The last statement is a lie, but the truth couldn't be far from it.
My days in the Land of Smiles or Paradise of Tom Yum Goong, as I prefer it to be known, were simply fabulous!
Since I can't possibly give a blow-by-blow account of how I spent my time in Thailand, I shall take pleasure in giving a highlight of worthy memories.
My First Business Trip
Yes, this is my first business trip. Of course there was that 2003 trip to Langkawi to attend the LIMA airshow at the invitation of BAE Systems. To say it was a business trip is a lie. My colleague and I spent our days exploring the exhibition and then getting drunk on champagne in the evenings.
But this trip to Pattaya was truly serious stuff. I woke up by 6am for four days straight to make sure I fulfilled my tasks. Then it was dinners and entertainment with colleagues, partners and clients through the night. I was a zombie by the last day, and only looked forward to seeing Josh on the 27th.
Oh yes, I decided that since my airfare was paid by the company, I could afford to fly darling over to Bangkok so we could spend the long weekend together.
My team and I were housed in Royal Cliff Beach Hotel, a nice hotel on a hill overlooking the sea. My room was spacious with a comfy lounge where I could watch TV and smoke like a chimney. The view from my balcony was also breathtaking.
I would always find a fruit platter or a nice full-sized cake in my room every evening when I got back, and my bed would always be lined with fresh orchids too!
I must say, Royal Cliff serves wonderful Tom Yum Goong. I had it almost every day.
On the third day, my Hong Kong colleague, Marisa, and I travelled down town to get a good two-hour Thai massage which cost us only 450Baht each! Whoa!
The Majestic State Tower Meritus Suite
The Conference concluded on 26 Apr. Marisa and I were pretty bored staying at Royal Cliff with nothing to do. So we checked out early and went to stay for a day at the State Tower Meritus Suite in Bangkok.
My God. After experiencing State Tower Meritus Suite, no other hotels will ever measure up. Every room is a luxurious suite with a bathroom as big as a standard bedroom in a HDB apartment.
The bedsheets were smoother, the towels were fluffier, the bathrobe was softer and even the bedroom slippers were more stylish!
Of course, all these materialistic pleasures came with a US$350 per room night price tag. Crazy, ain't it?
That night, Marisa and I, plus two other colleagues who were also residing there, headed to the rooftop of the State Tower Meritus Suite where they have a splendid al fresco bar. The Dome or Sirocco, as it is called, offers a mesmerising view of Bangkok and the Chao Phraya.
Although it isn't as high up as the Equinox in Singapore, the view was way better! It is the ultimate place to seduce your partner. Wished I had some pictures to show you what I mean... but my cam is just not good with night shots. *sigh*
After drinks, we headed back to our rooms where I had the BEST sleep during my stay in Thailand.
Darling Arrives!
I was buzzing with excitement when I woke on the 27th because darling will be arriving that afternoon. I made plans to meet him at the airport, then we'd take a cab down to Pathumwan Princess, where we would stay for our vacation.
After not seeing each other for so many days in a row, we hugged and kissed like maniacs.
Eat, Shop, Eat, Shop!
Well, that pretty much summed up what Joshie baby and I did in Bangkok!
While he took pleasure scouting the streets and hippy shops for cheaper street wear, I was more fond of flying about Siam Paragon and Siam Centre for quality togs. I was eager to find nice fashion brands that Singapore does not have. And I did!
Jaspal was like a cross between Mango and Zara, and was priced similarly. Chaps sold stylish jeans and dressy tops. But as the things were a little more expensive.
When we were not shopping, we dined. We enjoyed spicy Northern Thai cuisine at Chilli Cafe at Siam Paragon. Very nice indeed! Like I said, I went berserk over tom yum goong and tom kha gai (a spicy coconut soup with chicken), and made Josh eat that with me daily.
And when the poor fella could tolerate it no more, I agreed to have Jap at a popular restaurant in Siam Centre. It was fabulous! We indulged in ebi tempura, loads of tepanyaki, sashimi, sushi and an unagi bento at less than $50! Darling was just so happy.
Josh did some research on Bangkok before he came so he had a nice long list of things to do and places to see. He suggested we go party at Bed Supper Club, a new club on the block. Bed Supper Club is a cylindrical structure, very much like a UFO! One side of it is a restaurant and the other a dance club.
In the dance club, a masseuse would go around to offer lovely 10-min back rubs at 100Baht! Needless to say, I had one.
Oh, did I mention we had heavy suppers every night? That's how hols are meant to be spent. :)
The Muay Thai Match That We Did Not Get To See
Having practised Muay Thai in Singapore, it is only natural that we wanted to catch a real bloodied fight in Thailand. Lumpini stadium is the place to go. We took the skytrain and MRT to get to Lumpini, but lost our way once we were out of the station.
So we walked and walked and walked.
When we finally found it, we were both hot and sweaty. And I was very angry. Why? Maybe cos we wasted time.
Then I was even angrier when the ticket seller told us only the 2000Baht tickets were available that night. That was about S$180 each! Although I could afford it, darling refused to splurge. So despite all the fuss and walking, we did not see the match. We went to walk through the night market at Patpong instead. Again, darling bought some more funky Ts, caps and a nice pair of sneakers for just S$13!!!
The Western Gay Movie That We Got To See
Most hotels, as you probably know, have pay-per-view movies. Some of the more attractive pay-per-view movies involve frolicking naked adults. Our hotel offers two 20-sec previews for each channel per day. Being typical Singaporean cheapos, we watched all the previews. And if we were lucky, which was often, we would catch the juicy bits of the movie! So fun.
We took particular pleasure in the Western Gay channel. It was rather stimulating to see men rubbing their crotches against each other. But seeing them french smooching each other was just strange.
Boors On Our Return Flight
The flight home was a real challenge for my patience and senses.
One joker in front of me slid his back rest 45 degrees down which made it impossible for me to get into my seat. Then another joker behind me hugging my back rest throughout the flight, using it as a support for his head as he slept leaning forward. I could not lean back at all!
And they all kept waving to the flight crew for beer even before the plane took off!
The worst? A brainless twit who used the toilet immediately before me peed all over the toilet seat! I almost fainted.
The good thing about these boors is that their antics made Josh and I laugh. A couple of them fiddled with the reading light above, thinking it was the air-con. They kept waving their hands under the reading lights and wondering aloud why there was no air. They even bugged the flight crew endlessly about the "lack of cold air". Dumbos.
Ok, that's all about my time in Thailand!
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