A shopper’s paradise, popular for its unpopular night life, wonderful scenic beauty, beautiful stretch of beaches, exciting water sports, unique culture and a country ruled by his majesty- the King is how I would succinctly describe this well know tourist destination.
We began our five day journey at the Bangkok airport- Five girls, four arriving from Mumbai and one that’s I from Malaysia. I took the previous day evening flight and stayed at Floral Shire- a hotel 8 km away from the airport. Extremely polite, prompt and courteous staff made me comfortable in a place where I knew no one around. Next morning my friends were to arrive at 7.00 am at Bangkok airport. Meeting them at the meeting point at the airport described by the tour operator took us longer than expected because most localities fail to understand the English language and my driver being hot headed didn’t help at all. He couldn’t understand my instruction and so I called the hotel and asked them to instruct him in the local language. After a struggle, the driver finally dropped me at the meeting spot and I was excited to meet my friends. At the airport we got ourselves into a vehicle that was to take us to Pattaya- arranged by the tour operator. The two and half hour’s drive from Bangkok airport refreshed us tired souls. Smooth roads, lovely steeps, awesome greenery. A few minutes of the drive and there arose a desire in me to be at the wheel. That’s how pleasing the drive can be. We tried to interact with the driver of the vehicle but in vain. He didn’t understand much of English and refused to converse.
We arrived at the hotel around lunch time and our planned two day stay at Pattaya began.
Day No 1
We had the Alcazar’s show scheduled at 7 pm, leaving us with plenty of time before that to do whatever would please us.We were a bunch of individuals wanting to do different things. One of the group members and I decided to freshen up and go to visit the Sanctuary of Truth, while the rest of the gang preferred to go on a shopping spree. A decision in hindsight, I am truly happy about.
We had the Alcazar’s show scheduled at 7 pm, leaving us with plenty of time before that to do whatever would please us.We were a bunch of individuals wanting to do different things. One of the group members and I decided to freshen up and go to visit the Sanctuary of Truth, while the rest of the gang preferred to go on a shopping spree. A decision in hindsight, I am truly happy about.
Sanctuary of Truth
The architectural monument built of wood facing the sea, is a structure that meshes cultures of four countries -Indian, Chinese, Vietnamese and Cambodian. The structure has four wings, each dedicated to philosophy and art of the neighbouring four countries built by workers of Thailand, Burma and Laos. It is not a temple or a place of religious worship but a structure dedicated to philosophy and art.
The carving on this monument is so intricately made that I was awe struck. The monument has
been completed from the exteriors but work on the interiors is still in progress. It is about 3 decades old but it feels like has been made centuries ago.
been completed from the exteriors but work on the interiors is still in progress. It is about 3 decades old but it feels like has been made centuries ago. Both my friend and I had the opportunity to see the workers work; the architects draw on the wood on which the carving had to be done. The completion of one pillar which is several feet tall takes around 10 years. We were allowed to chisel a wood piece- it made our day. The trip to this place ended with an entertainment show by the dolphins.
Alcarzars show
A dance show done by ladies men displaying dances of various countries is trul
y colourful and different. Most of my group friends ended up sleeping after a while. The show was not enthralling enough to keep our attention for over 20 minutes. This can be given a miss. There is another show called the Tiffanys show. Seek opinion from the ones who have seen it.We ended the day by having dinner at a nearby Indian restaurant.
Day Number 2
A sad beginning to our day- The planned trip to the Coral Island had to be cancelled because of bad weather conditions- earthquake and tsunami ripped the neighbouring countries. The next activity for the day, “Ripleys Believe it or Not” was scheduled for the evening. Hence our agent gave us the option of going for a tour of the place or the SriRacha Tiger Park- place where we could hold the tiger cub in our hand. That excited us and without any hesitation we decided to go there.
SriRacha Tiger Park
Tiger show, Elephant show, crocodile show and the Birds show. The performances were completely entertaining. It's incredible how animals do what is asked from them when they are given their feed almost after every small act. We witnessed this in all the shows. A visit to this park should not be missed. Photographs can be taken with the Elephants and you can hold the tiger cub in your hand and have a photograph taken. All this comes at a price of around 100-200 bath for each photograph, but it’s worth. For e.g, we had two elephants entangle their trunks on which we could sit. A Truly memorable experience. Would you like to miss an opportunity of holding a tiger cub in your hand?
Ripley’s- Believe it or not
Given the reputation that Ripley's has built for itself for several years, we had huge expectations. We came out content as it was absolute fun. There were five different shows- a simulated ride in the theatre was one of them. Exciting to say the least. Feels like your actually on a ride. One doesn't need pursuation to go to a show of this nature.
Day Number 3 - Trip to the Coral Island and return to Bangkok
We were ready to leave from Pattaya to Bangkok as per schedule. We were unhappy about the fact that we would have to leave Pattaya without having gone to the Coral island. My friends decided that we could come back from Bangkok to Pattaya once again if the weather improves . Just when we had almost given up, at breakfast table another Indian family brought to our notice that Coral Island was open. All of us were excited. We decided almost immediately to postpone the drive to Bankgok to the evening and asked our tour operator to make the necessary arrangements.
For water sport lovers, the coral island has multiple activities. The undersea water walk (snorkelling), parasailing, skiing, banana boat ride and the glass bottom ship are the various activities. We made the most of it and enjoyed every single ride that we took. Each activity is separately priced. Don’t miss the ‘butta’ and the coconut water available at the shore. It’s delicious and refreshing. For tatoo lovers, you can get done temporary tatoos at the shore.
Return to Bangkok- The shoppers Paradise
The trip to Bangkok took much longer because we left in the evening. Bangkok has heavy traffic. It reminded me of the streets of Mumbai. Plenty of cars, the only difference- hardly any honks could be heard. Tired after the coral activity, we still decided we would go for shopping for at least some time to make up for the extra time we spent at Pattaya. The surprising thing to note is that in spite Bangkok being a tourist destination, malls close early. The wholesale market closes as early as 5pm and other malls close anywhere between 8pm-10pm. We decided at least to have a glance of the MBK mall- a very big shopping mall. We spent couple of hours there and barely managed to complete a floor. That’s how large the malls are.
The trip to Bangkok took much longer because we left in the evening. Bangkok has heavy traffic. It reminded me of the streets of Mumbai. Plenty of cars, the only difference- hardly any honks could be heard. Tired after the coral activity, we still decided we would go for shopping for at least some time to make up for the extra time we spent at Pattaya. The surprising thing to note is that in spite Bangkok being a tourist destination, malls close early. The wholesale market closes as early as 5pm and other malls close anywhere between 8pm-10pm. We decided at least to have a glance of the MBK mall- a very big shopping mall. We spent couple of hours there and barely managed to complete a floor. That’s how large the malls are.
Day No 1 at Bangkok- Safari Day
We left the hotel at 8.30 am to reach the Safari Park at around 9.30 am. The driver dropped us and asked us to meet him at a particular location at 4 pm. He gave us the entry passes and took us through the shows that were scheduled for the day. The Orangutum show, the Elephant show, the seal show, the bird show and the Dolphin show. The best of the lot were the tiger, seal and the Dolphin shows. The heat got to us- we wanted to leave earlier than the scheduled time so that we could go for the open Safari earlier than planned and end the day early. But the driver refused and forced us to wait till 4 pm. There was enough to see but it was just that we didn’t possess the stamina. We were waiting for 4 pm because all of us were interested in the open safari. A first for many of us. It's thrilling to see wild animals from a close distance. We also saw two deers fighting. Truly a memorable experience. At the end of it all we were happy to be at the Safari Park but thought that it would have made us less tired if all of it was compressed to half or at most three fourths of the day.
We left the hotel at 8.30 am to reach the Safari Park at around 9.30 am. The driver dropped us and asked us to meet him at a particular location at 4 pm. He gave us the entry passes and took us through the shows that were scheduled for the day. The Orangutum show, the Elephant show, the seal show, the bird show and the Dolphin show. The best of the lot were the tiger, seal and the Dolphin shows. The heat got to us- we wanted to leave earlier than the scheduled time so that we could go for the open Safari earlier than planned and end the day early. But the driver refused and forced us to wait till 4 pm. There was enough to see but it was just that we didn’t possess the stamina. We were waiting for 4 pm because all of us were interested in the open safari. A first for many of us. It's thrilling to see wild animals from a close distance. We also saw two deers fighting. Truly a memorable experience. At the end of it all we were happy to be at the Safari Park but thought that it would have made us less tired if all of it was compressed to half or at most three fourths of the day.
Day 2 at Bangkok- Shopping day
We had so many shopping places in mind. Platinum, Prathnam, MBK, Tesco Lotus and many more. We spent the whole day shopping and at the end of it all felt it was just not enough. Malls close early forcing us to quicken our purchase. When you venture out for shopping in Bangkok, be clear on what you want and then look for it. If you stop by whatever you see, you end up wasting a lot of time.
Before we could even realise, it was 7 pm and all of us were dead tired. We decided to go to the night market after a quick dinner but that was not to be. We ended up having a liesurly dinner and calling it a day. The next morning I had an early morning flight to catch.
We had so many shopping places in mind. Platinum, Prathnam, MBK, Tesco Lotus and many more. We spent the whole day shopping and at the end of it all felt it was just not enough. Malls close early forcing us to quicken our purchase. When you venture out for shopping in Bangkok, be clear on what you want and then look for it. If you stop by whatever you see, you end up wasting a lot of time.
Before we could even realise, it was 7 pm and all of us were dead tired. We decided to go to the night market after a quick dinner but that was not to be. We ended up having a liesurly dinner and calling it a day. The next morning I had an early morning flight to catch.
The things that we missed out on were seeing the night market, the reclining Buddha and more importantly the Golden Palace. Friends, make sure you don’t miss any of these. I intend going back to catch up on what I have missed.
A trip that will stay etched in my memory for the fun and excitement we had. How often do 5 girls ( 2 married, 3 in the waiting) get a chance to travel together in the midst of our busy schedules? A perfect outing for us all.
Tips
Communication: Localities have limited knowledge of the English language. Avoid constructing whole English sentences. Stress on the important words only. E.g. How much cost to go ABC mall?
Local Travel: Ask localities what is the normal cost to travel from destination A to B. Knowing that we are tourists; the cab drives try to fleece us. The first time we travelled, the trip cost us more than twice the actual cost.
Mobile connection: I picked up the “True Money” sim and topped it up at the airport itself. Being accessible is important especially when there are issues communicating with the driver. The drivers don’t understand a word of English and they are not co-operative. We called our agent and asked him/her to communicate to the driver.
Food: Non vegetarians have plenty of options. For vegetarians, there are Indian restaurants and we were pleasantly surprised to know that they understood what Jain food meant.
Bargaining: If you are not good at it, be sure to lose a lot of money at Bangkok. Knowing that we are tourists, the prices are jacked up. So clothes, ornaments, trinkets, travel- everywhere you have to bargain.
Communication: Localities have limited knowledge of the English language. Avoid constructing whole English sentences. Stress on the important words only. E.g. How much cost to go ABC mall?
Local Travel: Ask localities what is the normal cost to travel from destination A to B. Knowing that we are tourists; the cab drives try to fleece us. The first time we travelled, the trip cost us more than twice the actual cost.
Mobile connection: I picked up the “True Money” sim and topped it up at the airport itself. Being accessible is important especially when there are issues communicating with the driver. The drivers don’t understand a word of English and they are not co-operative. We called our agent and asked him/her to communicate to the driver.
Food: Non vegetarians have plenty of options. For vegetarians, there are Indian restaurants and we were pleasantly surprised to know that they understood what Jain food meant.
Bargaining: If you are not good at it, be sure to lose a lot of money at Bangkok. Knowing that we are tourists, the prices are jacked up. So clothes, ornaments, trinkets, travel- everywhere you have to bargain.
Tatooing: If you love body art, there is not better place to get it done than Pattaya. Both temporary and permanent options are available.
Copy Items: If you have a fetish for brands which you think would be difficult to own in the near future, Bangkok gives you a chance to own them- Fake items are available in abundance. Be it belts, hand bags, sun glasses, T-shirts, shoes they are all available on the streets of Bangkok at throw away prices. Happy Shopping!
Copy Items: If you have a fetish for brands which you think would be difficult to own in the near future, Bangkok gives you a chance to own them- Fake items are available in abundance. Be it belts, hand bags, sun glasses, T-shirts, shoes they are all available on the streets of Bangkok at throw away prices. Happy Shopping!
