A Fete in Bangkok

Prepared April 20 and 22, 2012, the Red Sea en route and in port Safaga, Egypt

Note:  Images to be added after return to Kona, May 2, 2012.

March 25, 26 and 27, 2012, Bangkok, Thailand:  Yes, Eloise, There is a Shangri-La

After an uneventful flight from Hanoi, we arrived at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport, cleared immigration, picked up our luggage, passed through customs, and were met by our A&K guide in the airport's reception hall.  Then, it was into a van for the 30-minute drive to the Shangri-La Hotel on the Chao Phraya River in the very heart of Bangkok (at least tourist-Bangkok).  The drive only took 30 minutes because it was Sunday.  On a workday, it could have taken an hour or more.

Because we have been in Bangkok so many times, there was very little tourist talk.  The guide did tell us about the after effects of the monsoon flooding that occurred in October and November of 2011.  It was the worst flooding in Bangkok's recent history.  Both the driver's and guide's homes were made unliveable by the flooding, and they had been relocated to a Red Cross shelter, living there since November.  Government support, other than the shelters, has been limited to about US$25 per person, period.  The strain of being driven from their homes and living in shelters has proven too much for the elderly, and many have sickened and died.  Our guide's mother recently passed away, mainly from illness related to stress caused by the flooding.  Although the water levels have returned to normal, there are still problems with clean-up and reconstruction.

Arriving at the Shangri-La Hotel, we were escorted by the duty host to our room, and checked-in.  Our room was in the new Krungthep Wing and was way too POSH, with a view of the Chao Phraya River and the Somdet Phrachao Taksin Bridge.  In the near-melting heat of dry-season Bangkok, it was a real pleasure to stand by the window and watch river traffic from an air-conditioned room.  Note:  Environmental awareness has not affected the Thai tendency to confuse air conditioning with refrigeration, so every inside space in the city is super-cooled to polar bear comfortable.

View of the Chao Phraya River from the Shangri-La

Since we had flown in from Hanoi, we arrived before our fellow World Cruisers, because the Silver Whisper was to dock at Klong Toey Port at 12:00pm.  Passengers could not leave the Silver Whisper on reserved buses until mid-afternoon, arriving to check in at the Shangri-La about 2:30pm.  We were reunited at an afternoon high tea with all our Silversea friends.  Everyone told us what had happened on the ship, while we described our off-ship tour in Vietnam.  Basically, they reported that the Silver Whisper had spent a vast majority of the six days that we were ashore, sailing (from Ha Long Bay to Chan May/Hue, and Nha Trang, along the coast of Vietnam) in a South China Sea fog bank.  On the other hand,  Bangkok, well into its hot/dry season, was sunny and very hot.

For the 60-plus of us on the World Cruise, the evening began at 5:30pm with cocktails. Arriving at 6:00pm, J and E made a big dent in the club soda, while most of our fellow travellers did the same to the champagne.  A multi-course,Thai-themed dinner was served at 7:00pm in The Garden Gallery, and was followed by traditional Thai Classical dancers.  We thought that both dinner and dancers were excellent.

Jerry and Eloise at Dinner, Thai Style

Photo by Norman Rafelson

Thai Classical Dance Troop

Sleeping in on the morning of the 26th, we finished breakfast from a large buffett about  9:30am.  J & E had agreed to join Don and Kat on a special shopping expedition to find fabric for a quilting project in which Kat participates at home.  Checking with the concierge, we were directed to walk a short distance from the hotel to a street of tailor shops near Wat Suanphlu, which specialize in suits and dresses made within 24 hours.  Luckily, it was a very short distance, because by 10:00am, central Bangkok was already an oven.  We found an Indian tailor, who was just opening and was glad to sell us shirting fabric.  The whole time, however, he was eyeing Don and J sizing them up for suits.  Never happened!  We shortened the trip back to the Shangri-La by using another entrance and walking for about 15 minutes through the hotel's various lobbies, connecting passageways, and arcades.  In Bangkok, climate consists of outside "fry," and inside "freeze."  We decided that freeze was much better than fry.

Checking out of the hotel at 12:00 noon, we took the shuttle back to the Silver Whisper at about 12:30pm, arrived at Klong Toey Port at 1:30pm.  It was good to be back on the ship, and after unpacking, largely done by E (J has been declared packing/unpacking challenged), we rested the remainder of the afternoon and were in bed early.  We seemed to need more sleep to help recover from the past seven days' adventures, which had been very strenuous compared with the cruising life aboard the Silver Whisper.

Decorative Stone Inscription -- Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok

The next day, Tuesday, March 27, we were to sail at 4:00pm, giving us a short day in Bangkok.  We took the 9:30am shuttle bus into the Central World ("The Largest Lifestyle Shopping Destination in Bangkok") arriving at about 10:15am -- not bad timing for Bangkok traffic on a work day.  It seems to us that Bangkok traffic is less congested now that the Skyway is fully operational.  But, it may just be optimistic observation.  The Central World is probably most famous as the shopping center that the Thai Yellow Shirt demonstrators tried to burn down in 2009.  After walking around this eight-level temple to manon, we are not sure whether we were saddened or pleased by the failure of their arson attempt.  Anyway, it is now totally restored and back in business selling things.  We, of course, followed in the cult of the shopper and purchased.  But, not too much -- cards, the new John Burdett novel, "Vulture Peak," and only one thing from Jim Thompson.  J called this a lucky escape!  Of course our friend, the Hotel Director Norman, captured some of our shopping center time on camera.

Shopping at Jim Thompson, Central World, Bangkok

Photo by Norman Rafelson

We returned about 1:00pm to the ship for lunch, and a nap.  Later in the afternoon, we watched the ship get underway for its two-hour transit down the Chao Phraya River to the Gulf of Thailand.  Then, it was south to the resort island of Ko Sui, and a day at the beach for those who like "fun in the sun" (not us).

Buddhist Temple, Chao Phraya River Bank

New Bridge Over Chao Phraya River