Early Tuesday morning and it was time to take an early flight to Bangkok via SIA. The duration was nice enough for me to complete the new Star Trek movie (although the screen was so small as this was an old plane).
Upon arrival, it was a direct journey to my local office for meetings before heading back to Novotel Siam for check in. I've always wanted to stay here due to the superb location (it is beside Siam Paragon and a host of other malls, as well as the BTS interchange station of Siam). I had dinner at the basement of Siam Paragon before a relatively short Street exploration of Bangkok city before heading for bed.
The next day was fill with work and team building seminars. Dinner was at a nice Thai restaurant (Ban Khun Mae) just a stone throw away from the hotel and the food was fantastic!
The next morning was the team building activity which saw my team attending a Thai cooking class. A van came to deliver us to the Or Tor Kor market in Chatuchak. This is a rather higher end market with very clean white floor tiles and quality food on display. Our cooking guide showed us the variety of local ingredients so that we would be aware of them when cooking. We also had the chance to sample the MongTong durian, which absolutely turned off my Indian and Pakistani colleagues!
Off to the cooking school next after a 15 minutes drive. The Bai Pan Cooking School was set within a residential area, but has a sprawling complex that even contained a fishing pond and pavilions! The kitchen set up was modern and clean, with clear cut instructions and recipes provided. We made Mango with Sticky Rice, Tom Yum Soup and Pathai Noodles. It was really fun seeing some of my colleagues trying to cook for the very first time in their lives!
It was then back to the hotel conference area to wrap up the session and running through the emails before we break up for free and easy.
Dinner was at the nearby White Flower Factory @ Siam Square which served Thai Fusion. It was nice but not great. This place is more of selling the ambience for a young crowd.
After dinner, it was back to MBK again for my colleagues' shopping, though I was suddenly down with slight fever. Well, what to do when you have an insistent colleague who cares more about accompany than self wellbeing? Anyways, it was the last night for work so I get to sleep in the next morning.
The next day came and I had a very late 10am breakfast before checking out from Novotel. Immediately, I hitched a taxi towards Furama Xclusive hotel located in Silom and within 3 minutes walk from Nana BTS. I supposed it was off-peak and the rate was only SGD 65 per night. The room even came with a working kitchenette!
After a short rest, it was lunch at nearby (another 3 minutes walk) Thai store known as Thai &a Thai Northeastern Style Food. Ordered simple fried rice, sambal kangkong and prawn with glass noodles. Not fantastic nor memorable enough to return though.
Next up was to my favourite massage place: Yunomori Spa and Massage. This spa has an onsen section with several different pools for you to relax in before the massage session. I reckon I spent an hour there prior to my scrubbing session. By right, you are not supposed to return back to the onsen after massage due to the essential oil used. But I had scrub, so I could return and there I soaked for another 30 minutes before I left for dinner.
Dinner was within the spa complex, with Japanese food served. Yet another not so fantastic meal. Well, I supposed their strengths are in Spa and Massage!
On the way back to the hotel room just by Chong Nongsi BTS station outside the 7-11 store was a streetside BBQ set up selling BBQ on the stick. Couldn't resist the fragrant aromas and had a squid on stick. Hot and spicy with Thai sauce. Yum!
The next morning was breakfast at nearby Chu Chocolate Bar & Cafe, just 3 minutes walk from the hotel. Very American breakfast was served here. This was followed by by another session of massage and rest before venturing out for dinner. Oh how the day seemed to zip away doing just nothing!
Dinner was at Up to YUU @ La Villa Ari just beside Ari BTS. It was Thai Italian fusion and simply delicious!
Day 7 was another late wake up day and breakfast was at MBK. This was followed by pretty much the rest of the day shopping at Platinum Mall, getting some new (and cheap) clothing as well as some baby items for my new born nehpew!
Dinner was at Bua Restaurant in Silom area. It was also another nothing to shout about place. Guess I've becoming too accustomed to Thai food now. LOL
Day 8 was back to Siam Paragon for breakfast of similar items but better quality. I would recommend breakfast here at the basement food court as it offers a wide variety and you can chose the dish based on your preference of the day. Food here is also of higher quality as well so you know you get the good stuff.
After breakfast, it was back to the hotel for more rest!! And an afternoon swim in the pool! It was truly becoming a very relaxing trip!
Too the MRT to Phra Ram 9 station to grab my favourite roadside fried chicken and boy it was still yummy!!! Then headed back to Silom's Talad Nam Seafood for dinner. I've always sat at the entrance which made it look like a typical roadside eatery. This time, however, dinner was served all the way inside at the end of the alley and it turned out to be a real treat as there appeared to be a proper hipster styled restaurant!! Ordered the usual fare.
Day 9 and the last day. Breakfast was at the nearby street market food court so as to experience the local way of life. Thereafter, it was the transfer to Don Mueng airport for the flight back, with Fuji Japanese restaurant lunch prior to boarding. A very brief blog update but not because there was nothing to do in Bangkok. It was because I've localized myself to Bangkok and doing nothing meant doing everything! I'll be back very soon come April 2017 for my first ever Songkrang Water Festival!!
