Thailand

Things are very tense here at the moment!! The PAD are refusing to leave Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports and the PPP (Ruling Government) are refusing to stand down. Last night tanks were spotted on Bangkok streets and ten buses full of troops were seen leaving Prachin Buri which added fuel to the rumours about the possibility of another coup. So far today, we have heard that Mr Somchai (The Thai PM) has authorised the use of force by the police to disperse the PAD who have responded by stating that there will be chaos in central Bangkok (They are threatening to block traffic at 50 intersections which would bring the entire city to a standstill) if the police move against them and that they are prepared to 'fight to the death'. In my opinion The tragedy here is that it's the Thai people's blood on the streets whilst the two leading factions battle it out using words, the media and anything else at their disposal. I guess the big question is are the two sides man enough to call a truce and sit round the negotiating table (which I feel is going to have to happen at some point anyway) before any more innocent lives are lost?

We are fine so please don't worry. We are at least a 30 minute drive from both airports so are no-where near the main trouble spots. Last night we were told to stock up on money, food and water as a precautionary measure which we did (Note to self: Don't let Chris do the stocking up ever again....he came back with what he loveingly called 'panic bought' donuts and ice-cream....honestly!!).

Chiang Mai

We met up with Chris at the airport (He had been out at a meeting and it made more sense, since he would be passing the airport anyway, to meet him there) and got checked in. We then decided that we would get something to nibble since it would be a while till dinner (No, I am not stupid enough to eat any more meat substances from that god forsaken place but figured tea and cake couldn't hurt) so we headed to the main restaurant. Now, you can't just select what you want and pay at the end (which would be far too sensible) you have to pay for a card (500 baht or 1000 baht) without knowing what the prices are like and then you get your change back when you hand the card back at the end. We got two 500 baht cards then discovered that tea and cake is surprisingly expensive and that we didn't have enough on our card for Sadie, Margaret and I so the wee fellow that was serving us got out a calculator and tried to work out if Chris had enough on his card to cover the balance on our stuff. 10 minutes later (We now had about 5 staff round wee fellow with calculator - I'm sure there is a joke in there somewhere) we discovered that the answer to that would be no and we had to go and buy another card and, after all that, I couldn't actually eat the cheesecake I had ordered.....it didn't taste of anything at all and just glued my tongue to the roof of my mouth (Which I'm sure Chris was thrilled about as it kept me quiet for five minutes). The plane was a different one from the one we had been on with Tom so it meant that Sadie and Margaret missed out on the joy that was the safety announcement......delivered on video screens by......wait for it.....a little fairy!!

Anyway, we arrived safe and sound and got a lovely taxi driver to our hotel. We were staying in the Central Duangtawan Hotel which is older than some hotels we have stayed in recently but was still really nice (Breakfasts are good). It's located just a few steps from the Night Bazaar so is really central and the nice thing was that it gave Chris and I an opportunity to explore an area that we had not visited when we had been before. We got checked in then went out to find an Indian restaurant that my friend Steph had recommended which turned out to be about a two minute walk away from the hotel (It's not easy to find as it's above McDonald's and the sign is obscured by market stalls but if you look up you will spot it) . It's called The Taj and, although the décor leave a little to be desired, the food is absolutely fantastic. We ordered some Pakora (Yes, we are still on the hunt) and it was the best, and closest thing we have had to the Scottish version, a lamb dish that was sublime and a chicken dish which wasn't as spicy as the others but still damn tasty. (Must remember to say thanks to Steph). Then we headed back to the hotel and went for a drink in the, practically deserted, bar. They had a singer and band who were playing songs from old musicals and jazz lounge tunes - I'm not sure if we were entertained by the entertainment or if we entertained the entertainment (Does that make any sense at all) but we ended up singing along and chair dancing.......as you do!!.

On Saturday I arranged with our taxi driver from the night before to come and collect us and be our driver for the day (Before you have a heart attack at the cost it was £15 for the whole day and he was worth his weight in gold!!). It was Makha Bucha Day so we took Sadie and Margaret up to Wat Prathat Doi Suthep to see the ceremony taking place up there. (Look who i bumped into.....Mom....you didn't tell me you were visiting :-)) - Sorry couldn't resist)

Some Facts: Makha Bucha Day falls on the full moon in February and commemorates two separate events that occurred, during the Buddha's lifetime, on the same date 45 years apart 2,500 years ago. The first event was the uncoordinated coming together of 1,250 monks from all locations and directions, to meet and be ordained by the Buddha seven months after the he began his teaching. This was when he delivered the three main principles of his religion 1. Give up evil and refrain from sinning. 2. Cultivate good and make merit. and 3. Cleanse one's mind. The second event was when the Buddha foresaw his attainment of Nirvana and delivered his teachings on the responsibility of an individual or organisation. He said that a person should 1. Enjoy work or responsibility. 2. Be diligent in work. 3. Concentrate on the job while working and 4. Check all unfinished work thoroughly. Both of these events occurred on the day of the full moon of the third lunar month, a month known in the Buddhist Pali language as 'Makha'. The 'Bucha', also a Pali word, means to venerate or to honour. Thus, Makha Bucha Day is for the veneration of Buddha and his teachings on the full moon day of the third lunar month. (At least that is my understanding of it)

We then went to an Orchid farm where we had lunch and then onto the Mae Sa Elephant Camp that we had visited with Tom. Sadie and Margaret really enjoyed the show and were much amused when, at the end, an elephant came over and put one of the Mahout's hats on my head and then made sure it was on properly by bashing it with it's trunk - Elephant trunks are surprisingly heavy!!

On Sunday we hired another taxi and visited Baan Tawai which is an artisan village about half an hour's drive from Chiang Mai. It is absolutely amazing and has everything from wood carvings and interior décor items, to art, sculpture, ceramics, furniture, antiques, murals and more. Apparently acquiring unique household items here, no matter how bulky (They can be shipped very reasonably and it costs next to nothing to get things back to Bangkok), is a popular and cost-effective way of furnishing your home with Asian arts and we were told that retailers from all over the world beat a path here to make wholesale orders. Honestly, you should have seen some of the stuff they had - even Chris was moved to say that we should save up and buy some stuff (This made me look at him and say 'Who are you and what have you done with my Husband?' and 'You can't back out of that statement.....I have witnesses!!'). That evening we went out to a place called 'The Gallery' which had been recommended to us by Claire and Rodger who we had bumped into the day before. It was beautiful - it is a century-old teakwood house that sits on the banks of the Ping River. The first room is used as an art gallery which displays the work of local artists and then you go through to an attractive terraced garden restaurant which specialises in northern Thai cuisine. We had a fantastic meal - we ordered a selection of traditional dishes which comprised of crispy pork, Chiang Mai sausages, pork in gravy, spicy pomello salad, chicken with banana leaves, barbecued pork and a chicken soup thing. We munched away and watched the sun set over Chiang Mai before heading into the old city to do some shopping down walking street. It was a great day even thought Margaret and I had a Kamikaze Tuk Tuk driver on the way back to the hotel and Chris and Sadie both managed to hook their shirts on the Tuk Tuk they were in as they tried to get out of it!! (Madness obviously runs in the family!!!)

What a first day!!!

I woke up at 5am with strange back pains - the muscles down my spine were really achy. As the morning progressed (about 10 minutes later) I felt like I was starting to get really bad indigestion which is not like me at all. I got up, took some Remegel and lay down again - Nope - that was not working, I got up again and had a couple of large glasses of milk. Ok.....BIG mistake - I now felt like my insides were on fire and just didn't quite know where to put myself - I couldn't stand, couldn't sit, couldn't lie down and, if I'm completely honest, thought that I was about to die (I think Chris was of the same opinion - you think his knees are pale!!). By this point I was moaning and groaning, the pain really was bad, so sent Chris in to wake Sadie to let her know what was going on (and to stop her lying awake wondering if we were just really noisy (You know what I mean)). Anyway, to cut a long story short I ended up being taken to Bumrungrad Hospital in an ambulance and was then admitted with severe abdominal pain caused by food poisoning - SEE THAT BLOODY AIRPORT!!

As you can probably tell, I am now fine so you can stop worrying. Actually, I think I deserve an award for best daughter-in-law........the lengths I will go to - Sadie is part of a Patients Council, which covers the whole of Ayrshire and Arran, so she got to see how it was done in Bangkok and has now got a load of ideas to take back - I think the phrase might be 'If they can do it in Bangkok.......'

I got a deluxe room to myself, mainly because all the standard ones were taken, which was like a studio apartment - it had a kitchen, dining table and chairs, sofa and coffee table as well as a balcony.....it was completely unlike any hospital room I have ever been in!! I was pumped full of pain killers, attached to a drip (Which I named Fido - see photo on the left) and told I had to drink lots of water. I was then informed that, not only had they to measure what water went in, I had to measure what water went out!! They then showed me this plastic thing which was placed in the bowl of the toilet which was called..........wait for it.........a Euro Hat!!! (Why the hell would you call something like that a Euro Hat?? - please feel free to leave a comment if you can think of a good reason). It was a stupid design - I kept missing the bloody thing.......erm, I think I'll stop there.......

Happily I was not kept in overnight (although I have to admit that I was slightly sad to say good buy to Fido who had been my faithful companion to and from the toilet) and went home with a little concoction of pills having been told that I was not allowed any alcohol or spicy food.

So poor Sadie and Margaret spent their first day in Bangkok in a hospital room watching really bad movies one of which featured a treasure hunting Nicolas Cage (Actually I quite enjoyed that one - I blame the drugs!!). Not quite what I had planned but the nurses uniforms gave them some ideas for skirts that they would like made so it wasn't all a waste of time :-)

Oh God….I am an Idiot!!

I got up on Monday morning and ran around the house like a loony getting everything ready for the imminent arrival of (Can’t help it….feel a drum roll coming on) da, da, daaaa the INLAWS!! Then I grabbed a taxi about 11am, they were due to land at 12.05pm and I didn’t want to be late, and headed over to the delightful Suvarnabhumi Airport whilst explaining to the taxi driver that I wasn’t a tourist and that I expected him to put on his meter (Honestly….the taxi drivers over here drive me mad…..they have this horrible habit of trying to rip you off – I wouldn’t mind this so much if it was by a little amount but when it’s four times what the journey should actually cost I have a bit of an issue!!).

So I arrived at the airport, found out which gate the flight got in at and made my way over to gate C. It was then that I discovered that the gate has two exits (Isn’t that sensible!!) and there was only one tiny little sign stating that tour passengers were to go to one side and the other passengers were to go to the other – it also didn’t help that, because there were places you could buy food, lots of people had congregated in front of the sign so not only could passengers not see the sign as they were coming out the gate – you couldn’t see the gate from where you were allowed to wait so had no clue if the people you were waiting for had gone to the other side. There were other inconveniences I discovered - for example (Yes, I’m going to rant) the exit is rather narrow and on both sides you have people trying to get tourists to take one of their taxies (at 4 times the usual price of course!!), drivers who have come to collect passengers and take them to their hotels and people waiting to meet their loved ones (Actually that was quite funny…..I saw a number of young women holding photographs which they desperately peered at every time a man emerged through the gate. Ahhh….the joys of e-mail romances - I wonder how many of the men sent a photo that wasn’t about 10 years old and that actually looked like them?.....I think I may be getting a bit cynical in my old age) Anyway, you have to peer round all these people in order to get a view of the gate. Finally, after someone had gone off with a driver to their hotel, I got a space next to the barrier and discovered that there is a bloody big plant across from the designated waiting area that blocked the view to the gate (Brilliant piece of plant placement!!) so I had to stand on tiptoe to actually see the gate…sigh!! Then, and this really annoyed me, a taxi tout shoved me out the way and said ‘I work here’. I had as much right to be there as he did – growl!! So after a couple of hours on tiptoe bobbing around trying to see round the plant, people, name cards etc I started to get a bit worried…..surely it doesn’t take that long to get through immigration…..god I hope there is not a problem (and before you ask ‘Why didn’t you just contact them?’…..I had tried sending a text to let them know that I was there and to head for the exit with the plant but my phone decided it would only send to Thai numbers – don’t you just love technology!) I ended up texting Chris and asking him to contact Sadie – he then phoned me and said

‘They are still in Glasgow. They leave at 3pm today and arrive in Bangkok at 12pm tomorrow.’

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!