May 15, 2014 we flew to Bangkok via a Philippine Airlines Flight 237 and we arrived at the Sudharkana International Airport at around noon. We went there without even knowing what is coming or awaiting for us. Despite of the bad news about the political unrests and demonstrations in the sprawling capital of Thailand we were still decided to go and can't resist where our own adventurous nature will lead us.
Arriving in Bangkok, we did not entail any much goals aside from just touring and browsing the place and having a much unintentional getaway away from the hustle and bustle of the Manila traffic as well as the humid weather there. We were just excited like little kids to arrive there in good fate and we can't wait to get out of the long and rigorous immigration line at the airport and start our tour once everything was fine. It was just a long day for us and a tiring week as well, maybe because of the long travels and tour starting from Baguio and around Manila. We barely had a decent sleep the previous days either. Despite of the hassles and setbacks we had to wrestle we were all satisfied about the places we've gone and been so far.
After passing the scrutinizing eyes of the strict immigration officials in Thailand we went out of the airport ecstatically and excitedly looked for the taxi line. We never knew where to ask because it seems that only a few people at the airport speaks English well but we clandestinely managed to find the taxi booth and happily inquired about the fare in going to our hotel. I paid a hefty 1200 baht for the job and then we headed outside the airport to look for the queue.
The driver is just quiet because she obviously doesn't speak English. I hope she knows where to bring us but it seems that she was briefed earlier by the booth receptionist and that she knows what she was doing because I noticed how the guy at the queue had intimately talked to her where to drop us off. I hope she does and I'm still crossing my fingers.
As we drove towards the heart of the city where our hotel was located I noticed that Bangkok's atmosphere was not that smoggy compared to Mnaila. The city appears very clean and there was not any hint of a messy street just like I saw in a picture at Google. The freeway appears modern and not too crowded. The lanes were kind of strange though for me because the vehicle is driving on the left side of the freeway unlike the right side of most of the western countries, due to the fact that the driver is on the right side of the vehicle, which makes sense to me. However, when we exited the freeway towards the streets the pandenium had started because of the crowded and congested traffic.
The drive at the freeway was smooth but it is still strange because the driver is still so quiet and not talking. She just continued driving us towards our ultimate destination, which was our hotel, and nothing more. However, she was so polite at us and just wanted us to be extra comfortable in the car. After thirty minutes we were threading the congested streets of Bangkok trying to just reach our hotel destination in just a nick of time. But I enjoyed looking at the environment, its buildings, the crowded streets, etc. Bangkok has a lot to offer to us I guess. Can't wait to start our poetic journey.
We finally reached our hotel at the business southern part of the city. Our hotel was huge and very clean. The bellhops were very extra polite and very assistive catering to our needs. I liked the atmosphere that we were treated like royalty when we alighted from the taxi. I then went to the reception and inquired to check in. The receptionist were as well very extremely polite and then swarmed at us to assist us for the check in process. I really liked it, if you ask me.
When I got the keys for the room we were then assisted by a bellhop to go up to our room at the 17th floor. The room was huge and wide. It looks like a posh suite and the view from the porch... oh my God, was very fabulous. We have an awesome 180 degrees panoramic view of the city from our 17th floor position. It was so great to have experienced it. For four days, the suite will be our temporary home here in Bangkok. And I am excited on what to find and experience here in Thailand bar-non.
We rested for a while and when we woke up at 1730H we decided to stroll around the city now that the sun is down. The weather was very hot and the humid air had enveloped our skin making us sweaty and wet. We decided to locate the Lumpini subway station but our hunt was unsuccessful. We decided to hire a taxi to drop us off at the Lumpini station only to know that we took the opposite direction. Upon knowing where the station is we decided not to go down the taxi but asked the driver to drop us off at a restaurant because we were starving already.
The driver drove us for a while until we got to a suburb and had us down at a seafood restaurant nearby. We then pay the driver and went inside the restaurant where we were greeted by a guy on an open seafood market where we have to chose first what we would like to eat and point to a picture what type of cooking process we would like to have it done. We then chose the type of seafood we would like to eat and have it cooked inside the kitchen then we were directed to take a sit at the nearby table. It was really hot at that time of the afternoon so we decided to eat inside the airconditioned restaurant.
When our food came out we then started to devour our delicious order then enjoyed the taste of the food in Bangkok. We were so hungry because we have only ate a little since that morning when we left Manila until we arrived in Bangkok. Then all of a sudden we were famished and hungry so we didn't left anything from the food we ordered where I also paid a hefty amount of baht money because those were all seafoods and they cost according to weight but albeit we enjoyed the food and didn't regret ordering it. It was the most expensive sumptous first meal we had in Bangkok. Hehehe.
After we paid the waiter he then find us a taxi to transport us to our hotel and from there I bargained with the driver to drive us to the floating restaurant the following day. We arrived at the hotel tired and it was already night time so we decided to call the dya quits and go to bed thinking that we have a big day ahead.
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