[[*---Branched Over Me---*]]

Thursday, March 02, 2006

Back!

back from bkk... was a great trip.... did lotsa sightseeing and praying at the many temples we visited (yah, somehow it became more of a temple-visiting trip, sounds pretty dry right, but well, it wasn't quite as boring as it sounds....), some shopping, massage, eating and the best part, meeting up with my friend!

stayed in novotel siam square... oh goodness gracious, i haven't stayed in such a good hotel for the longest time in my life. due to budget constraints, i'm always staying in run-down 2-3 star hotels.... the service is excellent, with ppl opening doors and pressing lift buttons for you, greeting you, and the breakfast is also marvellous. the rooms are bright, clean and well-equiped with a fully stocked large bathroom. forget abt bringing your toothbrush and toothpaste, shaver and foam, talcum powder, other toiletries and even washing powder. but then again, all these comes with a rather hefty price tag of 5000 baht/night, which is more than sgd200. if safety and quick access major amenities and prime shopping district are ur utmost concern, then this is the place to stay in....

cute french-speaking bros i saw during breakfast. and oh, this is where my sis overheard one caucasian speaking to another C man about him patronising a prostitute and how he bargained with her on the price. in the end while he's in the bathroom, the pros took away extra money from him, claiming that she's juz getting back what she had asked for.... oh, how shameless it is to be talking about this loud and clear in the public. maybe he's proud that he's mastered the art of bargaining....with a pros..... but apparently with no significant results...

ok... again, din manage to visit the chao phraya river, the monuments by the river, and the other klongs i had intended to visit.... but nvm lah, chances are that i'll definitely visit bkk again in my life, so leave them to my next visit....

These dancers donned in traditional costumes are paid by worshippers to dance for the buddha as part of the worshipping ceremony. The no. of dancers is dependable on the amt of money you're willing to pay for their service. (night mode + shaky hands = blurred pix)

hahaha... for food, i had green curry (yeah, i like green curry!!! sans the massive amt of the tiny eggplants). my goodness, so sinful, most stuff are heavily loaded with coconut cream.....too much of which is really bad for health.... but judging from how slim most thais are and the non-existence of obese ppl, i guess the spicy and sour diet really helps to negate the effects of the deadly coconut cream.....

one of the special dishes i had - some oily-deep-fried catfish salad (that don't really look like salad) that looks really special and tastes good. the flesh of the fish has been grated and fried in very light batter and the result is very light, puffed up and crispy cracker-like snack..... oh yum yum..... but try not to look at that sorry-looking-blackish catfish head that comes served with the dish, it might kill your appetite...

so i met up with bright. had just wanted to meet him up for a drink or what and being the kind person he is, he offered to bring my mum, sis and i to the ancient capital of thailand, ayutthaya, to look at monuments that have been listed to this unesco world heritage thing.... its a one and a half hour drive from the city and on the way, we passed by his alma-mater, thammasat uni. oh digress a little, this guy's definitely a BRIGHT guy, like his name, haha.... he's just graduated from medical sch and is gonna be a doctor this May.

for those who dunno, these conical-shaped structures are called stupas (yeap, u learnt it from sec one or sec two's history classes) and some hold the ashes of once-important or highly respected kings and monks. yep... being a majority buddhism country, monks are held in high regard so its no wonder that majestic tombs were built for them. (k, i'm not quite a temple/buddhism enthusiast but isn't it always good to know something more?)

gigantic sleeping buddha

Bright then drove us to another temple.......

with a gigantic buddha statue.... oh u can visualise the size of it by comparing the size of a regular man against the massive structure.... and mind ya, the pix doesn't include the base of the statue yet... its really impressively magnificent.

went to this nice restaurant for lunch.... this place was specially built to create a rustic charm and its supposed to resemble a house of an affluent family in the past... exquisite brass/copper cutlery were used and the place has one of the nicest toilets i've seen, integrating into the 'woody' surrounding....

After lunch, its off to this old site of the palace where a grand temple and a really historic monument are situated... (ok, this pix doesn't do the size of the temple justice...)

these 3 stupas contains the ashes of 3 kings....

this place must have had a significant history but look at how war has reduced it to its present state...

had this ayutthaya speciality, of which i dunno the name. these are strands of sugar eaten wrapped in a pancake. dun you think it resemble the blonde mane of barbie? yep.... last time my sis' barbie doll also had shiny but dry-looking blonde hair like this....

last place we went to is this place...... ermmm sorry, i dunno its name... but all i know is that this is a very popular tourism spot.... and people usually come here at dusk to catch a glimpse of the magnificence of these structures against the orange-y backdrop....

again, none of these statues here is complete.......

feel so grateful towards bright.... he actually took the trouble and spent time to bring us around.... he also helped my mum bargain with the hawkers. to reciprocate his kindness, i invited him to come to singapore and offered my place as accommodation....

so the rest of my trip has been spent mostly on visiting more and more templessss..... good thing is we have a 'relative' who:

brought us around, in a nice spacious passenger van he had rented, complete with a chauffer, making the hours-long journey more bearable.

took us to visit the temple that he has built...; (yesh, not kidding, he built and owns this temple...)

to have scrumptious sharks fin and seafood dinners at chinatown

and got his chauffer to drive us to the airport in his '8888' merc.......

how lucky am i to know ppl like him.....

I extended my trip by one night where we stayed at my 'relative's' place. that's cos we refused to pay like 5000 baht for one more night at novotel, and having to chk out early at 5am to rush to the airport(take off at 8am).... yep...that's freaking early, no choice, that's the only flight that has seats for our very last minute change...

sounds like a boring trip if you're not into sight-seeing right? yep... if u had shown me the itinerary beforehand, i'd refuse to go on such a trip... but its not that bad afterall lah... though more time could have been allotted to shopping, shopping and more shopping heehee...

gera!

[[ Hit by a fallen branch ]]*|1:58 am|

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