On to Bankok
We were up early for checkout and transfer to Bangkok. Luckily, Saturday morning affords light traffic coming into the city. I can't believe how much the city has changed. It is actually clean now. Infrastructure is absolutely first rate. We got to town in time for lunch before heading to the tailors! Regarded by many to be one of the best in the world, World Group has been around the corner from the Oriental Hotel for 38 years. They just moved into a gorgeous new space literally next door to the hotel. We both had suits made and I got a few extra shirts copied from one of my favorites. Perfect!
Checkin at the Oriental was like coming home again. I hadn't stayed here in well over 15 years. Updates have been made to keep the rooms fresh, but the lobby is exactly the same - as it should be in my opinion. Luckily we got to stay in the garden wing, (I still call it the Old Wing), with it's famous split-level rooms overlooking the pool and river... and now the towering Peninsula on the other side! I showed Laine around before we freshened up for drinks and dinner with my brother-from-another-mother, Dennis Tan, and his wife Nung. Of course we had to sneak one in first at the Bamboo Bar! Still the same!
We headed down the street to the new (to me) State Tower, which has a restaurant and couple of rooftop bars on the 64th floor. Needless to say, the view is stunning. Bangkok has metamorphosed into a sparkling metropolis! I can't believe it. Dennis is fantastic as always. Nung is gorgeous and charming - a perfect complement to a man who is the definition of "class act"!
We eventually made our way to dinner at a swell Thai restaurant somewhere around Siam Square called Baan Kahnitha. We proceeded to gorge ourselves on a multitude of unpronounceable dishes from every region of Thailand. Fish, curried duck, prawns, pork, eggplant, and on and on. We even had a couple of bottles of actually drinkable Thai white wine which was a great accompaniment to the food! Dynamite meal! Highly recommended.
Checkin at the Oriental was like coming home again. I hadn't stayed here in well over 15 years. Updates have been made to keep the rooms fresh, but the lobby is exactly the same - as it should be in my opinion. Luckily we got to stay in the garden wing, (I still call it the Old Wing), with it's famous split-level rooms overlooking the pool and river... and now the towering Peninsula on the other side! I showed Laine around before we freshened up for drinks and dinner with my brother-from-another-mother, Dennis Tan, and his wife Nung. Of course we had to sneak one in first at the Bamboo Bar! Still the same!
We headed down the street to the new (to me) State Tower, which has a restaurant and couple of rooftop bars on the 64th floor. Needless to say, the view is stunning. Bangkok has metamorphosed into a sparkling metropolis! I can't believe it. Dennis is fantastic as always. Nung is gorgeous and charming - a perfect complement to a man who is the definition of "class act"!
We eventually made our way to dinner at a swell Thai restaurant somewhere around Siam Square called Baan Kahnitha. We proceeded to gorge ourselves on a multitude of unpronounceable dishes from every region of Thailand. Fish, curried duck, prawns, pork, eggplant, and on and on. We even had a couple of bottles of actually drinkable Thai white wine which was a great accompaniment to the food! Dynamite meal! Highly recommended.
posted by ultimatetraveler at 7:49 AM
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