THAILAND: Bangkok and Pattaya

In August 2024, exhausted from private and professional events, we look for a holiday that will transport us into a new dimension and help us forget the draining reality. Thailand comes highly recommended by my sister and her hubby, who frequently visit. It ticks all the boxes. There is plenty of iconic temples to satisfy my cultural needs. The capital city Bangkok is a great place for aimless urban exploration. Hotels with large swimming pools and the beaches with clear water are a perfect setting for those hot, lazy afternoons of doing nothing. Thai people have the reputation of being smiley and welcoming and the prices are unbelievably affordable. Also, this will be the first time on the Asian continent for my two travel companions.
We choose the direct flight with Eva Air, as I cannot face short transfer times offered by other, although cheaper, airlines. Our flight departs Heathrow Terminal 2, the Queen’s Terminal, at half past nine in the evening. With cabin luggage only, we speed through the security checks and have plenty of time to spare. After a light dinner in Leon, we purchase a few holiday essentials: sun lotion factor 50 (still not strong enough for our pale British skins), mosquito anti-repellent spray (unnecessary as we do not encounter any mosquitos during our trip) and a mobile charging cable. In Thailand you can use a European two-point converter-plug, so no need to buy a new one. The twelve-hour flight goes surprisingly quickly, spent between eating (two reasonably good meals), watching movies on the inflight entertainment network (The Perfect Days and Nomadland for me) and sleeping in short, jumpy intervals.
Thailand is six hours ahead of the United Kingdon and we land at Suvarnabhumi Airport at three thirty the following afternoon. To our big surprise, the security lines are fast and efficient. We show our boarding passes and passports, give our fingerprints and have our photograph taken. Then we get the “entry” stamp in our passports, and we are off to the melting heat of Bangkok.
The taxi system at the airport reminds us of the UK Post Office or Croatian Deli systems: you press a button on the taxi machine, and it directs you to the parking bay of the next available ride. Easy peasy. It takes around half an hour for our taxi to reach the Hilton Garden Inn, Silom, where we are staying for first three nights.
With the dusk around the corner, we leave our hotel in search of food. The air is hot and sticky. Thailand drives on the left so at least we know in which direction to look before crossing the road. Phew. We are big fans of Thai cuisine and can happily spend the week living on Pad Thai noodles, green curry and jasmine rice. We walk down Thanon Charoen Krung, a street lined with vendors of fruits, smoothies and other meaty and non-meaty snacks. Electricity cables are hanging from every façade. Tuk tuks of various sizes and colours, as well as all kinds of different transportation options are driving by, some vrooming, others rattling or clanking. In Nalin Kitchen, a charming little restaurant down the road, we eat our dinner of Pad Thai noodles, stir fried pork, sweet and sour chicken and the most delicious fried cabbage I’ve had in my life…

GRAND PALACE AND WAT ARUN
Our first full day in Bangkok is dedicated to two of the most popular attractions: The Grand Palace, once the Royal residence, today used only on special occasions, and the Wat Arun, a Buddhist temple across the river from the Palace.
The day is so hot that one could melt. The real feel factor must be close to 45 degrees Celsius, and we decide to walk as little as possible in these climatic conditions. We take a taxi to The Grand Palace. Not only it is cheap (300 Thai Baht, approximately seven pounds) but it also has aircon at full power.
The Grand Palace is jam-packed, as if everyone has decided to visit on a Sunday morning in August. This complex of buildings has been the official residence of the Kings of Siam (later Thailand) since 1782. Although today the Thai royal family does not reside here, The Grand Palace is used for special occasions, regal visits and other ceremonies. The place is breathtaking beautiful with its overpowering decorations, loud colours and fascinating sculptures that represent Buddhist faith. This is the most popular tourist attraction in Bangkok and the entry costs 500 Thai Baht (approx. 11 pounds). It also has a strict dress code and bare shoulders and/or legs are not permitted. Do not worry if you forget to dress appropriately as there are stalls outside the complex selling colourful trousers and sarongs. And the majority of today’s visitors seems to have resorted to that option…
To enter the Temple of Emerald Buddha we remove our shoes and hop on the pavement which is as hot as burning ambers. The interior of the Temple is cooled down with gigantic fans and reasonably comfortable.

At the exit of The Grand Palace, we take a tuk tuk for a short ride to the café Rub Ar Roon down the road. After a lunch of tuna salads and cheese toasties, cold drinks and a rest in a well-conditioned and very popular room upstairs, we walk to the ferry terminal. It takes the passenger boat only a few minutes to cross the Chao Phraya River and it stops at the entrance to the next attraction on our list – the Wat Arun. This Buddhist temple is cheaper, less crowded, and much easier to navigate. The name itself derives from the Hindu god Aruna and with its unique spire decorated with bits of porcelain it is one of the most known Temples in Thailand.
We stop for a prolonged coffee in the airconditioned Arun café, taking our time over iced drinks. The large, iced espresso is not bad at all. We flag a taxi and arrive at our hotel late afternoon; drained from the heat, overwhelmed by the grandiosity of the temples we visited and touched by the kindness of people we met…
In the evening, we walk to the restaurant Salathip, situated on the premises of the hotel Shangri-La and overlooking the river. The prices are on the expensive side, but it is well worth it. The food – chicken and cashews stir fry, Pad Thai noodles in an egg net, stir fry duck and green curry, accompanied with two kinds of rice – is no doubt the most delicious Thai meal we ever had. And the non-alcoholic coco and pineapple cocktail is wonderful too…

THE TRAIN AND THE WATER MARKETS
Two of the most famous markets in the world – Maeklong Railway Market and Damnoen Saduak Floating Market – are located two-hour drive from Bangkok and we book a day trip that includes both. Conveniently, the meeting point of the Viator tour is a twenty-minute walk from our hotel. The morning is quiet, and the city is still sleeping. The English language tour has twelve people and in no time, we are leaving behind the urban landscape and driving through exotic scenery of palm trees and picturesque villages. At the Ban Kalon station, surrounded with dry salt fields, we climb on the train with some difficulties (very high first step). The train is already jam-packed and although all the windows are open, the heat is reaching hazardous levels. In half an hour we reach the market. This place is famous for the fact that the train goes straight through the market and stall holders need to pull back during the train times. An incredibly popular attraction, but it is scary and perilous. We experience it from both perspectives; first from the train and then squeezing “behind the red line” as the train pushes between stalls and visitors. Not the most pleasant experience as one’s nose is literary touching the train. As soon as the train goes through and that is twice a day (or to be precise four times, there and back), the market stalls expand back to the tracks, and it is business as usual.

Equally crowded but certainly more enjoyable is the floating market of Damnoen Saduak. We are packed into narrow wooden boats and taken down overcrowded canals with boats crashing into each other and causing traffic jams. On the banks there are stalls selling fruits, vegetables, all kinds of souvenirs or calling us to take photos with Pythons and raccoons. It is nearly impossible to shop while one glides through it… Unless it’s previously agreed with the oar-man, I guess…
Our tour guide, Jum, a charming and chatty lady tells us all about the markets, the salt farms and some basic information about the Thai Royal Family… Once back in London, I learn that the privacy of the Thai Royals is protected by the strictest laws in the world and that people even went to prison for disclosing information about the colourful life of the current monarch and his wives and mistresses…

LAZY DAYS IN PATTAYA
For the rest and relaxing part of our holiday we head hundred kilometres southeast of Bangkok, to Pattaya City. Pattaya is known for its beaches, resort hotels and a rather colourful nightlife. The tourism took off during the Vietnam War with American soldiers coming here for a respite between battles. It was in those days that the city gained the reputation of a sex-tourism destination, and, by the look of it, it is still struggling to shake it off. Although there are many families with young children both in our hotel and in the city, some streets are definitely off limits for night walks for under 18’s… In particular the areas around Walking Street and Tree Town Night Market.

We are staying in the Bayview Hotel on the promenade of Pattaya. The hotel has a charming lobby with a bar and a couple of snooker tables, as well as corners with colonial style sofas for reading of simply chilling. The main swimming pool caters for all ages and levels of expertise while the adult only pool is reserved for more serious swimmers. The Central Pattaya Shopping Mall is five minutes’ walk from hour hotel. The shopping centre offers four or five floors of shops of famous brands, massage parlours, hair and nail salons, a gigantic supermarket with goods from all over the globe (including Waitrose’s and Marks and Spencer’s products) and a food court with eateries for every taste and pocket. We visit it multiple times a day: either to buy snacks in the supermarket or a coffee in the Starbucks or to sit down in one of the restaurants for a dinner meal. We also buy take-away donuts or cakes in one of the bakeries and “made in Thailand” souvenirs such as silk scarves, soaps in the shape of fruits and vegetables and packages of dried fruits.
The climate is tropical with wet and dry intervals and August falls in the rainy season. We experience a few instances of shortlived and rather shy rain. The combination of high temperatures and high humidity makes you exhausted and we take it easy. After all, holidays are made for reading, relaxing, sitting by the pool and sipping a cocktail, or two. After reading reviews about the Tiger Sanctuary, we cross it off our list as tigers seem to be heavily sedated… The other two excursions on our list are – the island of Ko Lan and the Sanctuary of Truth.

KO LAN
The small, charming island Ko Lan is within easy reach of Pattaya. It is known for pristine beaches and crystal clear water. We walk to the ferry terminal via the Walking Street and then take a speedboat. The boat is jumping across the flat surface of the calm water with maximum speed, and it take us less than fifteen minutes to get to the island. Outside the port we climb on the first available tuk tuk that takes us to the beach on the other side of the island called Tawaen. We spend the day between sitting in the deepest shade of the intertwined parasols, dipping into the water to cool down, and eating lunch in the beach café. I order rice with pineapple and prawns served in half a pineapple. The taste is excellent and the serving décor rather impressive…

For three loungers in the deepest shade, two beach towels (I always take my one with me), a drink on arrival and a lunch in the restaurant with more drinks, as well as the cost of speedboat and the tuk tuk, we spend around 50 Euros. It is a bargain for a day of escapist value: the beach is not too crowded, the water is crystal clear, the waves are gentle and smoothing. For the youngest member of our family, this is the highlight of our holiday and the best island she ever visited.
Once back in Pattaya we jump on a tuk tuk that takes a detour through backside streets. This is no doubt a place of extreme contrasts: from flash, high, condominium for foreigners to small run-down streets, hotels ranging from five stars to nil stars, and from cheap street foods for a few pounds to flashy restaurants with equally flashy prices.

THE SANCTUARY OF TRUTH
The Sanctuary of Truth is a rather newish and still unfinished museum, all made of wood. This life project by the Thai businessman Lek Viriyaphan is a hybrid of temple and a castle and is dedicated to the Buddhist and Hindu beliefs. The constructions began in 1981, and it is still ongoing. The entry ticket costs 500 Thai Baht – as much as the entry to The Grand Palace – and one needs to join a tour in order to visit it. Wearing a helmet is also obligatory. I guess, there is always a risk of pieces of wood coming down from the overdecorated ceiling or the side walls.

Overwhelmed with the nearly religious preachings of our guide, uncomfortable in our tight helmets, on a day with very high temperatures and extreme levels of humidity, we cannot say we truly enjoy it. The presentations of Hindu gods, array of classical elements and other concepts of the eastern religious, are all a bit lost on us. Nevertheless, it is an impressive construction! And on an impressive location, facing the sea. The place also offers various rides: on horseback, on elephant, by boat and on a horse driven carriage. After the tour, the three of us have enough energy left only for drinks of iced smoothies in the café…

The day before we leave, I go to find the post office, a few streets away from the hotel. The morning is peaceful, bars are reluctantly opening doors and cleaning the mess left behind from yet another night of partying. The friendly girls in the post office send me across the road to buy an envelope in a tiny, corridor like newsagent selling stationery and carboard boxes. A couple is sellotaping a large parcel on the table outside the shop. I return to the post office and send my postcard to my friend in Croatia. No need to rush to the hotel, as my two travelling companions are either still asleep or chilling by the swimming pool. Instead, I take a detour to an Amazon Café down the road (a chain of cafés that we saw in Bangkok and in Pattaya), I order a double espresso, sit at the high stool by the window and watch the city of Pattaya going by…
And I definitely know I will return…