Mama Geek looked startled, then pensive. We checked the school calendar, I mulled over my work schedule, and it seemed possible. When the idea still seemed good the next morning, clicky clicky and we had three tickets to Thailand with almost no ideas beyond that. We did slow research, polled some friends who've spent a lot of time in Thailand, realized we could pick at most two destinations, and boiled it down to two options: (a) Bangkok and Chiang Mai or (b) Bangkok and a beach. In the end, Geek Girl voted for Chiang Mai -- "we can go to the beach closer to here, Daddy" -- and we decided, why not?
Once we worked that out, we were able to arrange internal travel and hotels. The short version is:
- IAD-NRT-BKK-NRT-SFO-IAD on United; 27 hours on the outbound and 30 on the return. Thankfully, we were in business class the whole way -- frequent flyer miles are a good thing.
- BKK-CNX-BKK on Thai Airways. It's only a one-hour flight, but Thai still manages a snack and two drink services.
- The first night, we stayed at the Vismaya Suvarnabhumi, about 10 minutes from BKK. This was the most expensive ($88/night) but worth it because it was so close, had a free airport shuttle both ways, had free breakfast, and good rooms.
- While in Chiang Mai, we stayed at the Galare Guest House, where $33/night got us a room with a king-sized bed and a twin bed, shower/toilet/sink, and plenty of storage space. The Galare is east of the Old City of Chiang Mai, on a quiet side street (soi) right along the river. We were happy, though we might choose to stay more centrally next time.
- We stayed at the Holiday Inn Bangkok Silom (I know, how original) during our last five days. We got a $70/night rate for two double beds (American-sized doubles) plus free Internet and free breakfast. Silom has lots of food choices on the small sois near the hotel, good connections with river ferries and the BTS, and was just a bit calmer than some of the other areas of the city we visited.
Since we've been back, folks have asked what my favorite part of the trip was, and it's really hard to pick only one. Instead, here are some highlights, in no particular order:
One word: food. Mama Geek has already posted a bit on this. I was a fan of Thai food long before our trip, but this cemented it. Meatballs on a stick, grilled fresh in front of you, with a delicious spicy chile sauce, for $1? Yes, please. Spicy papaya salad for $2? Yes, please. Fresh tropical fruits -- mangos and mangosteens, dragonfruit, lychee and longan -- everywhere you look? Yes, please. Chinese donuts and Thai coffee consumed while sitting on plastic stools at an outside stall in a market street? Yes, please. Rice with pork, veggies, and chiles -- really spicy chiles -- for $3 if it's fancy? Oh, hell, yes. Pardon me while I salivate at the memories.
An unexpected bonus: running the 10-km race associated with the 2012 Chiang Mai Marathon. I had known the marathon would happen near Christmas, having read about it on the A Little Adrift blog, but didn't know it would happen while we were there. We had just arrived at the Tha Phae Gate in the old town
 |
| Mama Geek and Geek Girl at Tha Phae Gate, Chiang Mai |
when I saw the registration and packet pickup desks, and started making moon eyes at Mama Geek. "Can I? I was going to run that far tomorrow anyway..." She sighed and agreed (I think mostly so I would shut up and we could go get something cool to drink), and 400 baht and an exchange of English, Thai, and gesticulation later, I was signed up. My physical souvenir from Thailand is a 10K finisher's medal and a new lightweight mesh T-shirt -- great for those hot, sticky runs here in the summer.
 |
| My souvenirs from Thailand |
There are 7-11 stores everywhere. According to their corporate Web site, there are 8,030 7-11 stores in the U.S. and Canada; according to one of our guidebooks, there are over 2,700 7-11 stores in Bangkok alone. I believe it: we counted no fewer than six 7-11 stores within 15 minutes' walk from our hotel in Bangkok. The ubiquity is a good thing: all of them sell a 600 milliliter bottle of water for 6 baht (20 cents) and ice cream cone for 21 baht -- a very nice treat in such a warm place.
I was awed by the beauty of the wats we visited. All of them were heavily touristed, especially Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep in Chiang Mai and Wat Phra Kaew and Wat Pho in Bangkok, but despite that every one of them had jaw-dropping moments for me. We made sure to spend some time sitting quietly in each temple we visited, which was remarkably calming, and Geek Girl and I received blessings from monks at three temples. Here are just a few pictures -- Mama Geek can verify I took literally hundreds more.
 |
| Wat Phra Singh, Chiang Mai |
 |
| Mama Geek and Geek Girl with nagas at Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep, Chiang Mai |
 |
| Chedi (also called a stupa) at Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep |
 |
| Guardian giant (Yaksha) at Wat Phra Kaew, Bangkok |
At Wat Pho, the monk who gave us a blessing startled me by speaking perfect English to us -- it turns out he spends half of each year in Boston! Another unexpected bit: Geek Girl was interviewed by students learning English
 |
| Geek Girl and her interviewers, Wat Phra Singh, Chiang Mai |
which brought back memories of a visit to Victoria Peak in Hong Kong, where the same thing happened to me.
We also got a bonus on the way home -- my mom and dad were able to meet us at SFO for a quick visit. They hadn't seen Geek Girl or Mama Geek in person in a year, so it was fun for all of us.
Our day outside Chiang Mai with elephant rides and zip-lining (Mama Geek, too!) is also definitely a highlight, but I think Geek Girl wants to write a post about that, so I won't spoil it for her. And Geek Girl should be the one to tell you about her culinary highlight. Be on the lookout for her post when she has it done.
Sounds like a wonderful adventure! Thanks for the great pictures. And, I am reminded that the Holiday Inn was your "girlfriend" at some point in your childhood.
ReplyDelete