Breakfast with a View

Well, it has been quite a while since I have had the time (or inclination) to catch up on my blog posts. Though fear not, it was not because of any drastic condition or unsavoury events. We have just been very, very busy of late. But enough of the excuses, let’s get back to where we left off….

Oh well, I spoke a little too soon. It would seem that his nibs cannot see green cheese (and he doesn’t even like cheese!). Despite us both sleeping wearing a facemask whilst I had my ‘bug’, he woke up this morning with a bit of a sore throat and a runny nose. Given that R is now ‘no well’, with “my” bug that I gave him, he knows it is likely to last a few days, so we will need to decide what to do without him, as he’s going to rest and take it easy.

A&A have already got plans for some more shopping, so S and I decide to try out the % Arabica coffee shop in the Empire Building at Sathorn for breakfast. To get there, we took the BTS from Phloen Chit to Central, and changed to the Silom line in order to get to the Chong Nonsi BTS station. It’s an easy walk from here along the skywalk to the Empire Building.

This Arabica store is quite famous with the social media folks because of the view it offers. Although they are known for and offer excellent coffee, the main draw for this particular store is the fact that it is located on the 55th floor of the Empire Building, and it has a fantastic view of the Mahanakon building. It also has quite a labyrinth and an interesting route to access the elevators that take you to the store. I don’t think I have ever quite experienced anything as surreal as this before. We had to ask one of the staff where to go as there are no signs. Now I should also add here that R and I spent a bit of time in this particular building last year, as it was close to our Sathorn Home Exchange apartment. However, we were usually in the basement area at the TOPS store for groceries or the TOPS food court for our lunch or dinner. We had no idea about the fancy coffee shop in this building. There are, of course, some equally stunning restaurants and bars, but as you can imagine, the price is equally stunning as the view. Coffee and pastries were more in our budget!

After we arrived, S cannily spotted and snaffled the best seats in the place as I placed our orders. I then asked where the ladies were located, as I wanted to wash my hands, and again, there were no signs, so the staff member directed me where to go, and well, it was an experience in itself. As it was early morning, the place was still quite quiet, and there was no one about. Everything is painted in white with a little bit of gold. I eventually found the toilets, but I honestly felt that I was in heaven and I wouldn’t have been at all surprised if an angel suddenly appeared out of nowhere! Ok, I would have probably pooped my pants if that had happened, and yes, I’m being a bit dramatic, but it was so white, with no signage about and kinda spooky. Come to think of it, I don’t even remember seeing any fire signage – maybe that was what was freaking me out a little!!!

We thoroughly enjoyed our breakfast and experience at the tower, and the view was magnificent. After we left here, we had the fun of getting back out of the building via the secret elevators.  Next, we headed back onto the skywalk towards the Mahanakhon building itself. We had already decided that we were not interested in going on the skywalk, so we had a wander around The Cube building next door and took some photos before we moved on.

Next stop was the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple (or Wat Khaek). Unfortunately, you cannot take photos inside, and it was too difficult to take any decent pictures from outside, as you are so close to it. R and I had been to this temple before, but it is very pretty. It was also very, very busy with people.

Then it was time to get back home and see how his nibs was faring. As usual, we picked up a few treats and items for dinner for us and ‘the patient’ on our way back. Overall, it was a great wee day, and it was lovely to spend some quality time with our lovely daughter (just the two of us!) as we don’t do that very often these days.

Anyway, I managed to find my way back and told S about the weird experience, so of course, she then headed off to check the toilets out. There I am admiring the views, trying to recover from my strange experience, when the white (well, it would be, wouldn’t it?) electronic buzzer starts going off to tell me that our order is ready. I almost jumped out of my skin and dashed up to collect the order – not realising that the place was a lot busier now with people, and I had potentially just given up the two best seats in the house (I didn’t think to leave my bag or anything to identify our spot was taken) – OMG, S was going to annihilate me if that happened! Thankfully, the speed of this wilder beast can be quite surprising at times, and I successfully managed to claim our order and our seats before my darling daughter returned.

Now that my near panic and brush with the afterlife was over, we could relax and enjoy our coffees, pastries and the view. Delicious – that’s the only word to describe both the coffee (a hot Kyoto latte for me and an iced one for S) and pastries (an almond-crusted croissant for me and a pain au chocolat for S). Now I think most influencers that come here just have the coffee, but not us, and to make matters even more gross, I decided to go halves with S as the pastries were both just too good. That may not have been the best decision of mine, as it was quite difficult to split the items without a knife, so I did create a bit of a mess (though I did ensure no crumb was left behind).

Wat Khaek on Silom Road stands out in Bangkok for its magnificent Tamil Nadu (South Indian) architectural style, a vibrant display of faith and artistry. The temple’s facade is adorned with colourful mosaic artwork and intricate carvings that depict a pantheon of Hindu deities. Multiple vividly detailed sculptures of gods and goddesses cover the walls, roofs, and pillars in varying shapes and sizes, creating a stunning, florid composition that captures the essence of South Indian temple design.

Inside, the temple houses three sacred shrines. The main shrine is dedicated to Goddess Mariamman, the powerful motherly deity worshipped for protection, health, and prosperity. Two smaller shrines honour her sons—Ganesha, the God of Wisdom, and Kartikeya, the God of War. Together, the architecture and shrines at Wat Khaek Silom create a deeply spiritual and visually striking sanctuary that reflects Tamil heritage in the heart of Bangkok.

We then headed for the BTS (Surasak) line and made our way back to the Siam area. The main reason for this was so that S could visit a few areas that she had not covered yet (although R and I had already done these previously). We quickly walked through the Siam Square mall, then the Siam Scape building and finally over to MBK, where we had something to eat.

Our route for today:

Day 32: 26 December 2025

Bangkok, Thailand