Bangkok Retreat, 2010

This is the thirteenth part of our 2010 Burma Crusade. Click here for the index.

It's an unusual concept for most travellers, but we came to Bangkok in search of a little bit of peace and quiet. Only when my best friend told me what a mess I had made of the initial upload of the Burma blog did I fully appreciate how discharged my personal batteries were after a month when the adrenalin was obviously all that kept me going towards the end. So we abandoned our usual lodgings - the New Empire Hotel on Chinatown's main street - as being too noisy and headed into the back streets, our guest house was in the middle of the picture below in front of the high rise. My low opinions of the modern China need no further expounding, but I am an unrepentant fan of the best of traditional Chinese culture as exported to South East Asia, never mind the 'music' from the adjacent Taoist temple kept going long after I would have preferred to be asleep, it was a small price to pay.

It is an area of recent sentimental value as it housed one of the last stationary engine steam workshops in Thailand. From the street or the river front, you would never guess what used to go on inside.

We were stuck here because Yuehong still needs a traditional visa in her passport every time she wants to enter Malaysia. We'll sort that eventually but right now it requires me to use all my many years of experience in the region to get the right endorsement so we can enter by train, only when we return to the embassy concerned can we be sure the charm has worked. At risk is serious money, the airport tax in Bangkok alone is far more than half the cost of the train ticket.

So in the meantime, it's grin and bear it and avoid the tourists as far as possible. For as long as I can remember, I have always had small temple bells hung round the outside of my home and, once installed, I would never dream of removing them. Since we have a new house in the UK and a new flat in Penang, first stop was the Giant Swing or more particularly the temple accessory shops nearby. They're not expensive, it's a cheap bus ride and it's great fun watching the monks opening their wallets in the local supermarket. They are definitely spoiled for choice, you can have a 'jade' Buddha to suit your pocket. 

For a 'foodie' like Yuehong, it's time to let the guilty feeling wait awhile, the waist line can be sorted later. For an elderly alcoholic me, it's time to reflect that very soon I'll be 'on the wagon' for a whole month and Beer Chang at a pound a bottle represents a real bargain.

Mama had her own personal daily duties to perform, it's just a bit of a shame that the freezer (with the cold beers) had to be placed there.