My dear Pakwheelers, it has been a long time since I started a thread. So here goes…
Day 1
In November, my family and I spent seven memorable days in Bangkok. This was a rest & recreational trip. And of course to sample as much Halal or vegetarian Thai food as possible. Though you can note from my photos & description that at times we had more of the same as it fulfilled our criteria. We could have done more sightseeing but in a group, you need to keep the larger interest in mind. Not my first visit though, my past trips were all short, work related. So there was much to do and see.
Here's a roundup of the first 24 hours of our trip.
I come from the school of thought that believes in ‘the early bird catches the worm”. Therefore, we arrived at the airport at about 8:30pm for our 11:35pm fight on TG. Traffic on Sharah-e-Faisal moves at a snail’s pace at this time so better to be early. Anyway, check-in was a breeze but at it was a long wait at immigration. Somehow, the lane we were standing in was not moving as fast as the other ones…the person behind the counter was taking his own sweet time to flip the passport pages and then stamp the passport with a heavy hand making a loud thumping sound. We then checked in to the CIP lounge and quickly settled in to savour the snacks. Mind you, it was past my dinnertime and I had no intention to eat on the plane…needed to catch up on some Zzz. I indulged in a good amount of snacks and a couple cups of tea before we decided to head to the gate.
The flight was under load and the aircraft was a good A330. Plenty of legroom and a comfortable seat. The service was excellent and this is the first time you experience the warm Thai hospitality. The food though looked tempting but I stayed firm on my resolve to try to catch some shuteye. My family slept but I could not sleep even a wink. The only thing I asked for was water and the kind flight attendant offered me a small bottle that was good enough.
When we arrived in Bangkok, the first thing we did was hit the washrooms…but I had warned my family to carry a bottle of water with them, as there would be no hand shower! They seemed alarmed but when on our return we displayed our pleasant surprise of finding what we had not expected…what a relief. Anyway, no problems at immigrations which we breezed thru and then collected our bags from carousel 12. My niece was joining us from Washington at around the same time, so we checked on her flight, which had arrived on time. I had coordinated to find the right flight, as I wanted her to arrive at a time that coincided with our arrival time. Shukar Alhamdolillah, our flights arrived at almost the same time. Imagine, she flying all the way from Washington (14 hours to Abu Dhabi, 2.5 hours layover and another 7 hours to Bangkok) while we only took 4.5 hours red eye from Karachi…and arrived together! So once we collected our bags we headed over to carousel 18 to wait for my niece. It took her some time but she finally appeared. Two flights, woh bhi almost agey peechay, mulaqaat at the baggage claim...bara filmy sa mahol tha! We had an emotional meet up. Shukar Alhamdolillah everything went according to plan!
As soon as we exited the arrival lounge, we exchanged some currency, got four Sims and then took the elevator to the level B, to the airport rail link. Used the currency eating machine to get our coins and off we were to the platform to catch the train. We got off at Makassan and walked to the Petchaburi Metro station via the link and then walked over the khlong (or canal) bridge to Asok Montri road and onward to our hotel, Asok Residences, Soi 21 Sukhumvit.
We had known that check in was at 2pm and it was just about 9ish…plenty of time to wait. So, once we arrived at the hotel, we left our bags there and headed to Chahtuchak weekend market but first we had to break our fast with some naashta…it had been a long time since I had eaten. Just outside soi 21 where our hotel was, we found Starbucks and had some Frappuccino, latte and a tuna sandwich and croissants. We do not have Starbucks back home so it is a novelty for us.
From there we headed to Petchaburi Metro to catch a train to Chatuchak weekend market. A very convenient Metro train ride. There is a Metro/BTS interchange station at Chatuchak Park and normally those who do not know they get off there which is a fairly long walk to Chatuchak weekend market. However, I had pulled up info from google, so we got off the Metro at the next station i.e. Khampaeng Phet, and we literally landed inside Chatuchak weekend market. This was valuable info that we used to our benefit.
Chatuchak weekend market as the name says is only open on Saturday & Sunday from morning up to around 6pm and is a place not to be missed. This was a good starting point of our weeklong excursion to Bangkok. For us, this was ideal day to cover it as we would be heading back home coming Saturday. Chatuchak weekend market is spread over 35 acres with crisscrossing lanes and shops on either side selling almost everything under the sun. Having said that, the sun too was beating down on us and the shade within the lanes was welcome but the walking was taking its toll.
With no sleep & rest, fatigue had started to set in. In addition, none of us is used to so much walking. And guess what we found…a massage place...Baht 100 for a 20 minute foot massage was just what our tired feet were longing for…so we decided to go in. The foot massage did wonders!
We then headed over to try out the perennial local favourite; coconut ice cream with shavings of fresh coconut, sticky rice and some beans...very nice & refreshing! Frankly, after the foot massage we didn’t want to explore any further so decided to head back to the hotel. It was 1:30 so we figured, by the time we reach the hotel it would be time to check in. After checking in, all of us hit the sack. After a short nap, I got up just in time for Asar. Took a tour of the accommodation, took some photos as well. Not bad, I must say. I had researched online but had then decided to book directly from the hotel website. Two bedrooms with two bathrooms, a lounge, a dining area and a kitchen…a full serviced apartment/hotel suite. The family and I were happy with the choice made.
A bit about Bangkok. First impressions of the city…solid infrastructure, easy access to public transport and airport rail link once you arrive at Suvarnabhumi International airport. Everything is clearly marked and extremely easy to navigate. Elevated highways run through as far as the eye can see. The currency exchange rates offered are slightly better on the aiport rail link, basement level than on the arrivals concourse. There are two key stations on the airport rail link, line. The first is Makassan which connects to the Metro blue line at Petchaburi Metro station via a convenient underground and a separate overhead walkway, while the second is the last stop of the airport rail link, also known as Phaya Thai station which links to the BTS green line at Phaya Thai. Very efficient mass transit system I must say.
