packing up their things to leave for the day, but we still got to see and try some of the foods. I ended up purchasing some Rambutan, some Mangosteen, and the biggest star fruit that I’ve ever seen. We also grabbed some traditional Thai sweets (which ended up reminding me of the Indian dessert Burfi–somewhat flavourless, but sugary and satisfying, nonetheless), and headed back to the hotel.


Rambutan and other fruits in a market on Silom Road, Bangkok
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Fresh dragon fruit in a market on Silom Road, Bangkok
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Before heading to our next destination, we checked out the pool area and fitness centre at the Eastin Grand Hotel Sathorn. Wow, just wow! The pool was this phenomenal strip that ran along the edge of the building, and had these little vessel-like chairs next to the water. The fitness centre was huge by comparison to many of the hotels that I’ve seen, but I didn’t even want to think about running on my vacation. :p


Pool at the Eastin Grand Sathorn Hotel, Bangkok
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Side, shallow pool at the Eastin Grand Sathorn, Bangkok
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Neat chairs by the pool at the Eastin Grand Sathorn
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The luxurious lounge area at the pool
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We then left the hotel, and headed for the Jim Thompson House and Museum. Jim Thompson was an American architect that settled in Bangkok after World War II. He was fascinated with textiles, and fell in love with not only this area of the world, but also with the vibrantly coloured Thai silks.


Beautiful, vibrantly-coloured Thai Silk at the Jim Thompson House in Bangkok
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His house was a beautiful juxtaposition of traditional Thai architecture and Western influences. The home was located directly on a canal for easy access, and retained all the simplistic beauty of a Thai house without having to journey to a more rural area of the country. The house didn’t have indoor toilets (as expected for the time period), but I learned that the chamber pots (also commonly referred to as “Pee pee pots”) were styled differently for boys and girls. The ones used by boys were in the likeness of a cat (requiring that the boy remove the head of the cat in order to use it), whilst the ones used by girls looked like frogs.


Jim Thompson’s oasis house in Bangkok
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In his home, Jim Thompson collected pieces of Thai and other Asian art, but actually preferred ones that had some damage to them. Ranging from statues of the Buddha to rare coloured porcelains from China, his collection was extensive.

Before leaving the Jim Thompson House, we looked at the gift shop. There were some gorgeous scarves and other silk items (like these adorable little silk elephants with buttons for joints, which allowed their legs to move back and forth), but the prices were a bit high.

From there, we went to Lumphini Park, which is located fairly close to the Snake Farm that we had visited earlier in the day. Though we didn’t spend all that much time there, we got a glimpse of an oasis in the big city. The park is really lovely with its ponds, running paths, and areas to just sit and enjoy the day.


Lumphini Park – the getaway in the city centre of Bangkok
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After our quick visit to Lumphini Park, we took a taxi to Siam Niramit, which is a show about the history of Thailand (which was once known as Siam, by the way). Our tickets included dinner (which was very nice, and even came with complimentary Chang beers), and Golden Seats to the show. The show was absolutely fascinating, and elaborately ornate. Going into it, I didn’t know if it was going to be worth it, or if it would turn out to be just a tourist trap. After seeing the incredible production, I would recommend it to anyone and everyone in Bangkok!


Two of the performers from Siam Niramit
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On our way back to the hotel, the taxi driver wanted to negotiate a flat fare. You should NEVER do this in Bangkok, because it is more expensive, and taxis are required to use the meter. I politely pointed to the meter and insisted. It wasn’t really an issue, but he was unhappy with my decision.

Back at the hotel, we went down to the pool area for a couple cocktails. They weren’t the best martinis that I’ve ever had, but they were enjoyable nonetheless. We then went back up to the room and got some shut-eye after a remarkable first day in Bangkok.

Jan 11 2014

Thailand: Travel days

Well, it’s finally here! Today is the day that we leave for Thailand. We got up around 04:00 GMT-6 to head for the airport, and hopped on the first flight. When we were already on the plane waiting to depart for Chicago, the pilot came over the intercom to inform us that there was a delay due to ground conditions in Chicago, and that we would be waiting for nearly an hour. Fortunately, that was a bad estimate, and we took off about 20 minutes later.

We arrived at O’Hare International Airport a bit later than anticipated, but were nowhere near missing our flight to Tokyo Narita. Once on the plane, we unfortunately sat for nearly an hour before taking off. Again, though, we had a substantial layover at Tokyo Narita, so the delay didn’t really trouble us all that much.

We flew Japan Airlines (JAL) to Tokyo Narita, and that was a completely different experience than American Airlines (AA). On JAL, there were many more flight attendants, and accommodations available to us. For instance, they firstly offered us warm towels for our hands and faces. They also had complimentary wine, beer, and spirits for the flight. Anyway, after a bit more than 13 hours, we landed at Narita International Airport in Tokyo.

I was famished, so I searched for a place to grab something quick to eat. The food wasn’t fantastic in the airport, but I had some pork katsu, some gyoza, and a rice bowl. After the quick dinner, we went to the gate and waited to board the next flight. The thought of getting on another plane after we had already been travelling for around 20 hours (including layovers and delays) was brutal, but it had to be done.


Gyoza, Teriyaki chicken, and such at Tokyo Narita Airport
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The flight from Tokyo to Bangkok was much shorter (only about 7 hours), but it felt substantially longer (likely due to anticipation). Thankfully, though, it was uneventful, and we made it without a hitch. We then went through customs, picked up our luggage, and hailed a taxi to our hotel.

The taxi driver took us the longest way known to man, but after travelling that long, I didn’t have it in me to argue with him. It was over 60km via his route, when the hotel should have been about 35km away from the airport. Anyway, we made it to the Eastin Grand Sathorn hotel, got checked in, and went to bed. Success… for certain definitions of the word.