Makha Bucha Day

We woke up early this morning as we have a 10:15 flight to Ko Samui. We will be spending the next week at a few Thai islands

Yesterday was Makha Bucha Day, an important day in the Buddhist calendar. In observance of Thai law and custom, the National Alcoholic Beverage Policy Committee issued a notification to prohibit alcohol sales throughout the day.

Friday night we went to Sukhumvit Road district. We weren’t crazy about the vibe of the area as there were a lot of 50+ old white guys with young Thai women. After a couple of beers we took a tuk tuk back to the hotel.

We started Saturday by going to the Jim Thompson House & Museum. Jim Thompson, originally from Greenville, DE (shoutout to Delaware) was an OSS officer who after World War II fell in love with Bangkok and made its home. He contributed substantially to the growth of the Thai silk industry. A practicing architect prior to WWII, the house and grounds he designed represented the best in traditional Thai architecture.

In the museum portion of the complex, there was watercolor of Rehoboth Beach done by Jim Thompson. When I mentioned to our tour guide that we live there, she said that she heard it was a gay beach. Jane responded that it is a city very welcoming to the gay community.

Jim Thompson disappeared on March 26, 1967 while on a visit to Malaysia. The guide said that he may have been eaten by a tiger, but they have no idea.

We than took a khlong boat on the canal. We went to the Bobae Market and then walked to Chinatown.

No, we didn’t have any insects, but I did eat live crickets when we were in Vietnam in 2018.

We then walked through the Charon Krung and Khaosan Districts. We really enjoyed the vibe in these areas, especially compared to where we were Friday night.

Even though yesterday was suppose to be a dry day for Thailand, the entrepreneurial Thais served beers in coffee mugs. After a day of walking in the hot sun, the Singha Beer was very tasty.

We had a wonderful visit to Bangkok. Sure traffic is crazy and there is plenty of air pollution but the sites were amazing, the people are incredibly friendly, and the food was delicious. We really liked our stay at the Royal Orchid Sheraton and the club lounge was great.