Calaidescope World

Before Blogger, There Was Email: Amazing Thailand Part 2

This was my last World Update from Bangkok (4 months worth of kwento). As I was re-reading this, I realised that most of the friends I made back then and the people I met through them are among my closest friends now. It really does take me a while to completely open up to people, huh? (hindi pa halata). But it's so cool how we're all still in touch despite the time and distance....

-----Original Message-----
From: Carla S. Vargas
Sent: Wednesday, August 15, 2001 12:49 PM
To: Anna Liza Flores; Harry Velasco; Cynthia Ortiz; Joey Mapa; Jolyn Suarez; Alexandra Olivares; Sheila Marie Fleta; Sidney Catipon; Misha Canas; John Eric Ramos; Jerome Arcebal; Eduardo Miguel Juliano; Rey Laguda; Malou Abada; Grace Nava; Tanya Reyes; Sobee Duenas; Ricky Pagdanganan; Nanette Dumol; Krissie Millan; Fred Tan; Ariel Dominguez; Dondi Grande; Yeyette Raymundo; Marge Hukom; Mon Espago; Cha Estomata; Joy Silva; Liza Alba; M Moncada; Joy Del Rosario
Subject: World Update - May to August 2001 (4WW)

AGAIN, READ ONLY WHEN YOU HAVE LOTS OF NON-BILLABLE TIME ON YOUR HANDS. AND THIS ONE'S REALLY LONG.

Allow me to get a little sentimental as I write this final Thailand update during my last week in Bangkok. [dramatic pause] Ok, enough. Here are the last of my amazing adventures in the Land of Smiles.

SURVIVOR - THAILAND (THE CONCLUSION)
EPISODE 4: AYUTTHAYA
This city was the second capital of Thailand & is only an hour or so away from Bangkok by land. Angela & I took one of the many van tours with a group of tourists (oh, yes, we distinguish ourselves from tourists, although we don't quite fancy ourselves Bangkokians either). Our tour guide was a Thai version of Jar-Jar Binks & we wanted him to die! Give me Ewoks anytime!

First stop was Bang-Pa In & a visit to King Chulalongkorn (Rama V)'s Summer Palace. It's more Chinese & European than Thai (very few furnishings & exterior designs were uniquely Thai). Apparently, Rama V was fascinated by all things European (read as "modern"). We then got on a river boat that took us to the center of Ayutthaya via the Chao Phraya River (Thai version of the Nile). Ayutthaya is basically a city of ruins (with some "newer" temples & Buddha statues) where structures of old temples remain scattered throughout. You can tour the city on foot or take an elephant ride. I opted to walk (no more elephant rides for me after Chiang Mai, right Jerome?).

If any of you decide to spend some time in Bangkok on holiday, a visit to Ayutthaya is worth the trip (oh, uh, well, next to the Chatuchak weekend market. Hahaha). It's a chance to see old Thailand & learn more about its history & culture. Scores of photo ops, too! (remember the pictures I scanned?) I used up 3 rolls of film! Angela highly suggests you take the more expensive route, though. 1,800 Baht gets you on the Mandarin Oriental Hotel tour that takes you to Ayutthaya by boat (with a supposedly fantastic buffet lunch) in the morning & back by bus mid-afternoon.

EPISODE 5: KOH SAMET
.starring Charlie's Angels (all of whom are Lucy Liu), otherwise known as the Power Puff Girls (all of whom are Buttercup). Definitely the best beach I've been to in this country. It's a mini-Boracay: fine white sand, a bar strip, lots of space. Cheena, Angela & I got on a 3-hour bus ride from Bangkok to the pier & took a 30-minute ferry to the small island (someone failed to mention that there was a shorter, faster "express" bus trip). I really liked the area we stayed in (it was nameless. All we knew was that it was behind the Samet Villas) -- it wasn't too far from the clubs & bars, yet it was nice & quiet. Our room had only 5 things in it: a king sized mattress, 2 pillows & thin blanket. All of them were on the floor. The bathroom was even more sparse (I need to demonstrate how to "use" its "facitilites." Can't put it down in writing). All that for 300 Baht a night. Pretty decent, actually, & hey, we were PRETENDING to be backpackers, so we couldn't really complain.

If any of you are planning a short, cheap beach trip near Bangkok, Koh Samet is definitely the place to go. Highly recommended. Not too many tourists, lots of locals.

EPISODE 6: SUKHOTHAI
This amazing city was the first capital of Thailand & is 5 hours away from Bangkok by car. At the last minute, Angela, Cheena & I decided to take a chance & travel overnight (we didn't drive ourselves. We had Angela's company car & driver with us) & we chose to stay at the River View Hotel thinking how charming it would be to look out & see the water. I don't know what Thais think rivers should look like, but it wasn't a river. It was a canal! (Oh yes, the Canal View Hotel!) But it was only 20 minutes away from the Sukhothai National Park where the temple ruins are just spectacular! (another 3 rolls of film) We were lucky to have a car & driver as the park was rather large with many scattered temples & statues (some on top of hills that took 20 minutes to climb!). Most tourists rent bicycles & just bike under the hot sun from temple to temple. Obviously, we stopped pretending to be backpackers at this point. & apparently, it was our Thai driver's first time there as well & he seemed to enjoy the tour. We didn't do a packaged tour, but relied heavily on our travel guide books (the Eyewitness Guide to Thailand & the Moon Guide are very highly recommended. Much more interesting & informative than the Lonely Planet publication).

On the evening of our park tour, we discovered it was the Sukhothai Food Festival, so we enjoyed sampling different types of Thai food from the central plains region.

We also went to 2 temples & a small museum in the city of Phitsanulok which is an hour outside Sukhothai on the way back to Bangkok. Very charming & the temples were full of activity.

For those who have never been, I highly suggest you take the time to visit Sukhothai. It is wonderful & it just gives you a sense of that Thai pride. If you plan to visit Thailand & stay for quite some time, do try to book 2 days in Sukhothai (perhaps en route to Chiang Mai in the north). You won't regret it. Definitely one of my favorites.

EPISODE 7: FAMILY ADVENTURE
My birthday was not as happy as I had wanted it to be bec. although my Mom & Bianca were here, Alia didn't make it. So it was.bitin. We did the usual touristy things like visit the Grand Palace & Wat Po (unfortunately, Cherry wasn't able to join us). But we also went to places that are normally not on every tourist's agenda - the Vimanmek Teakwood Mansion & the Jim Thompson House (museum). Both are amazing works of achitecture & interior design. Vimanmek was one of the homes of Rama V & is still used by the present King for state visits & other diplomatic events. Our tour guide was so good (we learned much about the history & culture of Thailand) & we were joined by 3 Brits, one of whom had visited Thailand many times in the past & had gone on several tours. She added to the information shared by our guide & definitely helped enhance the tour & our understanding of Thai culture. Vimanmek was built in European style (Victorian, if I'm not mistaken), is made entirely of golden teakwood & is held together by wooden pegs (no nails).

In my opinion, the Jim Thompson House is a must-see in Bangkok. It was built in traditional Thai style also out of teakwood (dark). Jim Thompson was an American peace corps officer who arrived in Thailand after WWII. He was an architect & an artist who collected various Thai antiques & furnishings & eventually set up a Thai silk shop that put Thailand on the world shopping map. If I remember right, he disappeared in Cambodia in the 60s. We also had a very good tour guide, although some of her actions are best demonstrated than put in writing (you may opt to ask my Mom & Bianca about it. Quite funny).

& of course, what is a weekend in Bangkok without passing by Pat Pong & a trip to my mecca, Chatuchak (no point in stopping Cherry there!)?

Total weekend: another 3 rolls of film.

Survivor update: Voted out: Jemen - 3 month assignment with ActMedia's Bangkok office ended mid-July. Cheena - finally took her vacation leave in Manila.

EPISODE 7: PATTAYA BEACH
Here we go again, convoying to a popular local & tourist destination (the last such trip was to Cha-Am & Hua Hin in April?). Car #1 - Michelle, Mike, Pinar (she's Turkish) & moi. Car #2 - Coco, Philips (not Philip. He's plural. Probably to match his multiple personalities), Tuan (Vietnamese who grew up in Australia) & Darry (can I just tell you, it was the first time I heard he was from Tawi-Tawi. Siyempre, kinulit ko siyang magsalita ng Tausug). Car #3 - Joey (he hates convoys). The mission: my despedida.

Pattaya is Pat Pong by the sea. Daming pok-pok! Everywhere we went, there were massage parlors that offered "physical massage" (is there any other kind of massage?). There was a bar & restaurant called "All Cock & Pussy" & a go-go bar named "Spicy Girls." I also couldn't get over a big, bright yellow sign that read "Body Fiercing." Wala yata akong ginawa kundi manlait (just ask Rey about Philips & Darry). But Beach Road was ok; it was like a combination of Venice Beach & Newport Beach in Southern California, but more run down & messy (imagine a pristine residential beach area with cool, trendy clubs & restaurants suddenly overrun by dirty old men & spring chickens). The beach is nothing great (I was quite disappointed). We went to a really cool bar called Hopf which has its own microbrewery. Great beer. Ok band.

What we couldn't get over was our trip to nearby Coral Island where we were charged an arm & a leg for a seafood lunch. 800 Baht per kilo of fish (I can't even remember what kind of fish it was) & the woman who ran the place insisted that it was a 3 kilo fish. Our entire budget was suddenly thrown into the sea! Total rip-off.

Mike, Michelle & I spent Sunday morning on a par 27 9-hole golf course (the green fee was so cheap - 180 Baht). Don't ask about our scores. All we can say is that it was a funny (not just "fun") game. We were quite hilarious, actually, & being beginners, Michelle & I had our fair share of embarrassing moments. We thought Mike was encouraging us with his "Nice shot!" remarks until we noticed he said it every other shot. Faker.

Survivor update: Voted out: Angela - 5 month assignment with Unilever's Bangkok operations ended late July. Suddenly, Cape House was quiet & lonely. Off to Rene & Eliene's apartment for free food!

EPISODE 8: SISTER ACT
Alia finally came over & spent a couple of days wherein we did a sort of backpackers' tour of Bangkok. On her first day, we took a packaged tour with Mannito & Julius (friends from Manila who were here on business) that included a boat ride on the Chao Phraya river with a stop over at the Temple of Dawn. Bec. Alia had a handycam & Mannito is the spitting image of a Japanese tourist, we did our own version of "O, Tokyo!" I did the Thai part. We'll show you when I go home.

We also went out for shopping & drinks on Khao San Road - it's a backpackers' Malate with small clubs, bars, guest houses, & artists on the street. Very Bohemian. Alia had her hair corn-braided (2 hours of waiting!) while Mannito & I got henna tattoos (of course, I got another dragon!).

Saturday morning was spent in Chatuchak (where else?) where Alia just went wild. I don't remember her ever shopping that way (I don't think Alia's ever really gone shopping). In the afternoon, we made complete fools of ourselves by taking several photos along my street, Soi Lang Suan. We only spent an hour in Pat Pong (one hour bec. of the traffic!). It was pretty cool, though, bec. Alia held her handicam at her side & just kept it on. She didn't look into the viewfinder or the screen & didn't aim the lens in any particular direction. So the result was a kind of expose video about the Pat Pong night life.

It was a very well-documented trip. Basically, I took care of all the stills & Alia did all the moving shots.

EPIOSODE 9: THE END OF THE STAR WARS SAGA

Monday, the 13th was a holiday in Thailand since Sunday was the Queen's birthday & is also their Mothers' Day celebration. Here I am, still in a bit of pain from my Monday afternoon badminton game with Mike, Malou & Rene (just throw me in the water next time) & suffering from the flu. We're gearing up for another one of our sports days this Saturday - another round of doubles badminton & a couple of buckets at the driving range infront of Rene & Eliene's apartment building. Xandra, I can join you na for badminton at Rizal Memorial! Monday's game was funny, though, bec. I really got into the game (never thought I'd be serious about badminton) & it was when I realized how different I've been around my friends here compared to Manila. Mike & Rene have been helping me improve my badminton & golf; & at one point in the badminton game, I became very frustrated when I missed a shot. Rene called it "a rare display of emotion." I must say, that was a surprising remark. Am I not an emotional being whose mood swings go by the moon? & Rey, remember when you were here & joined us for dinner & said I was anti-social in Manila? Mike & Darry believed you! & when Mike said I was mabait, it was bec. only Angela & Cheena have seen me mataray. Alangan mo namang I've changed?! Could it be that it really takes a while before I'm truly comfortable with new people?

Survivor update: Will be voted out in the next few months: Carla - 9 month assignment ends today. Mike - will be transferred to Daimler-Benz's head office in Berlin this October. Coco - assignment with ActMedia ends in December. Michelle - 4 year assignment with Unilever Thai has finally come to a close & will move to NY in April. Rene, Eliene & AG - Rene (the geologist who knows more than just rocks) will be assigned to Shell's operations in Aberdeen early next year. The others will still be here for the next year or so. The ultimates urvivor: Malou (facilitator for the Franklin Covey Group -- as in the 7 Habits of HIghly Effective People). She's a resident alient (not an expat) & has been living here for 4 years. That's how much she loves Thailand.

Looking back, it all seems so transient.. Sad. I will definitely miss Bangkok, the life I had outside work & the friends I made. I've become so at home here. Many say that travelling & being away from home enriches a person in ways not easily imagined. I have no regrets about the time I spent here (thank you Watson Wyatt). I have memories the essence of which cannot be fully captured in writing even if my words are accompanied by pictures. Although I am just DYING to go home, I truly had an amazing time here & I hope that if any of you ever visit or work in Thailand, you will have as much fun (or more!) as I did.

Goodbye Chatuchak. Goodbye Skytrain. Goodbye spicy catfish salad. Goodbye Thai iced tea. Hello free text messaging!!!

Hasta luego, amigos!


Carly

posted by Calai @ 12:28 PM