02-03: Nathon, Koh Samui, Thailand. We had breakfast delivered so we were ready to go. Our plan was to try to find a Thai massage and a nice lunch, we did both. What a great day! Tourism is popular here. I can see why when prices are so low! Each of us had a 1-hour massage for only US$13 each! First, they wash your feet, then you are escorted to the massage table room where you are given very stretchy panties to wear. Their massage tables are wider than any I’ve seen for a good reason – they climb up on the table to massage your back! It was amazing and so relaxing. We were even served a cup of the most delicious ginger tea afterwards. From there we walked a very short distance to a restaurant called Mum Thong, we had two plates of food with chicken and shrimp and a total of 4 beers. We did barely taste the hot sauce offered and believe me it was hot and a little lasted a long time! That was approximately US15! Incredible prices so this puts Thailand near the top of the list for a travel destination. There are cooking classes all over town as well. One could spend a month here relaxing and learning to cook Thai food! Today was a mild weather day. There was a slight breeze and the humidity was low compared to the other places we have visited. (FB photos posted). Back onboard we spent a bit of time preparing for our overnight in Bangkok, Thailand tomorrow! Of course, dinner and games and to bed early.
02-04 Bangkok, Thailand. We have a Viator tour booked with a van and driver, Mr. Tu, to take us into Bangkok. Mina and Raine are joining us. We will have our overnight stay in Lebua State Tower hotel and the driver the next day as well. Stuart has planned out our sightseeing since he has been to Bangkok several times. Well, the best made plans didn’t quite work out. At the last minute Stuart had gastric upset and stayed behind. This was disappointing for everyone but we soldiered on. The drive into Bangkok took 3+ hours instead of the 2 that we were prepared for. We did have a brief coffee break of 20 minutes along the way. The van we are in is luxurious with such comfortable seats. The adjust any way imaginable even like a recliner! Thankfully it had a very powerful AC that kept us nice and cool.
Our first stop was Grand Palace. We found our way to “Gate 4” which was not easy. We did need Stuart! We managed to find the ticket booth and were stunned by some of the amazing sites we saw. We found our way to the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. Shoes removed, up a couple sets of steep steps and there was the tiny Buddha! We were surprised how small it was! It is extremely hot today as well. We walked around for a while. When things all started to look alike, we decided to leave. We had a bit of a trek back to the pickup point. Mr. Tu was a good driver. He dropped up off and picked us up as close to the various areas as possible. The routine was to call him when we were ready to move on. It all worked quite well. After the Grand Palace we wanted our lunch break. He took us to a “local” place. We had a delicious l lunch and iced tea as well. It was sometimes hard to understand Mr. Tu but we finally figured out we were headed to Wat Pho, to see the reclining Buddha. That was a stunning site! Now it is on to the Jim Thompson House. The traffic is horrible but we did manage to get there before it closed. We had one of the last tours of the day. You cannot visit this site unless you are on one of their tours. It was very interesting to hear about this man who promoted the silk industry and made a fortune. You can find his brief history on the internet.
On
to the hotel. On Maps it said it was 14 minutes away; it took us 1 hour to get
there. Oh my, the service! It is a 5* hotel and believe me, we were treated
well. The bellman and doorman whisked our small bags away quickly. We were
escorted to a sofa and a welcome drink of rose water and hot towel suddenly
appeared. We signed all necessary papers and the lovely young woman escorted us
to the elevator and then our rooms. The bags were waiting for us! I had a 1
bedroom booked but I was upgraded to a 2-bedroom suite! Why? Same price, which was
very reasonable! I had the 2 bedrooms, each ensuite, a kitchen, dining area,
large living room, 2 balconies, and free beers. Raine and Mina had a twin room.
They also got the 2 beers but received a fruit place and macarons also! (rooms respectively
$206, and $177). We were going to dinner but could not get a reservation. We
aren’t that hungry anyway. We went to the Sky Bar with amazing views from the
rooftop on the 64th floor. Parts of the movie The Hangover Part II
were shot at the rooftop location. As reasonable as the rooms are, the drinks and
food are the opposite. I guess that is where they make their money! We were exhausted
and went to bed before 9a. We have also decided we would not attempt to do any
boat activity because we are tired, and we are concerned about the time getting
back.
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