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Northwest Airlines was our carrier to Southeast Asia and the route was via San Francisco, Tokyo and on in to Bangkok, Thailand. We left early on October 8th, 1992, flew many hours with the sun, and checked into our room at the Bangkok Royal Orchid Sheraton minutes before midnight on the same day. The hotel was located on the East bank of the Chao Phraya River and our room provided an excellent view of both the river and most of Bangkok's scenic wonders. Having slept while the locals slept, we awoke with them and although a bit tired, we were ready for the sights. Our first lesson was not to take a camera from an airconditioned room into the humidity and expect to see through fogged lens. The hair dryer was used to preheat the lens and we were ready to capture the scenes.
We had a private guide who used the name "Nat", probably because most Americans can't pronounce their real names. Nat was nice and spoke very good English. She had already made some great arrangements but was open to any request we might make. We began our tour on a "James Bond" boat down the Chao Phraya and into the Floating Market, then visited the Wat Arun [Temple of the Dawn]. Jo loved it all until she found out what was in the water that sprayed on us at high speed. The Wat Arun is one of the oldest and prettiest Temples in Bangkok and is on the West bank of the Chao Phraya. Other sights seen were The Golden Buddha, Wat Pho with the reclining Buddha, Wimanmek Palace and much local color. Tuk Tuk rides through the streets are both noisy and fun.
A trip to the old Thai Capitol of Ayutthaya was nice, including the visits to the reclining White Buddha, the King's summer Palace at Bancpa-in and the seven headed serpent. The rural areas afforded Jo the chance to see some things as they've been before the modernization that is now evident in Bangkok, such as the bicycle taxis called Sanmalrs. We cruised back to Bangkok aboard a very plush river boat, where lunch was served. Our ability to speak limited Thai made us a hit with the crew and we had a great time. [Except for the fact that Vern is not really a Gow-Chu]. Everything was great but the heat and humidity. Now we leave for HongKong. SAW-WA-DEE KRUP/KA |
