Bangkok…where the dollar goes far

by Michelle Larson

As an avid traveler, with an aching need for exploration, this economy is cramping my adventurous style. With the ever-dropping value of the dollar, Europe is out of the question, so I answer back with…Thailand. You can stay in a luxury hotel for less than $100 a night and have an English speaking guide take you anywhere you want to go for $50 a day. The shopping is to die for. The landscape is breathe-taking. The history lesson is incomparable. So, with skinny wallet and passport in hand…off I go to see this exotic land.

Getting there:

Thai Air is the best airline to Thailand. You can take a non-stop from LAX to Bangkok and land in roughly 12 hours. Spend a couple of hundred extra dollars to upgrade to Premium Economy. It’s just as good as business class for little additional cash. You should be able to sleep ok so, take the overnight flight. It will allow you to arrive in Bangkok in the morning of the second day (15 hours time difference) and you’ll still have time to nap and see some of the city the day you arrive. You’ll be plenty tired that night so you should get a good night’s sleep and be able to adapt to the new time zone by day two.

Where to stay:

If you are a Starwood Preferred Member, you can stay at the Plaza Athénée Bangkok, A Royal Méridien Hotel. A beautiful five star hotel that features a gorgeous pool, tranquil spa with a sumptuous list of treatments, tasteful decorated rooms with comfortable beds and really good restaurants. In off-season you can use 2800 points and $45 to stay each night. Amazing! (If you are not a member, become one. I have saved a bundle and stayed at some of the most incredible hotels using SPG points)

Another great hotel choice is The Old Bangkok Inn. This is an eco friendly, chic boutique hotel located in the heritage district. It is run by, owner, Khun Nantiya, who will greet you upon arrival. There are just 10 unique rooms named and decorated with Thai floral themes. There’s a computer in every room, WiFi, and a plasma TV with DVD player. Rates start at just $79 per night.

My Bangkok Experience:

I arrive in Bangkok early in the morning. Desperate for a caffeine boost, and what do you know?....a Starbuck’s. Normally, I hate seeing American standards in other countries, but the Thai coffee is typically more like thick espresso, so an American coffee did the trick. From there I walked through a street-side food market with a couple dozen stands featuring various unique Thai delicacies. (Fried crickets, anyone?) Then, on a tuk-tuk through fast moving traffic to the Suan Lum Night Market. I held on tight and did just a little yelping. It was raining and the humidity was intense as I walked aisle after aisle dripping with sweat, but shop I came for and shop I did! There were wonderful Thai arts and crafts to see. I tired out after a while, but not without both hands full of overstuffed bags of treasure. In the taxi back to the hotel, the cab driver tried to keep me entertained by singing American songs that were on the radio. He mumbled to the tune and added his own lyrics, in what he thought sounded like English. We laughed, even after it wasn’t funny anymore. The jet lag delirium had seriously kicked in, time for a good night’s sleep.

My first full day in Bangkok I planned to see the Grand Palace. I always make it a priority to find a local, English speaking guide on my first day of a trip, and when I arrived at the Grand Palace, there she was, waiting in the entrance way. Jaki was amazing. She shared every historic and contemporary detail of this majestic place.

The Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaeo are the holiest Buddhist sites in Thailand. Built in 1785, it was gold and glittering with stone and glass mosaics inset on the walls. Hand painted murals told the story of the King and how he came to dominate. Six-meter tall statues of Yaksha, the gaudy demons that protect the premises, were at every gate of the temple to ward off evil spirits. Inside, the emerald Buddha was encased in a tall glass shrine. People come from all over to worship here. The entire site was awe inspiring.

Jaki was available for a private tour for the rest of the day, so we left the palace and walked the streets lined with local food vendors. Suddenly, I felt immersed in the Thai way of life. Through the market, we ended up in a community of wooden shacks built over the canal. The people had small markets in front and lived in cramped quarters in the back. I sampled some local favorites along the way, pork on a stick, sticky rice in banana leaves, tiny coconut pancakes, Thai iced tea, and a sweet purple fruit called mangkut...delicious! All for roughly 80 cents.

Jaki rented us a private boat. We went down the Chao Phraya River....this was a whole different world. Broken down shacks on stilts line each side. If there were a strong wind I think most of these homes would crumble and float away. The water was rough and congested with weeds. We stopped to feed the catfish. We had bags full of bread. We tossed handfuls into the water and they came in droves; huge fish, by the thousands, thrashing at the side of the boat waiting for us to throw them a morsel. We were like silly girls giggling and laughing at the sight of it.

We motored down the river to a place where the royal boat fleet is stored. These boats were elaborate and detailed with jewels and gold. The opulence was discouraging considering the poverty of the country. It appears to be a two-class society, rich or poor, not much in the middle. The shantis surrounding this storage house hold some of the poorest people we’ve seen. It appears though, that they celebrate in the customs and rituals that surround them. The King and everything he stands for, is cherished.

Back to the dock, Jaki insisted that we have noodle soup and fried rice for lunch, accompanied by a nice cold, fresh squeezed tangerine juice...yummy! Then, off to view the Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho, the oldest temple in Bangkok. Older than the city itself, the statue was colossal and shiny gold from head to toe. I bought 108 coins for 20 baht to drop into a long row of metal bowls. I was to make wishes as each coin fell.

Jaki knew a massage therapist who specialized in Thai massage. I arranged for a treatment in my room - $15 and 90 minutes later, I was relaxed, sedated and ready for bed.

I booked another day with Jaki. It was pouring rain this morning. Our first stop was at an orphan house outside of Bangkok called Phayathai Home for Babies. I brought two large suitcases full of toys and school supplies. When we arrived we found that this home houses 300 babies, newborn to six years old. The older children, that the toys were more appropriate for, were in school while we were there. I had some toys for younger kids, so they let us go into the building where we found a large room with about 12, two year olds. They didn’t know what to think of me at first. I tried to hand them dolls and stuffed animals. They all looked at me a little suspiciously. After a few minutes they realized that the toys were for them. I had some books too and interestingly enough, they were more curious about them than the toys. Actually, what they really went crazy for, were the tags on the toys...funny! I wasn’t there for more than 10 minutes when their little arms started reaching up, wanting to be held. I had two little girls in my arms, who absolutely did not want to be put down. They were so, so sweet. I expected the children to be so excited about the dolls and action figures, but in reality they seemed fairly uninterested in the toys and more interested in the attention we gave them. It almost seemed like they didn’t know what to do with the toys. A little American girl would cuddle a doll and maybe rock her or want to take care of her. These little girls haven’t had a mother to mimic. All of the children were well behaved considering that there were so many of them in one room. I would have liked to take them all home and I got the feeling that they would like that too. It was pretty heartbreaking to leave them as the ones that were in my arms didn’t want me to let them go. I have made a list of items needed at the orphanage and plan to do what I can to help when I get back home.

The sun came out as we left the home and headed to Wat Yai Chaya Mongkol, the grand temple of auspicious victory in Ayutthaya. The temple was established in 1357 as a meditation site for monks. They seemed mysterious and regal in their saffron robes. Some of the monks are young boys. I had to wonder who made that decision for them? Their entire life is spent in prayer, meditation and servitude. When I asked Jaki about the young monks, she said the parents make the choice, but many times they are influenced by a fortuneteller or a dream.

Wat Panan Choeng was next. A monastery housing Thailand’s largest ancient Buddha image. Upon entering, Jaki purchased candles, incense, a square of gold leaf and a lotus flower and instructed me on how to prepare the ritual of asking Buddha for a wish. We lit the candle and incense and placed them into a round, brass bowl. We made prayer hands and bowed to show our respect. The lotus flower was used as an offering on a golden platter at a table filled with, and surrounded by, lit lanterns and glittering statues. The light was so beautiful in the monastery. An old monk sat at the end of an aisle filled with baskets of saffron cloth. We made a donation and knelt before him to receive a set of many whacks on the head with a wet bunch of sticks. It was holy water, but it still kinda felt like a bit of a beating. Anyway, suppose I deserve the punishment for making fun at this point.

For the remainder of the day we toured through two sites of ancient ruins, Wat Phra Mahathat and Wat Ratburanan. Both left me with the impression of faded glory. The ruins are in pretty bad shape, but still impressive. Built in 1424, the most interesting part was the mysterious head of a stone Buddha that is nestled in the embrace of a Bodhi tree’s roots. At first glance it appears that the head has been carved from the root of the tree, but as the story goes, the stone head was buried underground and as the tree grew it lifted the head and embodied it as a sign of Buddha’s strength.

It was another wonderful day, my last in Bangkok. I will miss Jaki.

She is available for private tours. You can find her at the Grand Palace.

“Just Go!” The more time you spend simply daydreaming about far off places, the less time you have to experience all of the many wonders of this incredible world.