Before reading this post, please make sure you’ve read the first part here.
***
If I had a sore throat on the third day of my trip, I was definitely not feeling well on the fourth day. On Thursday, I started to catch a cold. That’s why I didn’t go searching for breakfast in the morning. I got ready while my mom and sister wandered around the Pratunam market and bought something to eat back in our hotel room.
What we had for breakfast: more pork and chicken skewers, pork rice, and Seven Eleven’s cheese-and-spinach sandwich.
Yum.
After breakfast, we relaxed a little before boarding the bus to our next destination: River City Bangkok.
I had actually visited this place once on my first trip to Bangkok two years ago, but I didn’t really know what it was besides the fact that it sat near the famous Chao Phraya River. On this trip, though, my knowledge was upgraded. River City Bangkok turned out to be an art-filled mall with antiques and unique exhibitions. We walked in and looked around in awe, not expecting this building to house so many wonderful collections.
A few turns and escalator rides later, the time for our big event finally arrived. My mom, my sister, and I went to the building next door to enjoy the Thai Bus Food Tour.
“So, what about it?” you might wonder.
On this tour, we traveled around Bangkok for about 1.5 hours while being served Michelin dishes. It’s basically a dining experience on a moving bus. Elegant, unique, and exciting, this is what the experience looked like:
Welcome drink: Golden lime juice
Appetizer #1: Khao Tang Na Tung (crispy rice cracker with peanut-tamarind sauce)
Appetizer #2: Mian Kleeb Bua (a mix of dried shrimp, lime, ginger, roasted coconut, and peanuts served with lotus petals and palm sugar sauce)
Main course #1: Nai Uan Yen Ta Fo (pink noodle soup with fish balls and crispy wonton)
Main course #2: Massaman Kai (chicken massaman curry served with steamed jasmine rice)
Main course #3: Pad Thai Fai Ta Lu (Pad Thai with prawns)
Dessert: Mango sticky rice
Drink: Hot oolong tea
I would say the experience was quite pricey (almost IDR 900,000 per pax) but worth trying. (Also, I didn’t expect that we would get all three main courses, so I was full FULL. My stomach hurt so bad I felt like passing out. But still, everything tasted great and the service was amazing.)
At 1 p.m., the bus returned to River City Bangkok. My little group then boarded the boat to Icon Siam, one of the biggest malls in Thailand.
It turned out to be a five-minute ride. Icon Siam was literally across from us.
Considering how much we had eaten on the bus, it was impossible to eat again right away. So after showing my mom around the huge food court in Icon Siam, the three of us went to Pang Chaa and shared a big dessert together.
We stayed there for two or three hours, just relaxing and talking.
After that, we continued our journey. In unison, we agreed to visit Asiatique—a place none of us had ever visited before.
It was probably our lucky day, because what we found in Asiatique was definitely not on our itinerary but was so exciting to stumble upon. Say hello to Jurassic World: The Experience—a seasonal attraction available only until December!
All the dinosaurs looked massive and incredibly real. I was completely caught up in the Jurassic vibes and the guards’ acting. Each ticket cost us almost IDR 500,000, but the experience was worth every Rupiah.
My boyfriend would love this so, so much.
Well, forty minutes cosplaying Scarlett Johansson in Jurassic World left us all extremely exhausted, especially after all the walking we had done earlier. After taking some pictures, we headed to the bus stop and rode back to our hotel.
And after that, we all quickly passed out for the night. Tired but abundantly satisfied.
***
During a holiday, a day usually feels a little longer than usual, but a week passes almost as fast as a blink—why is that, I wonder? If there’s a scientific explanation for this, I would definitely study it to understand why the heck it was Friday already, the fifth day of our trip.
On Friday, I didn’t do my makeup because I didn’t feel well enough to want to look neater. I didn’t take many pictures either, because I thought my album would look repetitive otherwise. I just walked with my mom and sister to a place called Go-Ang Kaomunkai Pratunam. We had breakfast there, and it was good.
After breakfast, we visited a temple called Wat Saket Ratchawora Mahawihan, also known as the Golden Mount. It wasn’t crowded with tourists, and the temple was beautiful with its 344 steps.
Since it was still early, we decided to continue to another temple. Off we went to Wat Ratchabophit by foot.
Different from the previous temple we had visited, this one was a little more crowded. A group of people looked regal in their formal attire. We assumed they were doing a family wedding photoshoot, but we weren’t entirely sure.
For the rest of the day, things went a little slow (but were still full of walking). We went to Pad Thai Fai Ta Lu (turns out it was open at 10.30 instead of 10) and ordered two plates of the pork pad thai because yesterday’s was amazing.
Our verdict was still the same: the pad thai was umami—mamma mia delicioso.
Still not full enough, we went to the food court in MBK Center to snack. We chose fried banana, mango sticky rice, and fried oyster omelette (finally!).
P.S. The food court was lively and appetizing. My mom even wanted to go there again.
We then returned to the hotel to pick up my sister’s running gear before heading to Benchakitti Park.
If Lumphini Park is beautiful with its greenery, then Benchakitti has its own charm with its stunning lake and cityscape view. From our first sight, the three of us fell in love. Located in the middle of busy roads, the park felt like a gentle reminder to pause amidst all the commuters rushing home.
It felt peaceful and even slightly romantic.
My mom and I sat beside the lake while my sister ran a few rounds. While I was busy finalizing our travel budget, my mom fell asleep under Bangkok’s nice, breezy wind.
Before going home, my mom and I walked around the park once.
Even though we didn’t catch the sunset, we saw a little water play in the middle of the lake—and we loved the simplicity.
I would love to go back here someday.
After that, it’s safe to say we were starving. We took the train to the food court at Platinum Mall. Each of us ordered something different to share.
For dessert, we bought milk buns.
My sister did laundry that night so packing would be easier. After that, we called it a night, again.
***
We’ve finally reached the part where I write about the last day of the trip—and just like any good trip, this one ended with a little melancholy. I still yearned for a few more days of good, old holidays. (But to be fair, who doesn’t?)
To be honest, we didn’t do much on our last day. After packing our belongings, we went around the market (again) to find something good for breakfast.
We ate in our hotel room while listening to The Eras Tour playlist on YouTube and having a little karaoke session.
Our flight boarded at 3:45 in the afternoon (and was actually delayed until almost 5:30), but we left our hotel room around 10 a.m. to avoid traffic. Arriving very early at the airport, we ate what we had packed: mango sticky rice from the Pratunam market and cup noodles.
And I actually had time to adjust to the fact that the trip was ending, and I had to go back to work on Monday.
I believe every trip leaves a different mark on people, and this one left a beautiful one on me. Our trip to Thailand this year might not have been perfect (and I’m certainly aware that I’m not always exciting to be around 24/7). But if tokens are granted, I want to believe I deserve at least one for trying my best—and I’ll keep trying to better myself in the future.
Until we meet again, Thailand. It will always be nice seeing you.
){kind=link}
0 Comments