Our flight to Thailand started out in Burlington, Vermont on Saturday, November 23rd, 2024 at 4:30pm. Our first flight was a quick hop to Philadephia, Pennsylvania, where we connected to our international flight that took us all the way to Qatar in the Middle East. This was a 12 hour flight, and we were able to sleep a lot more than I anticipated thanks to supportive neck pillows that made it possible to sleep while sitting upright. Upon landing, we switched from American Airlines to Qatar Airlines for the last leg of our flight to Bangkok, Thailand. This was a 6 hour flight, after which we finally landed at 5:30am Monday morning (5:30pm Sunday EST) in Suvarnabhumi airport. Since we had both been able to sleep more than expected, we weren't feeling as crappy as I had anticipated. But let's be real, travelling through that many time zones is hard on the body no matter what you do.
We had done a lot of research ahead of time thanks to countless hours of watching Youtube videos, so we went straight to work. I tried to download an E-SIM app, but unfortunately it wouldn't work with my phone. If it had, I would have been able to keep my US number while in Thailand and maintain my ability to communicate easily with loved ones from home. Since this didn't go as planned, we went to a SIM card kiosk (they are everywhere inside the airport) and bought a one month phone plan. This provides unlimited data while in Thailand and has been SO helpful while travelling. We also exchanged our US cash into Baht and made an ATM withdrawal to make sure we had enough cash on hand for our first few days. It's important to use cash as much as possible to avoid all the foreign transaction fees associated with cards. Lastly, we filled up on our first meal in Thailand in a cafe on the bottom floor of the airport. Yum!
To leave the airport, we took the subway to our hotel in Bangkok (the Asok area). This was clean, easy to navigate, faster, and much cheaper than taking a taxi into the city. This seems to be a bit of a secret to foreigners though since we saw very few non-Thai people on the subway from the airport. We stayed in Hotel Clover Asok, which was a much higher end hotel than we would normally go with but felt it was justified after travelling around half of the globe. Our room was so comfortable and exactly what we needed. Also, the rooftop pool, restaurant, and bar were a lovely oasis after navigating the busy, smelly streets of Bangkok below.
While exploring the area, we figured out that you can avoid the crowded streets by walking on the skywalk bridges. They are high above the streets below and connect you to all the malls, department stores, and several big hotels in the area. Since it was close to our hotel, we first explored the popular Terminal 21 mall. Each floor is themed based on cities from around the world like London, San Fransisco, Tokyo, etc. We ate in the busy food court, where you add cash to a card upon entering the court, buy the food you want, and get your remaining balance back when you leave. Being surrounded by so many people while we ate was quite a change from our usual quiet lives in Vermont, but the food was delicious and we were ready for an adventure!
We also discovered VERY large snails while out walking at night. The snail we met was at least 4" long with a big, beautiful shell. Not surprisingly, they wreak havoc on planted vegetation (just like the little ones)!
One of the coolest things we did while in the big city was explore the Green Lung, which is a massive park only accessible by a small ferry boat. To reach the boat, you have to walk down a little alleyway in a pretty run-down part of the city right next to a big Buddhist temple. It was a little sketchy looking but well worth it. After taking the ferry across the river, we disembarked at a little shop that rented scooters and bicycles right at the dock. Of course, we rented bikes and headed off to explore the area.
The first stop we made was at a place called the "Get Growing Community Farm and Learning Center". It's a cafe, farm animal sanctuary, and natural playground wrapped into one. It's a place with a mission to encourage kids to be creative and play in nature without technology interfering. And Tracker was particularly surprised to see a sign that quoted a book by Richard Louv called "Last Child in the Woods" that he read back when he worked in outdoor education. It seems like Mr. Louv had quite the international impact!
Next, we biked to the national park. Inside, we found meandering paths through the jungle that wrapped around large ponds filled with tropical fish. Fruit trees were everywhere, including oranges, coconuts, mangoes, palms, and so many more that we didn't recognize. Such a lush and beautiful paradise!
Then it was time to find some food. We did a quick search on my phone and found a highly rated vegetarian restaurant. We didn't see the sign for it at first, but heard a woman calling to us as we biked by. We checked the phone and realized that was the spot we were looking for and headed back. It was a woman running a one-person restaurant under a large pavilion in her front yard. She was so friendly and got to work making us fresh noodles and rice dishes. She said she often saw foreigners who were vegetarians at her cafe and had no problem accommodating us. What a sweet woman. Thanks, Ms. Joom!
We had several amazing massages in the city. Tracker has a habit of turning massage time into language learning time. This always results in lots of laughter and entertaining conversations with the massage therapists. Thai massages tend to be very deep and vigorous, so we quickly learned how to ask for light pressure when it became too much. Prices range from as low as $6/hour to $12/hour for Thai or foot massage.
Our hotel also deserves special mention. The rooftop pool had glass windows in the bottom section that overhangs the edge of the hotel, so you can look down at the street 10 stories below. On our last night in the city, we relaxed by the pool sipping on cocktails while looking out at the bustling city far below. On our last morning in Bangkok we were spoiled by the hotel restaurant staff. They made us custom stir fries, watermelons carved into hearts, and miniature hippos molded from coconut cream. They were so cute it was hard to eat them, but they were delicious! Thanks, Ms. Kookai and Chef Rose!!
