The colorful Airbus 320 operated by Bangkok Airways bounced its way from Siem Reap to Bangkok. On this 40 minute flight we were treated to a small snack, coffee and tea service as well as video programing on the overhead monitors. Amazing service when compared to airlines in the States, standard service for Asia. Perfectly on-time we touched down at Suvarnabumi Airport (pronounced Soo-wanna-poom). I had a few hours to kill as I waited for a buddy to arrive from Phuket. Upon his arrival and transfers to the city sorted out, we were eventually speeding through very little traffic to the Sukhumvit in downtown Bangkok.
This was my third trip to Thailand and was eagerly awaiting incredible Thai food and was anxious to get started in meeting that goal. Epic fail! Our first meal turned out to be Chinese food. I spotted a hole in the wall restaurant that seemed busy with locals and with a sign I couldn't read, I figured it couldn't be that bad. Well, it wasn't all that bad, it's just that it wasn't Thai! Nothing that sharing a big bottle of Singha couldn't fix however. Bellies full, we proceeded to sort out formalities for our first few days in Thailand using the free WiFi in the lobby of our two month old hotel, The Four Points Sheraton Bangkok.
One stop I always make in Bangkok is the MBK Mall and its 4th floor food court. Not only did I want to eat here, I wanted to do a little bargain hunting. A relatively quick and cool ride on the Skytrain later, we were herding with the masses as we all made our way towards MBK. The 4th floor food court is never a disappointment. With its large variety of Thai cuisine done up in a street vendor style there is just about something for every one's appetite. There's even some Chinese and Vietnamese thrown in there for good measure too. This of course, is just one of a few food courts in the mall, which also competes for food business with various western fast food chains and sit down restaurants of various cuisines. What makes the 4th floor food court unique is its coupon payment system. One simply approaches a central kiosk with their Bhat and exchanges them for coupons of various denominations. These coupons are the "currency" of the food court. This increases hygiene and efficiency by reducing the need for the vendors to handle money and maintain a cash register system. As usual, the food did not disappoint, though vendors did start closing far earlier than their 9pm closing time, which prevented me from exposing durian, every ones favorite smelly fruit, to by buddy. Maybe next time. I did however succeed in getting my camera viewing screen covered with a sleek protective covering and also got my iPhone completely covered. Not a bad deal for $20 and the result is much better than anything I could do. After browsing the seedy and chaotic Patpong night market we headed back to the hotel via tuktuk and hit the sack. An early morning would greet us for our day trip to Ayuthaya.
After some coffee and croissants we were soon making our way via the clean and efficient Skytrain to the Hualamphong train station. Just in time for the next train, we bought our tickets, said our kop kun krups and settled into the open seating on our local train. The journey would take only ninety minutes and started by winding through Bangkok's busy streets before breaking out of the craziness and cacophony into the countryside just to the north of the Capitol. I really enjoy taking the local trains as it allows a glimpse into the lives of the locals. In our compartment there were a few travelers, a Thai family making a field trip to Ayuthya as well as other locals going to visit friends or family or perhaps to do business. Either way, it was a nice ride. After alighting at the station, we walked to the little pier, paid our $.08, and took the boat to the other side of the river, with landfall on the island portion of the city. Ayuthaya sits on the confluence of three rivers and this fabled city once played an important part in the kingdoms regional dominance.
Our plan was to rent bicycles and pedal around the sights. First things first however. Lunch! We found a place overflowing with locals and I insisted we eat there. With all eyes on us, the Farang, we took our seats and I confidently ordered our noodle salads and bottles of pop to wash it down. This was probably the best meal I ate on this particular trip to Thailand. After refueling, we set out to explore what the city had to offer. First up was a visit to Wat Pra Si Sanphet. This place was originally the spot for the Royal Palace until the 15th century. Most of what is left revolves around spectacular ruins of red brick and three dominating bell shaped Chedi. This not being an American suburb, the red brick was clearly not how the builders intended visitors to see their buildings so many centuries later. Once adorned with gold, the vagaries of war, time and pillaging by Burmese conquerors have taken their toll. An impressive compound none the less. Next door, we'd find the largest bronzed seated Buddha in Thailand. Impressive at every angle, it was surrounded by smaller gilded busts and sitting politely in-front on the ruby red carpet were devout Buddhist saying their prayers. After wandering around what looked like it would be a bustling market at night and trying some local snacks we hopped back on the bikes and headed for the Wat Phra Mahathat where we'd find a curious image of Buddha tangled with tree roots. Sufficiently hot and sunburned we made our way via bike back to the pier for our water taxi back to the train station and the return journey to Bangkok. Taking a tip from a guidebook, we hopped off the train and connected to the subway and beat most of the crushing crowds anticipated at Hualamphong station.
Having been refreshed by some freshly squeezed orange juice from a street vendor and a very cold and powerful shower back at the room we headed back to MBK mall for dinner and to complete some errands. I know, not very original, but I felt we didn't get the full MBK experience the night before. This time, all the vendors were open, though we did skip the durian. Satisfied with dinner I set out to find a barber or hair salon to trim my out of control itching beard of over three weeks. It took some time with hand gestures, demonstration and negotiating with four different people to convince them to trim my beard. All trimmed up, we left the mall to finish up some souvenir shopping for my buddy and we made our way back to the Four Points. Another early morning was on tap, with a train journey to Kanchanaburi, west of Bangkok.
Fueled once again by croissant and coffee we soon found ourselves in a bright pink taxi comfortably navigating the light traffic of Bangkok ahead of the morning rush hour. That peace and tranquility was dashed when we pulled up to a random Skytrain station that was most definitely NOT the Bangkok North (Thonburi) train station. Rewind to the conversation I had with the Concierge just 45 minutes earlier. "We need to go to Thonbori train station, we're going to Kanchanaburi." "Oh yes sir, I'll tell the taxi driver for you." Okay, so, having had that understanding, I had no doubts we'd end up in the right place. Safely assuming the conversation with the cab driver took place in Thai, what could possibly go wrong? It turns out that we were dropped off at a Skytrain station that SOUNDED like Thonburi, but was indeed not where we needed to be. Frustrated with nobody knowing how to read a map and not exactly knowing where we were, the time crunch began to be ever apparent. We had one shot at a 745am train and it was approaching 730am. Having allowed nearly an hour for this journey we had only a little cushion built into our schedule. Finally, we were able to get a taxi driver to understand where we needed to go and we sped off, this time in a lime green taxi, into the now well developed morning rush hour. It turns out that these taxi drivers, who speak little or no English, know the train station as its called in English and not Thai. Who would have ever guessed? I felt like I was on the Amazing Race! Thankfully we had a good taxi driver that was aggressive in his dodging of other cars and people and we rolled up to the proper station at 740am. Whew. This is where we learned that train timing is merely a suggestion in Thailand. Our 745am train pulled out of the station sometime just after 8am.
As we trundled over the tracks, leaving Bangkok behind us all I could think about was how nice it was to leave crazy Bangkok, what kind of food we'd find on the train and how my stomach was killing me! Bright green rice paddies, golden Wats, random water buffalo, small villages and playing children were some highlights as we bounced and bobbled our way towards Kanchanburi. Our goal was to explore the area made famous by the post WWII book/movie called "The Bridge Over the River Kwai." Upon arrival into hot, sunny and steamy Kanchanaburi we quickly found a place to sleep, nestled right on the River Kwai, had lunch and sorted out the days agenda. We decided to hire a driver to drive us to Hell Fire pass and we'd take the train back. Thanks to the suggestions on the great website called seat61.com everything worked out perfectly. The drive to Hell Fire pass was a blur as our taxi driver appreciated our time constraints and therefore probably broke every traffic law that the Kingdom has on the books.
During WWII the Japanese needed to find access to Burma (now Myanmar) and India for their goods transportation as well as their future endeavors after conquering all over Southeast Asia. The dangerous straits of Melakka around Singapore was too much of a risk, so the next best thing was to dig a railway cutting through the Western mountains in Thailand ending in Burma. Having a very short time frame to accomplish this, the Japanese enlisted prisoners of war from Australia and England to build their railway. They were joined by Malay, Siamese and Indian slaves and together they built what is known as the "Death Railway." In just 16 months, these men working amid disease, poor weather, exhaustion, starvation and abuse, completed the railroad in record time. Now Japan had its access to Burma. One particular piece of the railway is the Konyu Cut, or Hellfire pass. It was given the nickname Hellfire pass because at night as seen from a distance, the fires lit to illuminate the work site combined with the conditions the men endured, could be considered hell. Nearly 100,000 men died building this railway. Today, there is a very nice museum jointly built by the Australian and Thai governments to commemorate those who sacrificed their lives for this project. This is one of the most unknown stories of WWII and having had the chance to visit the museum and hike down the actual path cut by these POWs, was a very sobering and chilling experience.
Having paid our respects we made our way to the end (beginning) of the operational portion of the original Death Railway to await our train back to Kanchanaburi. This journey would be another fun experience riding the local train. At one point only a Monk dressed in orange robes joined us in our car of yellow painted wooden seats and open windows. As we made our way through the countryside all I could imagine were the men who slaved away laying the very track we were riding on. As the sun set, we pulled into Kanchanaburi and rolled across the bridge that spanned the river Kwai. The original bridge was partially destroyed in WWII but has subsequently been rebuilt. It is nondescript and not of any architectural excitement. It is however, a poignant symbol of the past. The bridge was made famous by the book "Bridge Over the River Kwai" written by Pierre Boulle and subsequent movie directed by David Lean. Interestingly the river that the bridge spans was never originally called Kwai. Being the gracious and polite people that the Thai are, they just changed the name of the river to reflect the book, making the book accurate. Having started in Bangkok very early that morning, it was time for dinner and an early night.
The next morning was spent on bikes, in the hot sun, exploring what the small town had to offer. Not before however, a decent breakfast on the terrace next to the pool and river. We visited the bridge once again, walked around and across it and then visited the Thailand-Burma Railway Center which has another comprehensive overview of the history behind the Death Railway. Soon, it was time to return the bikes and head towards the train station for our 242pm train. The train finally arrived at nearly 5pm! It was a "creeping" delay, as we use in airline parlance. The delay crept, every 30 minutes, so it made leaving the train station impossible. We were exposed to more "Thai time" and since we were on vacation and had plenty of time before our 10pm flight to Chiang Mai, I wasn't worried. I pulled up a bench, rolled up my sleeves and took a nap. I also chatted with other travelers and locals. It was a fine way to spend the afternoon. Finally the train pulled into the station and we were underway towards Bangkok. As we jostled, bumped and shimmied eastbound, I was captivated as life passed me by. iPod playing in my ears and wind in my face, I found myself with an uncontrollable smile. I kept asking myself, how much better can it get? As the English author Ford Maddox Ford wrote about train travel, " One, sees too, so many bits of uncompleted life." This proved true for me on this and all my recent train journeys. We roll through towns and get only a glimpse or a snapshot, of someones life. The Mother and her child walking into the store. The old couple walking together down the river. The group of kids playing together in the park. Each individual has a whole life to deal with. The child with his or her future. The old man that reminisces and tells stories. The mother with trepidation and concern for the future of her child. Yet, we only see one moment. The fun part is imagining what they're thinking as we take a brief peak into their lives, as the train rolls by. The other thing I found fun was waving at the crowds that gathered to watch our train pass them. Whether they were in an intersection held back by the train crossing or kids playing in the filed next to the tracks they took an interest. People still seem excited to see trains. They wave. We wave. How come nobody waves at the passing car? or goods truck? There's something romantic and glamorous about trains, I think. No matter how tattered, bare bones or luxurious, people still stop to watch the train go by. Soon, we were pulling into Thonburi station, excuse me, Bangkok North to the Thai. Next stop... Suvarnabhumi Airport.
After dealing with Bangkok Friday night traffic, navigating the new Airport Express trains which are the epitome of government excess and bureaucracy, we made our way to the Bangkok Airways check-in area. All set to go, we needed food. Bangkok Airport food FAIL! The only food once inside security in the domestic terminal was Burger King. Starving, I gave into my personal rule of never consuming western chain fast food while abroad, I inhaled my chicken sandwich and fries. Secretly, just between you and me, it was really good and hit the spot! After a short flight with great service again by the folks at Bangkok Airways, we were touching down in Chiang Mai. Just after midnight we made it to our very nicely air conditioned and plush room at our splurge hotel, Le Meridien.
I got to sleep in just a little bit and enjoy the comfortable bed, just an hour longer than my buddy. He went to play with Elephants. For me, I wanted to cook. I spent the day at the Siam Rice Cookery School led by Nancy and Bunpot Chaimonghol. After touring a large market we proceeded to their house to get started on the days cooking. I felt as if I was invited over to a friends house to cook. They were warm and made us feel very welcome. There were two groups of 6 rotating throughout the day. The neat feature about this cookery school is that we got to pick our own individual menus. I chose Tom Yam soup, Pad Thai, Musamun curry, Som Tum (papaya salad), stir fried chicken with ginger and finally mango and sweet sticky rice for desert. Throughout the day we were taught the secrets to good Thai cooking, including techniques and usage of spices and herbs. We also got to grind our own curry paste using a traditional mortar and pestle. There was entirely too much food to eat! It was however a great day and I appreciated the personalized attention that Bunpot and Nancy gave us. I have my official certificate to prove I am ready to compete on Top Chef, Iron Chef or be gainfully employed in the best Thai restaurants around the world. Okay... maybe not. But I do have some new skills to put to good use! Towards the end of the day, I wasn't feeling that great and we decided that we'd just eat in the hotel and exchange stories about our individual days. Normally, I hate eating in the hotel restaurants, as I view it as a cop out and an excuse. In this case, I made an exception as I wasn't feel well, as mentioned and we dined on gourmet wood fired pizza and sipped Singha beers at the bar. We called it an early night.
Doi Sutep and a cooking class were two things I came to Chiang Mai to do on this trip. Having mastered Thai cooking, we had to make the trek to the top of the mountain and explore Doi Sutep, one of the North's most sacred temples. With a hazy, but birds eye view of Chiang Mai we soaked in the temple and all its gilded golden glory. Still not feeling very well and very likely dehydrated we headed back to the hotel and I took a much needed siesta. That night for dinner we went to a seafood restaurant recommended by a British couple. Lesson learned? Never take restaurant advice in Thailand from a British tourist. Enough said. As this was our last evening in Thailand, we made the most of it. Again, nothing a few Singha's couldn't cure. I would be resuming the solo travel and leaving for Lao the following day and my buddy would be making his way back to Bangkok for the onward journey home.
I left Thailand with excitement as I was about to embark on the most anticipated and unfamiliar part of my journey. That week in Thailand was nice. I saw new things and had some nice experiences. I was slightly disappointed however, in the food. Having had much better food on previous trips and on the heels of incredible cuisine in Vietnam and Cambodia, perhaps my expectations were too high. I don't know. As I boarded my Lao Airlines ATR, I said a prayer and asked for traveling mercies as I made my way towards the mystery, tranquility and comparatively unexplored and exposed Peoples Democratic Republic of Lao.
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