Thailand

The moment we landed on the runway in Bangkok, I knew I’d love this city. Our first impression of this metropolis was that of the night skyline and the gorgeous, modern airport. There is definitely truth in the notion that the airport sets the tone for a person’s experience of a city. On our travels, we’ve so far landed in 21 different cities (we have 10 more to go) and I can honestly say… they haven’t all been winners. The airport in Delhi was atrocious (although under construction) and I have to admit, it set a mood that was hard to shake. Anyway, back to Bangkok. We drove to Old Bangkok where we stayed in a ten room guesthouse called the Old Bangkok Inn. The Inn was designed in that fabulous Thai style of teak wood and warm green colors and we loved it! The charming elderly couple that ran the Inn was so incredibly sweet – like all the Thai people we met.

Our first chore in Bangkok was to head to Raja’s Fashions and have some custom suits and shirts made for Matt. He had read about Raja in Men’s Vogue and we knew we had to go see Raja and his son Bobby. We jumped on a river boat, which dropped us in the shopping district, and then we took the Sky Train the rest of the way. We were so impressed with the cleanliness and ease of getting around the city. Raja’s Fashions was a great experience. Matt was very well taken care of by Bobby and his father and he ended up buying three suits, six custom shirts and four ties (all for the cost of one nice suit in the U.S.) We spent the rest of the day shopping at MBK and the Paragon Mall where Matt took Alex to a special Lomography photography exhibit that we just happened to catch on the opening day. The exhibit was definitely the hip place to be and Alex had a blast being part of the scene.

We spent one full day in Bangkok visiting the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew, Wat Po where the golden, reclining Buddha rests, and Wat Arun (Temple of the Dawn). The Grand Palace was one massive jewel box! The entire palace is decorated with tiny pieces of gold, emerald green, cobalt blue, red and yellow tiles. It’s remarkable and we were really taken with the whole complex. The reclining Buddha was another extraordinary site; lying on his side with his head perched in his hand and completely covered in gold, he was very impressive. The Temple of the Dawn is an unusual temple made from broken pieces of porcelain and pottery. It’s more organic then some of the other temples, but also, very striking. Later in the evening, we went out for a completely authentic Thai dinner. They told us “no worry… no hot for you”, which basically meant we left with our tongues intact, but with no taste buds attached!

The only regret we had about Thailand was that we didn’t head far enough south for our three beach days. We decided to go to Hau Hin, in the Gulf of Thailand, and it was quite unimpressive. We ended up staying at a really nice Hilton, on the beach, but it was a little disappointing because we wanted to snorkel and see some blue water. We made the best of it and enjoyed bopping around the town, getting Thai foot massages and pedicures, and eating some good food. Next time, we’ll go to Ko Samui or Phuket.

We headed back to Bangkok for one more fitting at Raja’s, then off to Siem Reap, Cambodia. Bangkok was a great experience – the people are friendly and warm, the city is vibrant, clean and easy to be in, and the Thai culture is beautiful and invites you to come back for another visit.