An Unexpected and Unplanned Getaway...

EARLY RETIREMENTSLOW TRAVELTRAVELMEMORIESRETIREMENTTHAILAND

Liz

10/4/20268 min read

So you know how it is when you think about something and then, before you know it, it has sort of morphed and snowballed into something else - well, that happened to us in August.

It started off with a simple enough idea, when I suggested to R that it would be good if we could maybe get a week-long cruise somewhere. This had come after all our hard work in the garden with the patio and a bit of a turn in the weather. I wasn't looking for anything too expensive (given that we had booked our next holiday for later in the year and we have a few birthdays to deal with in August). So, I started to have a look around. R was obviously quite happy with the idea also, but I quickly came across a problem - I couldn't find anything that really suited what I was looking for. Either the places were not ones that we'd like, or we'd visited them in the past; we also didn't want to encounter the young, party/holiday-maker crowd, and we wanted to avoid masses of families with school-age kids. Yeah, we're not grumpy old retirees at all! More importantly, everything that I did like the look of was working out a lot more expensive than I wanted by the time I factored in flights, transfers, etc.

I was a little frustrated with the lack of options when I jokingly said to R that we'd probably be cheaper going to Bangkok for a month than we would be getting a week's cruise! And with that little nugget, I thought what harm is there in just looking? Yes, I knew it was rainy season in Thailand, but the prices would be reasonable, and it would be interesting to see what Bangkok is like during this time of year. My understanding was that it does rain a lot, but it's also quick to dry off, and the temperatures are still very warm.

The flights were not too bad, and I was keen to try KLM as I had heard of people using this airline to get from Glasgow to Bangkok via a transfer in Amsterdam. Then I found a really good Airbnb deal on a 2-bedroom condo in the Ekkamai area of Bangkok. Airbnb's are not permitted in Bangkok unless they are for 30 days or more, so that wasn't going to be an issue for us. Having the extra bedroom seemed a bit of a waste, though, which is when I mentioned to R that perhaps our daughter, S, might be interested in coming with us as she had just about a month before she was due back at Uni.

Well, let's just say that it all happened very, very fast, and S jumped at the chance to come along with us, so before we knew it, we were on our way to Bangkok again!

Days 1 & 2 (21-22 Aug) - The Flights Out & Arrival in Bangkok

The holiday didn't get off to a great start, as our flight from Glasgow to Amsterdam was delayed and it had a very short connecting time for the second leg. A number of people on our flight missed their connecting flights, and many others (us included) were informed it would be very tight for our connections. All connecting passengers were allowed to get off the plane first, and we ran (not a pretty sight in my case!) to get through security and to our next gate (which would be at the other end of this large airport!). We would certainly have missed this flight if it had not also been delayed slightly, as we were pretty much the last people to get onto the flight, I think! At least we knew our connections coming home were longer, so we managed to get on the flight (and had our fingers crossed our bags would make it too!).

Although I wasn't looking forward to the 11-hour flight, it actually went fine and, apart from a scary lightning storm in the near distance, which I could see from my window, the time passed quite quickly. The food and entertainment system was good, even if I didn't really manage to sleep at all.

On arrival at Suvarnabhumi Airport, we all activated the eSIMs on our phones, breezed through immigration, collected our bags (they made it fine), then got an AOT ride to the apartment, where we filled in some forms and details (the TM30 is a form that needs to be completed when foreigners are staying in a private residence), and a Grab courier arrived with the keys for our apartment. We were all a bit tired by this point, but we sorted out our bags and then R and I went to the shops to buy some food - S went to her bed for a sleep!

The weather was hot, but we had hardly set foot out when the heavens opened up. Thankfully we were covered during the worst of it, but that was our first introduction to the rain. It was torrential, and by the time we did our shopping and got back to the apartment, we were both a bit wet. At least we had some provisions in, and we could finally get some sleep.

Days 3 & 4 (23 & 24 Aug) - Ekkamai Area & The Black Market

Our first full day of exploring started with a visit to the Ekkamai BTS station to get our Rabbit Cards sorted out. R and S only needed to add some money to theirs, but I needed a new one as mine had expired or been blocked. Then we went to the Ekkamai Gateway mall and had a stroll around the various shops. We checked out some of the other places in the area but didn't overdo it.

The following day, we walked along Ekkamai Road, went into Big C, and bought a few things. We also stopped off for lunch in the upper-floor food court here. There was some sort of event on with lots of different animals that you could feed and look at, so we spent some time watching some of the meerkats trying to escape, which was funny.

After this, we made our way to a coffee place that S recommended, called Sam's Roasters. The coffee and cafe were very nice, and it was good to have a break from the heat. Then we headed back to the apartment for a rest before going out later to take the BTS to the Black Market (BTS station Phraek Sa) in the Samut Prakan area. This was a huge market, with loads of choice and right next to another large Robinsons Mall too. We had quite a feast here and bought a number of goodies. This market was about 35 minutes from the Ekkamai BTS, but we really liked it.

Day 7 (27 Aug) - Ekkamai Gateway Mall and Resting

When we all first arrived in Bangkok, we had some slight sniffles, which we initially blamed on S because she had been to the Ariana Grande concert in London just before we flew out, and we thought she might have picked up a bug from that, incubated it on the plane and then passed it to R and me. R and S got over it quite quickly, but I took longer. I'm not sure if that was in part due to already being a little ill from the mushroom incident, or I have a weaker immune system, but I was feeling knackered, and my nose just would not stop running (note: Thailand hankies are nowhere near as strong as UK ones, so make sure you bring some from home).

So I decided to have a rest day in bed, and S and R went out for a wander and to get some grocery items, more hankies and some more vitamin drinks for me.

Day 8 (28 Aug) - Thonglor Area

I felt much better today, but I still wasn't one hundred per cent over my bug, so I wasn't interested in exploring too far or overexerting myself. R also had a planned meeting which he needed to get set up for and do a little preparation for. S and I decided that we would have a wander over to the Thonglor area and let R get sorted out for his meeting.

We had some fancy coffees in the Commons Area - a young and hip type of place with the usual cafe and remote worker types. Then we went for lunch at a little Vietnamese restaurant called Xôi, where we both had some delicious chicken pho. Afterwards, we headed back home with some dinner items we had picked up in the nearby supermarket.

And with that, a week of our holiday had already flown by!

Bangkok, Thailand

Day 5 (25 Aug) - Ari and a Japanese Lunch to Remember

Today we decided to venture over to the Ari neighbourhood, as this is an area that we think S will like and she has never been here before. We took the BTS from Thong Lo (as our apartment is located between Thong Lo and Ekkamai stations). We walked around the local area, stopped off at the Gump Community area, which is very photogenic, had some frozen smoothies, walked around some more and then headed to a Japanese restaurant called Renga Sukiyaki. Here we had a fantastic feast. I went for the shabu meal, and R and S went for a beef, rice and egg dish. The food was delicious, and the staff were great. With full bellies, we then made our way back to the apartment..

That should have been the end of the story, but approximately 3 hours later I was seeing my food again from the toilet bowl and feeling lousy. The situation was exactly similar to the time in Chiang Mai when I had a mushroom omelette. So I have now concluded that there is some sort of mushroom that I have an intolerance to and generally, within 2-3 hours of eating it, I get very sick. Trying to work out what exactly caused this reaction, I learned that some mushrooms have toxins or irritants in them that may not be killed off by the stockpot if it is not boiling long enough. It was such a rotten way to end the day, as the restaurant and food at the time were great. But hey ho - that's life, I guess.

I went to bed early to rest and left R and S to play cards and watch TV.

Day 6 (26 Aug) - Siam Paragon and The Cinema

Today's outing is to Siam Paragon and to the Cinema. Paragon is such an amazing mall, and they always have some sort of theme going on. This time it had an Alice in Wonderland theme, which was stunning. We also love the Nextopia section of the mall, as it's so unique and interesting.

It's funny how even though R and I are not big on shopping, we love walking around these malls as they are so huge, clean, air-conditioned, and impressive. S, on the other hand, is most definitely a shopper, and she is buying lots of new clothes because the prices are so much better than back home.

The reason for the cinema visit is that both S and R want to see The Odyssey, and Siam Paragon is able to show the IMAX version of it. We had very comfortable seats, and the film was good, though it wouldn't normally be my type of film. Afterwards, we headed to the food court for some dinner (I just had a chicken broth soup as my guts were still recovering), but S &R also had some very tasty-looking desserts for afters!