Bangkok, What's The Rip About?

After the last vacation together with hubby in Sept 2014 (South Korea, I know I know I've been proscrasticating writing abt it for over a year now lol), Thailand is our stop!

We landed in BKK midnight of November 1st. We did our home work beforehand on getting a sum of cash upon landing, finding out where to catch a taxicab and not getting ripped off by asking the driver to run the meter. Much to our surprise, the driver wanted us to pay a fixed rate of 600 Baht (equals to roughly 17 USD, 1 USD translating to 35 Baht) to get to our hotel near the Siam Square.

First boba in Bangkok!

Reclining Buddha in Wat Pho

We said to the man that we'd rather have him run the meter, and assure him that we'll pay the toll fare (for a total of 75 Baht) and airport tax of 50 Baht. Glad he did not argue much, despite not looking too darn happy about it lol. At the end we ended up paying 290 Baht on the meter - the total was less than 400 Baht -saving more than 200 Baht there!

Some structures at the Grand Palace

It was close to 2 AM when we checked in at the Holiday Inn Express on 889 Rama 1 Rd. Nice location.. Quite close to the Siam Square, and price was not too shabby at roughly USD 75/ night. It's attached to a McDonald's, which closes at 2 AM. I ran quickly to get some chicken and OJ. Ended up with fries and chicken burger take-out since those were the only items they got closing down. Not bad!

Did not get much sleep as we woke up around 7 the next day. We planned out to pay the Grand Palace and Wat Pho a visit.

Finding a metered taxi cab was another hassle that morning. The first guy we talked to wanted to take us to the Grand Palace for 200 Baht. After talking  the receptionist at the hotel, we got a metered taxi and ended up only paying 100 Baht  -fare was actually only 71, but we rounded it up to 100, a practice recommended by Thai travel forum we came across.

We enjoyed sightseeing at the Grand Palace (admission was 500 Baht/person) despite the awful humidity that afternoon. What I found amusing there was the military guards in front of the palace. They were fun to take photos with. They never moved an inch, and I, posing next to them, honestly could not feel their breathing. Thumbs up Guys for not laughing despite being teased by visitors lol!

@Wat Pho. I had to chuckle on the sign :D

Wat Pho was the next site we hit after Grand Palace. This one's admission was quite cheap at 100 Baht. You got a free bottled water too by turning the admission slip in inside the temple. We got a 30 minute Thai massage (at 260 Baht) at the massage school in the complex. The wait was a little over half hour due to the long queue but it was well worth it.

The heat was a bit too much for us that we were not even hungry when it hit lunch time. After palace and temple sightseeing, we were headed to the Siam Square and started munching on snacks (bubble tea at Dakasi and chicken skewers) at around 4 pm.

We ate early dinner at the Central World food court. It's a nice-looking food court with over 50 food vendors offering delicacies at inexpensive prices. You can get a very nice meal starting at 50 Baht here -amazing! I had a delicious squid pad thai for 60 Baht. I was full but my eyes were still hungry for more food. Ended up getting a bowl of tempura udon for 70 Baht. I was barely able to walk when leaving the mall!

My, so many good food to eat in Bangkok! Life is hard! *sarcasm intended*
I was just hoping I would not get a heart attack while traveling.

Me teasing a Grand Palace guard

Our first day ended in Health Land Spa, where we were refused services but the expensive massages. Ended up spending 3000 Baht (close to $90) for 1.5 hrs of body massages for us both. They kept saying they were fully booked for cheaper massages. That sounds more like a bs to me.

If they had therapists available, which they did, why couldn't they give us the basic 60-min Thai massages (priced at 500 Baht)? Instead, they gave us the pricey red menu and made us pay for more expensive massages. I was rather upset that I only ended up tipping 100 Baht for each therapist. Yeah, that's not even 10% of the service price. But, whatever. If you run a business that way, expect nothing but unhappy customers.

Arrived back at hotel 11 pm that night. Wheww.. What a busy first day!

Checking in at the Holiday Inn

Gorgeous golden structure at the Grand Palace

It was a really hot day at the Grand Palace