...and the travelogue continues
Day 5
Went down for breakfast at around 7:30am and had almost the same naashta. Croissants were the only exception, which we had toasted, but I tell you, sending a croissant through the conveyer belt toaster makes it feel like it just came out of the oven...delicious!
Naashta waashta karkey hum tayaar honay wapis kamray main aye...aur jo program hum sub nay banaya that us pur he qaim rahey.
So, the program for the day was to visit Wat Pho, Wat Arun and the Golden Palace…all three were in the same vicinity as per google. And the best and most convenient way to get there was by Metro Blue Line. So bought tickets to the last stop on the blue line i.e. to Hua Lampong. We would need to get a taxi or a tuk tuk from there to the landmarks.
When we got off the metro, I went over to ask the ticketing clerk for directions to the three landmarks and how to get there. I was surprised when I learnt that the easiest way would be via Metro. The blue line had a new extension to points beyond Chao Phraya River and we could get off at Sanam Chai Metro station. The Sanam Chai Metro station is very conveniently located and covers the four top tourist attractions of Bangkok; Museum of Siam, Wat Pho, Golden Palace and Wat Arun. Great! So, we bought tickets to Sanam Chai Metro station that is just 2 stops away from where we were. Incidentally, the hotel receptionist gave us an out of date tourist map of Bangkok.
Anyway, in no time we were on our way to Sanam Chai. Lucky for us, the Sanam Chai Metro station was being inaugurated later that day...tamboo, shamboo laga hua tha station kay ander. Bhai wah! On exiting the Metro station we realized that we were on the lawns of the Museum of Siam. The urban planners had done their job right. Locals and tourist alike could now reach four historical landmarks with ease. Hats off to them.
As per plan, we first visited Wat Pho (Temple of the reclining Buddha – Bangkok’s oldest and largest temple complex). This is a huge complex with plenty to see and capture. Plenty of photos to share. From there we walked over to the pier. But before anything else we just had to refresh ourselves with some fresh coconut water and coconut ice cream.
At the pier, the boat that ferries tourist, charges only baht 4 one-way…an extremely convenient way to cross the Chao Phraya River. Chaar bhat janey kay our chaar bhat aaney kay. Wat Arun or the Temple of Dawn sits majestically across the river. My advice to tourist is to try to get to these attractions as early as 8am and pace your trip as per your requirement. There is a lot to see and take in. Be ready with your phone or camera as some scenes are just picture post card perfect.
It was late afternoon, and by then, our energy had diminished. We were forced to drop the idea of visiting the Grand Palace because frankly we were exhausted! So, we returned to Sanam Chai station, bought tickets to Silom Metro station where we would interchange to BTS sky train to Siam. We needed to be in a comfortable air-conditioned environment so the next plan was to quickly get to Siam Paragon. Again, hats off to the efficient Metro & BTS mass transit system…very convenient and easy to get around...aaj main phir maangya Thailand ki hukumut ko...kya shaan say apnay aur ghair mulki musafiron kayliyay assaani ki hai kay, bhai wah, mazaa aagya!
On the way, I saw (from aboard the sky train) the iconic Dusit Thani hotel (under renovation) and Lumpini Park...after reaching Siam BTS station we headed to the 5th floor of Siam Paragon to catch a movie. The family insisted on watching Frozen 2 and I wanted to experience IMAX. And what do you know…Frozen 2 was showing in IMAX, so quickly checked the showtime and bought tickets to the next show which coincidently was about to start. Perfect timing! The family loved it and for me the movie was somewhat short...my family told me after the movie that I had dozed off. No wonder. Frankly for me the 4Dx experience we had the other day was just outstanding and no match to IMAX.
After the movie we window-shopped and then headed to the food Galleria and finally to the food court. Siam Paragon being a premium mall has a very nice restaurant style food galleria with sections of different eateries while the food court is elaborate, catering to all visitors. Found excellent Halal Thai and Thai desi options. There was even a dedicated Thai sweets/desserts place in the food galleria which had all kinds of multicolored traditional Thai favourites.
Khaanay kay baad hum nay dobara sky train platform say ticket li aur Asok BTS ki taraf rawana hue. Uttar kar iss martaba taxi hail ki aur 35 bhat main bakhairiat hotel pohonch gae, shukar Alhamdolillah! In Bangkok, taxi fares start at baht 35 so for me this was ideal…got to our hotel even before the meter turned over. Another long and eventful day comes to an end.
