G'Lovers Travels

Thursday 18th November - Singapore If anyone reading this is planning a trip to Thailand my advice to you would be that any guide book you buy with 'advise' sections in then read them and take them on board! I had the 'Lonely Planet' guide' bought for me a few months ago and I have read it and re-read it yet I still let some bloke fool me! don't worry no harm was done & no money spent…. I was walking towards the Grand Palace& I'd managed to avoid most people (local) talking to me up until a very persistent guy decides to block my way and point to a large doorway very obviously closed. He tells me that the Grand Palace is closed until 12pm for prayer. He also mentions that if I take a government run tuk tuk today I go any where I want for 40BHT he waves a tuk tuk driver down and the next thing I know, I'm on the back. He took me to a sitting buddha in the Banglamphu area of Bangkok. Then he took me to a fashion house where they made men and women's fitted suits. When I came out of there I told the driver I didn't care for shopping I just want to go to these places that I've circled as I only have the one day in the city. He said that he had to take me to one more shop for him to get a gasoline voucher I tried to argue the point and he was getting a bit frustrated. I agreed to go into the shop for ten minutes and then I wanted to go to the places I'd previously told him. He took me Wat Benchamabophit next a buddhist temple which houses 53 different statues representing every mudra (gesture) and style from Thai history. Interesting I also managed to see monks at prayer. When I got outside my tuk tuk driver had gone! a taxi driver asked me how many shops he'd taken me to when I told him 2 he said he'd have got the vouchers he would've wanted and he's left you! I managed to find another tuk tuk driver (funny that!) and I got him to take me back to the palace area NO SHOPS this time, he didn't like my requirements! He also charged me a lot more because of that! He also tried to convince me to buy trousers and a top from a Thai stall as I had long shorts on and wouldn't be allowed in to the palace with them. Now while I respect the buddhist faith, any other religious building be it a temple, mosque or church if there's a requirement of clothing they will supply you with something to cover up. I knew the Grand Palace wouldn't let me down and my instincts were correct, 200BHT got me a dark green sarong number and the money was returned to me when I gave it back! SO DON"T BELIEVE TUK TUK MEN, THEY"RE LIARS!! After I'd wandered the vast grounds of the Grand Palace also taking in Wat Phra (temple of the emerald buddha) I took a walk to Tha Tien and caught a 3BHT ferry across to Wat Arun (temple of Dawn) which you climb to the top of (if you're fit enough, crikey it was steep!) I got the ferry back across and walked the short distance across the road to Wat Pho, Bangkok's largest and oldest temples which houses the famous most popular attraction the reclining buddha - 46m long & 15m high. It's feet are 3m high and have mother of pearl inlays! Wat Pho is also where the Thai massage school is and so I paid 360BHT (£7 ish) for an hour long massage which was very nice, relaxing but it was the fastest hour of the day!! I got the final tuk tuk of the day back to Khaosan road and met Jo Jo & Joe for a beer and pizza! We also wandered round the stalls and I bought 2 pairs of Thai fishing pants So excited I look like a hippie in them but I don't care. Family reading this if you're thinking 'oh my god what is she turning in to?' you should think yourselves luck it's just pants because I was really close to getting dreadlocks weaved in to my hair and my wrist pierced! HONESTLY!!!! Jo And Joe are 2 friends from the ship and we happen to be doing a very similar trip around Thailand so when we'd eaten we saw 'fish spa' now these guys had experienced this in Cambodia the year before I'd seen it at Singapore zoo but daren't do it on my own as the tank was facing out for all to see. As there was 3 of us and they were up for doing it again we did. Ha, it was one of the funniest things I've done. Basically you put your feet into a take of small fish and they take all the dead skin off by biting or sucking (not really sure which?!) Once you get over the tickle factor which took me about 5 minutes! it's like your feet are vibrating. 150BHT got us 20 minutes (usually it's 15 minutes but to be fair as I said I spent the first 5 minutes screaming and laughing like a pansy and he must have felt sorry for me!!) - I've attached a photo. I Skyped my best friend back home when I got back to the hotel I was whacked having been out for 14/15 hours or so. She was talking to me along with her little boy Rosco (who's 4) when we'd been talking for about an hour she asks me what my plans are tonight? I told her I 'm going to bed I have a taxi at 5.30am she told Ross to tell me not to be so boring and go out in Bangkok. She said I can sleep on the plane how many times am I going to go out in Bangkok?! so I went……she gave me 3 things to do 1 eat something horrible and take a photo (at least take a photo of it) 2 have a cold beer 3 take a photo of a lady boy! I went out for about an hour taking in the atmosphere of Khaosan road. It really is something else. Always alive! I took photos of bugs (food) I snapped a local which could've been a lady boy and I'd had a beer earlier with Jo & Joe and didn't want another one. Anyone who knows me knows a beer a week is too much for me! So I failed my mission, but at least I went our again, I love her for that. That's what's good about Linzi she's so straight with me about everything that offence or treading carefully is never an option we tell each other how it is - even if it through her 4 year old son!!!