Briathrail // Albert 2MNG

Back to the hotel

I walked back to the Hua Lamphong Station, rode the blue line metro back to Sukhumvit Station, and changed to the green line to BTS Nana Station. And from there, I took to the back streets and walked to my hotel.

And I was deadass tired, finally. But I saw the white glow of the nearby 7-11, so I breathed in, gathered more willpower, and made a quick stop first for a couple of things:

• 3 bottles of 1.5L water. The hotel did give two bottles of Singha water as complimentary daily, but I wanted more.
• A bottle of Coke but the one with Stevia.
• A can of iced coffee.
• A pair of mentaiko sandwiches, in case the bread I bought earlier were shit
• An inhaler (white). I barely could read what was on it but from what I read online, it’s nice
• A small container of Tiger Balm for muscular pain

Thank God I had comfortable walkers on.

First order of business for me was to change into something comfortable, so I tossed the pants and my used wear to the washing machine, changed to shorts and a sleeveless exercise shirt, and ate extended dinner while watching Ainsley Harriott eat his way thru Icelandic food on the TV.

The shrimp was superb. Fresh and plump. I like shrimp, but I absolutely love peeled shrimp, with a spicy green dip. I didn‘t have to fiddle with shells or anything. There was maybe 20 of them in there. I should’ve bought beer too, but I was to sleep in a few hours and I was not inclined to sleep with a light buzz. The Thai sausage was fine – good beer food but not the “oh I want seconds please” kind. Just fine is good enough for me that evening. It went well with the cabbage though, between bites of chilli.

All in all, day was nice. Got to see some of Bangkok. I slept at around 11PM after a shower and rubbing Tiger Balm all over my legs and feet.

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So what was February 9 for me? Great, all things considered. Busy, busy, busy.

Was the tour worth it? Oh yes. For that day in particular, yeah. I mean, I could’ve had a cheaper time going to those places by myself and whatever transportation method was available, but I’d have to ask: how much would you pay for comfort and ease?

The tour cost me 75SGD. I estimate the taxi costs, the ferry costs and the train costs if I did it myself might be around 30SGD and the ticket costs might’ve been less than 10SGD. But I’ll peg the 35SGD difference as the convenience cost. Time management cost, planning cost, guiding cost. Sam the tour guide was really “guiding” us, it wasn’t lip service. He managed our time, got us from point to point on time. I was sharing the experience with more people. And so I am willing to pay that much for it. It was a reasonable cost to put you at ease. Enjoy the sights, and don’t worry about much else.

Just don’t lose sight of your tour guide. If they give you their contact numbers before in the meetup, take it and test it.

It was a busy day.

So what did I learn on February 9? Any tips?

• Go back to Yaowarat Road at another set of dates far from Chinese New Year. I am not repeating that chaos again. Walking thru very crowded streets while bam-bam-bababam-bam noise is around you. Nope.
• Buying easy to remove walking shoes was a masterstroke of genius. Just saying, shoes are an investment on your feet and legs. So don’t skimp on the ones made for walking.
• Always have spare change, because if you’re in a tour, time is essential. Pay exact and speed up buying stuff. I used the 7-11 to split up my 1000 baht bills, and the train station ticket dispensers to split the 100 baht bills.
• You’d drink water like a thirsty camel under the bright sun of Bangkok. I tallied my water bottles and I ended up with six. I ended each tour stop section with a bottle tracker. Man, I drank my recommended daily water intake and then some. And strangely my bladder only acted up back at the hotel. Likely it all just went out as sweat. And most water bottles from roadside vendors cost 10-12 baht, so spare change is essential. Just pay exact and rejoin your group within seconds.
• Wear sun protection. Caps, visors, hats, name it. Anything. Umbrellas are OK, but if you’re in a crowded area, be considerate.
• Do not buy souvenirs off the multitudes of vendors outside tourist areas in Bangkok especially if you’re nowhere near the end of a walking tour. Overpriced and can weigh you down. I saw outside of the Grand Palace some hapless white tourists in a walking tour bought some stuff. You’ll have to lug it around the tour. If you want to buy souvenirs, there are a lot of other well-known markets in Bangkok that could do much cheaper. Or go back there after the trip if it’s really important.
• If you’re near a mall on the street looking for the entrance to a train station, try to see if there’s a train walkway that connects to a mall. If there is, use it. It usually has escalators.
• Always have mints with you.

Next part: My Feb 10 tour trip. That one will be a long thing to recollect. Lots of photos too.

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