Waking Up
Today would be my last day in Chiang Mai. To say I like the town of Chiang Mai is an understatement, the place is incredible. 1.) I like the weather - it's cool at night and hot during the day 2.) I like the people - there's an openness that's reminiscent of my time in the middle east. Begging is almost nonexistent. The few beggars I saw in Chiang Mai were people with extreme handicaps (missing/deformed limbs). 3.) I like the atmosphere - like any college town, coffee shops, bars, and restaurants are everywhere. Many have a unique look and feel. 4.) History - Chiang Mai means "New City", but that goes back to 1296 when the city was founded. There's a lot to see and do here - over 300 temples, ruins of a walled city, and at least half a dozen elephant camps nearby. I could go on...but I think you get the point.
My flight was at 3:30pm, but the latest I could checkout was at 12:30pm. Town was only a few miles from the airport, a 10 minute ride by tuk-tuk. The plan was to wakeup whenever, pack, check my bags at the front desk and tour the city. I still had the scooter, so I could cover some decent ground in the last few hours in town. Whenever would be around 9 and finish packing shortly before 10am. I asked the front desk to hold my bags. They're a little too trusting for my tastes - they simply put them under a nearby stairwell. Not behind a desk or a locked closet, simply under an open stairwell anyone could walk past. I wasn't leaving anything of real value, the two valuable items I had (macbook and camera) were in my backpack. So I accepted the risk, mostly because petty theft happens so infrequently compared to America or Europe.
Breakfast
After checking out I stopped to get some breakfast. For anywhere between $1-5 US you can start your morning off pretty well with a great breakfast. The place had a Western-American motif and doubled as either a hostile or guesthouse. There were a few people from various parts of Northern Europe coming and going. While the place offered free WiFi, power was extra! The plug said there was a 30 baht fee, roughly $1. Rough.
The Mall
The owner of breakfast place Adrian and I met the day before recommended visiting both iBerry and the new indoor mall. I'm always curious to compare/contrast the everyday of wherever I'm at to back home, so the mall would be my first stop. This particular mall was new, built within the past year or two. Parking was in the basement and lead to the ground floor. Unpainted brick was still visible in the back of a few operating shops on the ground level. Aside from a Mister Donut, the first two floors had few, if any, recognizable shops. The ground floor had a few different restaurants and the aforementioned Mister Donut. The main floor had a number of telecom retailers, many kiosks and stores dedicated exclusively to iPhone cases.
Regardless of where I've been in the world, most indoor shopping malls like this offer the same variety of retailers. Chicago suburbs are quite similar - pick any one and you'll see the same variety of retailers and restaurants. The one exception that comes to mind is in Kiev, Ukraine. There, too, I recognized few retail shops. I was beginning to wonder if Chiang Mai was able to resist Western retail influence, just like I saw in Ukraine. Not a chance - every floor upwards was filled with retailers from the West.
A movie theater was at the very top floor along with a coffee shop.
CAMP
Goodbye Chiang Mai
After leaving the mall I returned to the hotel, picked up my bags, and returned the scooter. The scooter included insurance and was a little banged up at initial check out, so I was confident there wouldn't be a problem. Returning the bike was easy and before too long I was in a tuk-tuk to the airport.
Checking into Chaing Mai airport was rather interesting. All bags are scanned and people are x-rayed upon entry to the airport - both ticked passengers and their guests. I figured I got the hassle out of the way after entering and was surprised to see bags are scanned and people are x-rayed again passing through into the terminals. This is the first time I've seen this level of security at an airport - even including Israel's Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv.
The flight itself was slightly over an hour, 70 minutes. The flight cost the equivalent of $70 US. There are a number of bus lines that run between Chiang Mai and Bangkok, as well as sleeper train car service. Buses are broken into different categories of service. The two classes a western tourist would likely consider would be either First Class or VIP. A first class bus ticket would run about $15, VIP would be about $25. Both buses are air conditioned, VIP offers much more leg room. The journey would take about 10 hours on both. Second class is an option, it's about $1-2 US cheaper, but adds many more stops and takes an additional 2 hours. Buses run about every 30 minutes, so it's possible to get tickets on the spot. I booked the outbound ticket (Chiang Mai -> Bangkok) the same time I booked the inbound ticket (Ko Samui -> Chiang Mai) since it was < $100 thinking the ticket price would go up. Had I not booked the outbound ticket I would have likely followed Adrian on the bus. Adrian was off to Bangkok to do some hiking along the Death Railway. The railway was built by the Japanese during WWII to support their soldiers in Burma. The railway itself was built by Allied POWs. It's estimated 300,000 people worked on the railway and 100,000 of these people were killed during construction. In any case I don't recall learning about this railway. I'll bet the history classes Adrian and I took emphasized different parts of WWII, noting I'm from the west and he's from the east. It's interesting what you can learn from fellow travelers.
Each gate has it's own terminal area, but all gates (with connecting jetways) are actually connected to a long narrow hallway. A cardboard cut out helped direct us to the proper jetway.
Hello Bangkok
The flight arrived on time, right around 4:30pm. Bangkok airport was very familiar to me and within a short amount of time I was on the Airport Express headed into the city. The Airport Express line ends at one of the two elevated train lines (MRT). My hotel was located in the Sukhumvit district of Bangkok. It wasn't far at all from where I stayed the last time I was in Bangkok so getting to the hotel was super simple.
I got a seat once I boarded the MRT and eventually a middle-aged Thai woman sat next to me. Some Korean tourists were on the bus standing and drinking from their resealable bottles of water. The woman quickly put them in their place. They didn't understand Thai, but she pointed to an illustrated sign that indicated food/drink was prohibited onboard. I was impressed. Such restrictions exist on the CTA in Chicago and are often ignored, I've never seen anyone get called out for drinking water. Afterwards the woman struck up conversation with me. She spoke English almost perfectly and insisted I visit the Teak House. I made a note to check it out the following day.
Once I was outside of the train the heat hit me. Bangkok was HOT. At least 90 degrees with humidity to match. The last time I remembered this combination of heat and humidity was the Chicago heat wave of 1995. Bangkok was HOT.
I opted for a lightly less expensive this time around. I was happy at the Hotel Manhattan, where I stayed previously. I just wanted to see what a change would be like. I found a new place on Kayak called The Promenade Hotel. The new place was $33/night, Hotel Manhattan was $57/night. Both were right off the MRT and fairly close to one another.
At first glance the place doesn't look too bad, but it's very dated. The lobby and elevator used wood extensively throughout the interior and the wood was very dated. The building looked out of the 50s and did not appear to have been rehabbed since. The carpet was rather gross. The bedding was fine though. The biggest annoyance was the power saving feature of the rooms. Every hotel room I had anywhere throughout Thailand had some mechanism that cut off power once a key card (or credit card like device attached to a key chain if room used a typical metal key) was removed. The idea was to save power by shutting everything down once someone left the room. The problem with this room was ALL power cut off once the power was cut off. This made it impossible to leave anything charging. It also made it incredibly difficult to find anything, including were to put the key card upon entering the room, since lights couldn't go on due to lack of power. Further, the shower curtain didn't completely cover the shower - so it was impossible to shower without creating a flood. Lastly, the safe deposit box in the room was impossible to unlock. It used a physical key, but none of the keys given worked with it. Further, there were signs all over saying the hotel was not responsible for contents left in the box. Signs in the elevator instructed guests to keep all valuables with them at all times and not to leave them in the room.
I took some time to cool off from the heat and cleaned up. I spent some time updating my blog and hit the town.
Going Out
After leaving the hotel I walked around a bit. The sun had set, and much of the radiant heat went away, but it was still humid. I walked around outside deciding to check out the Siam Paragon. Siam is a major MRT/metro stop, Siam Paragon is an attached shopping mall. There are actually a couple of malls attached to the MRT, this was the more premier mall.
One end of the mall featured a Zara and an H&M, so I figured it was just a regular mall. That must have been the poor end, because the other side featured stores like Prada, Fendi, Rolex, Tag Heur, and...Patek Philippe. The mall even features a Maserati dealership. The last time I saw an auto dealer in a shopping mall was back in Abu Dhabi (Marina Mall)...definitely not something you see everyday. Like the indoor mall in Chiang Mai, many of these stores also had doors into each individual store.
I stayed out until 11 or so and head back to the hotel. There were a few things I wanted to do before leaving Bangkok so I'd need my rest.
Today would be my last day in Chiang Mai. To say I like the town of Chiang Mai is an understatement, the place is incredible. 1.) I like the weather - it's cool at night and hot during the day 2.) I like the people - there's an openness that's reminiscent of my time in the middle east. Begging is almost nonexistent. The few beggars I saw in Chiang Mai were people with extreme handicaps (missing/deformed limbs). 3.) I like the atmosphere - like any college town, coffee shops, bars, and restaurants are everywhere. Many have a unique look and feel. 4.) History - Chiang Mai means "New City", but that goes back to 1296 when the city was founded. There's a lot to see and do here - over 300 temples, ruins of a walled city, and at least half a dozen elephant camps nearby. I could go on...but I think you get the point.
My flight was at 3:30pm, but the latest I could checkout was at 12:30pm. Town was only a few miles from the airport, a 10 minute ride by tuk-tuk. The plan was to wakeup whenever, pack, check my bags at the front desk and tour the city. I still had the scooter, so I could cover some decent ground in the last few hours in town. Whenever would be around 9 and finish packing shortly before 10am. I asked the front desk to hold my bags. They're a little too trusting for my tastes - they simply put them under a nearby stairwell. Not behind a desk or a locked closet, simply under an open stairwell anyone could walk past. I wasn't leaving anything of real value, the two valuable items I had (macbook and camera) were in my backpack. So I accepted the risk, mostly because petty theft happens so infrequently compared to America or Europe.
Breakfast
After checking out I stopped to get some breakfast. For anywhere between $1-5 US you can start your morning off pretty well with a great breakfast. The place had a Western-American motif and doubled as either a hostile or guesthouse. There were a few people from various parts of Northern Europe coming and going. While the place offered free WiFi, power was extra! The plug said there was a 30 baht fee, roughly $1. Rough.
Western American Theme
Tasty breakfast
When you're from the west, non-smoking signs don't apply to you
Roughly $1
The owner of breakfast place Adrian and I met the day before recommended visiting both iBerry and the new indoor mall. I'm always curious to compare/contrast the everyday of wherever I'm at to back home, so the mall would be my first stop. This particular mall was new, built within the past year or two. Parking was in the basement and lead to the ground floor. Unpainted brick was still visible in the back of a few operating shops on the ground level. Aside from a Mister Donut, the first two floors had few, if any, recognizable shops. The ground floor had a few different restaurants and the aforementioned Mister Donut. The main floor had a number of telecom retailers, many kiosks and stores dedicated exclusively to iPhone cases.
Regardless of where I've been in the world, most indoor shopping malls like this offer the same variety of retailers. Chicago suburbs are quite similar - pick any one and you'll see the same variety of retailers and restaurants. The one exception that comes to mind is in Kiev, Ukraine. There, too, I recognized few retail shops. I was beginning to wonder if Chiang Mai was able to resist Western retail influence, just like I saw in Ukraine. Not a chance - every floor upwards was filled with retailers from the West.
A movie theater was at the very top floor along with a coffee shop.
Lots of scooters and motorcycles
Walls of concrete block are more than sufficient!
I recognize nothing
Converse, Adidas, Nike...this is familiar
These stores didn't feel authentic...
Given the proximity to an Oakley and Disney Store, however, it's probable they are authentic
CAMP is a coffee shop located in the mall and the word awesome simply doesn't describe it. It's an acronym for "Creative and Meeting Place". The first thing I noticed was...the door. Shops inside an indoor shopping mall simply don't have doors. At the end of the night a big gate usually drops down. This place had a neat looking door. The magic would be inside the door. Inside is the most fun and creative use of space I've seen to date. I ordered an espresso and walked around. I did my best not to interrupt anyone. The design of this place was so unbelievably cool. From what I've read it's open 24 hours, too. There are a number of rooms on the mezzanine level and a few "club house" sort of rooms with oversized bean bags. The only downside about visiting this place is the disappointment I will now feel returning to my favorite coffee shop back home. Sorry Filter Cafe, you've finally been outdone by some operation in southern Asia.
I'm not sure if I did something wrong, but my simple espresso took over 20 minutes to make. They didn't appear busy, either.
After leaving the mall I returned to the hotel, picked up my bags, and returned the scooter. The scooter included insurance and was a little banged up at initial check out, so I was confident there wouldn't be a problem. Returning the bike was easy and before too long I was in a tuk-tuk to the airport.
Checking into Chaing Mai airport was rather interesting. All bags are scanned and people are x-rayed upon entry to the airport - both ticked passengers and their guests. I figured I got the hassle out of the way after entering and was surprised to see bags are scanned and people are x-rayed again passing through into the terminals. This is the first time I've seen this level of security at an airport - even including Israel's Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv.
The flight itself was slightly over an hour, 70 minutes. The flight cost the equivalent of $70 US. There are a number of bus lines that run between Chiang Mai and Bangkok, as well as sleeper train car service. Buses are broken into different categories of service. The two classes a western tourist would likely consider would be either First Class or VIP. A first class bus ticket would run about $15, VIP would be about $25. Both buses are air conditioned, VIP offers much more leg room. The journey would take about 10 hours on both. Second class is an option, it's about $1-2 US cheaper, but adds many more stops and takes an additional 2 hours. Buses run about every 30 minutes, so it's possible to get tickets on the spot. I booked the outbound ticket (Chiang Mai -> Bangkok) the same time I booked the inbound ticket (Ko Samui -> Chiang Mai) since it was < $100 thinking the ticket price would go up. Had I not booked the outbound ticket I would have likely followed Adrian on the bus. Adrian was off to Bangkok to do some hiking along the Death Railway. The railway was built by the Japanese during WWII to support their soldiers in Burma. The railway itself was built by Allied POWs. It's estimated 300,000 people worked on the railway and 100,000 of these people were killed during construction. In any case I don't recall learning about this railway. I'll bet the history classes Adrian and I took emphasized different parts of WWII, noting I'm from the west and he's from the east. It's interesting what you can learn from fellow travelers.
To the airport I go!
Chaing Mai Airport
Security upon entrance to Airport
Check in was easy
Lining up at the terminal
This way to Bangkok
Trusty Airbus
Hello Bangkok
The flight arrived on time, right around 4:30pm. Bangkok airport was very familiar to me and within a short amount of time I was on the Airport Express headed into the city. The Airport Express line ends at one of the two elevated train lines (MRT). My hotel was located in the Sukhumvit district of Bangkok. It wasn't far at all from where I stayed the last time I was in Bangkok so getting to the hotel was super simple.
I got a seat once I boarded the MRT and eventually a middle-aged Thai woman sat next to me. Some Korean tourists were on the bus standing and drinking from their resealable bottles of water. The woman quickly put them in their place. They didn't understand Thai, but she pointed to an illustrated sign that indicated food/drink was prohibited onboard. I was impressed. Such restrictions exist on the CTA in Chicago and are often ignored, I've never seen anyone get called out for drinking water. Afterwards the woman struck up conversation with me. She spoke English almost perfectly and insisted I visit the Teak House. I made a note to check it out the following day.
Once I was outside of the train the heat hit me. Bangkok was HOT. At least 90 degrees with humidity to match. The last time I remembered this combination of heat and humidity was the Chicago heat wave of 1995. Bangkok was HOT.
Airport Extra to MRT
Comfortable, modern, trains
Checking InI opted for a lightly less expensive this time around. I was happy at the Hotel Manhattan, where I stayed previously. I just wanted to see what a change would be like. I found a new place on Kayak called The Promenade Hotel. The new place was $33/night, Hotel Manhattan was $57/night. Both were right off the MRT and fairly close to one another.
At first glance the place doesn't look too bad, but it's very dated. The lobby and elevator used wood extensively throughout the interior and the wood was very dated. The building looked out of the 50s and did not appear to have been rehabbed since. The carpet was rather gross. The bedding was fine though. The biggest annoyance was the power saving feature of the rooms. Every hotel room I had anywhere throughout Thailand had some mechanism that cut off power once a key card (or credit card like device attached to a key chain if room used a typical metal key) was removed. The idea was to save power by shutting everything down once someone left the room. The problem with this room was ALL power cut off once the power was cut off. This made it impossible to leave anything charging. It also made it incredibly difficult to find anything, including were to put the key card upon entering the room, since lights couldn't go on due to lack of power. Further, the shower curtain didn't completely cover the shower - so it was impossible to shower without creating a flood. Lastly, the safe deposit box in the room was impossible to unlock. It used a physical key, but none of the keys given worked with it. Further, there were signs all over saying the hotel was not responsible for contents left in the box. Signs in the elevator instructed guests to keep all valuables with them at all times and not to leave them in the room.
I took some time to cool off from the heat and cleaned up. I spent some time updating my blog and hit the town.
Nightstand...all the controls were probably fancy 60 years ago
View from hotel room - not bad for $30 US
After leaving the hotel I walked around a bit. The sun had set, and much of the radiant heat went away, but it was still humid. I walked around outside deciding to check out the Siam Paragon. Siam is a major MRT/metro stop, Siam Paragon is an attached shopping mall. There are actually a couple of malls attached to the MRT, this was the more premier mall.
One end of the mall featured a Zara and an H&M, so I figured it was just a regular mall. That must have been the poor end, because the other side featured stores like Prada, Fendi, Rolex, Tag Heur, and...Patek Philippe. The mall even features a Maserati dealership. The last time I saw an auto dealer in a shopping mall was back in Abu Dhabi (Marina Mall)...definitely not something you see everyday. Like the indoor mall in Chiang Mai, many of these stores also had doors into each individual store.
I stayed out until 11 or so and head back to the hotel. There were a few things I wanted to do before leaving Bangkok so I'd need my rest.
Street food off Sukhumvit Road
Camps of protestors selling shoes
Protest shirts
Under the MRT tracks
Night Market
Siam Paragon (left) and MRT metro(right)
Street gambling
One end of Siam Paragon
Maserati Dealer
Patek Philippe
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