Asia trip - July 2015

Bangkok, Thailand, July 13, 2015

Being awoken by the sound of the pleasant Thai national anthem (followed by a Buddhist prayer song) from a neighboring school is quite nice in theory - unless it happens at too early an hour.  And it was much too early.

To put readers' mind at rest: the visa photos turned out quite good and after some lengthy waiting at the Burmese embassy a visa was duly issued for the trip next week.

The afternoon was filled with a visit to the impressive Wat Traimit - the Temple of the Golden Buddha. The huge buddha stature is indeed made of gold with the light reflecting wonderfully in it as well as from the ornate impressive ceiling, also made of gold. Unfortunately the exhibition was closed. 

Jim Tomson's house was also a good place to visit. It is an oasis of calm in this bustling, crowded city.  Actually the house consists of six traditiional Thai houses turned into one by this American born Thai affectionado who lived in Bangkok for 9 years between 1959 and 1967 before disappearing on an excursion to the Malayan jungle (he was probably eaten by tigers).

Pat Pong market was on the agenda in the evening (after a prolonged stay at the hotel pool). It was less busy, with fewer tourists mingling, than during my visits in previous years but still most interesting. I bought some presents for my kids. It's always fasciting to have a traditional market frequented by families and the likes being surrounded by quite a number of strip clubs with guys and girls trying to drag you in by showing you explicit photos without much inhibition. Still, the main attraction are also the multiple stores with fake watches, brand t.shirts, handbags, suitcases, etc etc. I can seldom resist to buy a few items (which then usually break down pretty quickly).