So we have been to Bangkok probably 15-20 times by now, counting the times before we moved to Singapore. It is absolutely one of our favorite cities and we make no effort to hide it. So, when we heard our wedding pals (they married the week before we did), Casey and Clint, were doing a delayed honeymoon in SE Asia, we jumped at the chance to meet up with them in our favorite Asian metropolis. Bangkok can be overwhelming for first timers so we took it upon ourselves to facilitate an easy and fun introduction.
This is us saying - "let's do this!" We are expert travelers now, relying on just one bag each for a long weekend.
Casey and Clint are our tourist spirit animals. They have little stomach for museums and sights, but the feel the need to check them off the list. To them, a vacation revolves around food, booze, and fun. Perfect! We lined up an itinerary of bars (both low and high altitude), the main sights, and of course food. Every time we go to BKK we relive the things we love about the city, but we also try to do something new. We don't always succeed, but this time we had others to look out for! And they came along with their own ideas.
Trusty Old Regulars
Ice Bar
One of our favorite unique spots is an ice bar in the Holiday Inn Silom. This is not our first appearance at the Ice Bar, and I'm sure it won't be our last. The best part of this place is the fun pictures you take in fake animal fur coats. All they serve in the ice bar are vodka shots, so there is little reason to stick around in there after a couple pictures.
My favorite prop is the ice tuktuk!
It was freezing!
Temples & Reclining Buddah
We had to tick off some of the bigger sights, and there is no bigger one in Bangkok than Wat Pho, the largest temple with the biggest reclining buddah.
We had a gorgeous day. The temple is photogenic on any day, but on this day it was particularly vibrant and beautiful.
Shtuppa city.
Buddah is still reclining. Such a lazy buddah!
Food
Of course, our favorite part of Thailand is the food. Nothing new there. What is special about eating with Casey is that she likes HEAT in her food. I mean, HEAT. Multiple chilis topped with chili sauce. This particular meal wasn't nearly spicy enough for her.
This restaurant had a "salted egg yolk squid." All of these are things I like, so together they should be delicious, right? Right! C&C were understandably apprehensive about the dish. There were tentacles everywhere, after all.
If you read previous posts, you know I'm a sucker for coke in a bottle. We used it to dowse the fire when Casey over-chilied the food.
We couldn't go to Bangkok without introducing Casey and Clint to our favorite restaurant - Hai on Convent Road. Serving Isan food in a restaurant Bangkok is the equivalent of serving carnival food in a restaurant in the US. Isan food, while delish, is typically relegated to street carts and is considered a food for the masses. This restaurant is a great one stop shop to get all the Isan staples. This fish always makes my face smile and my tummy happy. There is nothing like whole fresh fish cooked the old fashioned way. This is always a site for sore eyes.
Ready to eat! That's chicken, pork laab, and pork neck. Three staples, of course. I wonder how many pigs Asia eats in one day.
Drinking
While we didn't subject Casey and Clint to this, we had to go to our favorite street - Soi Twilight. We sat at Banana Bar and watched as unknowing and bashful duck their heads and run down the street. This is probably our favorite past time as a couple.
Of course, no visit to BKK is complete without drinking on a glamorous roof. If there ever was a tourist book of laws, this would be one of them, and those who break it are missing out. The most common spot to do this is Sirocco Sky Bar at Lebua State Tower. This place was made famous in the last ten years when the Hangover Two was filmed there. While the level of douche is fairly high here, it's worth it, and frankly, the douchebaggery comes with the territory. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em!
Our favorite sky drinking spot is Vertigo Moon Bar on the Banyan Tree Hotel tower. This place is more engaged with the skyline if you ask me. You feel more like you're floating amongst buildings than viewing them from a mountain. It's a fun feeling.
The bar/restaurant:
Views from the bar:
Jim Thompson
Jim Thompson was one of the early discoverers of Bangkok's silk trade. When he moved here over half a century ago, he might have been one of just a handful of white people to actually take up residence in the city. His silk trade was lucrative and put BKK on the map of the textile world. He was an architect by trade and built his own house. He loved Thailand so much, he wanted the house to draw on the local culture. He reclaimed some old buildings and made what I consider one of the coolest houses on the planet. We had been here before but I always enjoy a good visit. This place is well deserving of the #9 ranking on Trip Advisor. You can't take pictures in the house, but I assure you it is spectacular.
The exterior.
The gardens.
It's quite a tropical paradise in there. One of the reasons I like it so much.
Adding to the mystique of the Jim Thompson experience is the story they tell at the end of the tour. One day Jim Thompson visited some friends in Malaysia. He went for a hike one afternoon and was never seen or heard from again, leaving behind his house and business enterprises. Conspiracy theorists have all kinds of explanations, one including CIA involvement. Others involve mauling by a lion. We will never know. Poor guy!
Something New
Thai Cooking Classes!
We have always wanted to do this but were too lazy to organize it. Luckily Casey lined this one up so we could tag along.
The first thing they do is take you "shopping in the market." The excursion is not authentic and is really intended to introduce presumably squeamish westerners to the open air markets of Bangkok. Jordan and I weren't phased, but I think Casey was a little taken aback!
Our instructor was hilarious. He called each of the groups by their country of origin. So, we were America, two others were "China", there was Malaysia Truly Asia (truly asia is Malaysia's new slogan to lure tourists. It's kinda a regional joke), and Miss Korea.
Even I will admit these slimy guys were a little bit much. we didn't buy any for our dishes. Maybe next class.
After the market we walked to our kitchen. I love little streets and corridors like this. Bangkok is full of them if you know where to look.
After reviewing the menu and collecting our ingredients...
...shredding papaya for somtam (papaya salad)...
...grinding up spices with a mortar and pestle (Jordan was really good at it)...
(so was Casey)
...it was time to cook. He walked us through each step and explained which of the ingredients gave the food the distinctly Thai flavor we all love. (spoiler - it's all in the tamarind!)
The results were surprisingly authentic tasting!
Tom Yam soup.
Somtam
Red curry.
and Mango Sticky Rice
Thai cooking class was gimmicky but awesome. Well worth the money time and energy.
"Apartment Shopping"
More like window shopping (literally?). We almost always say we want to live in a place we visit. Well, we actually half mean it in Bangkok. After some joking with Casey and Clint that we should open a bed and breakfast in the city, we though maybe we would be a little crazy and actually check out an apartment that we can't afford. This was both a great and terrible idea. Great because it was fun to see what is marketed to westerners and those with money. Terrible because we couldn't afford it and wanted it anyway.
We checked out a building near Sukhumvit, an area popular with westerners and foreign investors. The building was marketed as "freehold," meaning you would actually own the apartment and not just a 99 year proprietary lease, which is much of what is available in Bangkok. The building was expensive because of this, but was also simply fabulous.
Look at these double height windows!!
Killer views!
Southwest
Northeast
And amenities that ACTUALLY felt luxurious. This was one of two pools.
This is obviously a pipe dream given the price tag, but hey a girl can dream, right?? Maybe some day. Anyone want to invest??
