South East Asia trip 2014: MARCH 10, 2014: THAILAND AGAIN: BANGKOK-BOSSOTEL, DINNER-CABBAGES AND CONDOMS

THAILAND

BANGKOK-March 10-13, 2014

March 10, 2014

Our flight from Yangon arrives in BANGKOK at 2:30 pm. I find a money changer and hand over $500 for 15755 baht. Again I get a paper slip for the taxi but this time we have a regular cab, not a van. The driver asks if we want to go the fast way but will have tolls. Cost 250 baht plus tolls of 60 and 40 baht. Back again to the BOSSOTEL. Seems like we never left! We check in, I put the balance for the 2 nights we haven't paid for on my credit card-3600 baht-and are given room 607 which is very nice. Rate per night is 1800 baht which includes breakfast and all taxes. We also retrieve our bags that the hotel has been holding for us. Our room this time has a view of the front street. There is a shower but no bathtub. A very large sitting area. I decide to check with Capital One and my accounts to see how much money is left in them. I find a credit from Air Asia of $265 for the flight that they had canceled from Phnom Penh to Bangkok. Instead I had to book with Nok Air which turned out to be more costly but did get us in to Bangkok during the day. The Air Asia alternative flight would have arrived Bangkok in the evening and the entire day would have been wasted. I am very upset to find that Capital One has sent us refund checks for thousands of dollars that should still be in the accounts. I believe this happened because for the month we were in Myanmar/Burma we never used our credit cards. I had to send a secure e-mail to Capital One requesting they put the money back in the accounts and put a stop on the checks they sent us. This wasn't supposed to happen as I had informed them of this trip, etc. What a pain to have to deal with this on our vacation!

We relax by the pool for what's left of the afternoon. Dinner tonight will be at a restaurant our daughter went to when she was in Bangkok. We take the BTS for 42 baht per person one way to Asok station and then walk until we get to CABBAGES AND CONDOMS. This place is even wilder than I expected. Lots of mini lights and condoms everywhere you look. A figure of Santa made from condoms! This restaurant was started to promote better understanding and acceptance of family planning. It also helps to support the Population and Community Development Association. There is a a gift shop with products produced by villagers from rural areas of Thailand. I order nor mai farang phad goong/shrimp and asparagus and plain rice and my husband orders khao phad nam phrik long reua/fried rice with spicy shrimp paste with pickled garlic, salted egg, and sweet pork. Tiger beer, coke and strawberry ice cream bring the bill to 747.40 which includes a 10% service charge. Instead of after dinner mints we are given 2 condoms!! Dining here has been an experience we will not forget and not just because of the eclectic decor. At the table next to us the young man gets out of his seat, goes down on one knee and proposes. The girl says yes and I tell him he's a lucky guy! But if you ask me I think this is a strange place to propose! A stop at the handicraft store where I buy a cute gift package of incense for 100 baht. BTS back and we're "home" by 10:00 pm. I check my I PAD and decide to add on 10 kg. for our checked luggage and an extra 10 kg. on Richard's scuba bag for our Air Asia flight to Phuket. Now we have a total of 50 kg. for the 2 bags and 25 kg. for the scuba bag. All this for 486 baht.