Paddle Boats and Aquariums

Today we utterly failed in our resolution to get up and get going before the sun got hot--it was after 10 before we managed to wake up, shower, eat and get out the door. But we stuck with our original plan, and walked to (relatively) nearby Lumphini Park. There we bought some water, then wandered around. There was a marching band holding a rehearsal near the band stand, a few farangs (white folks) riding their bikes, and an increasing number of Thai families congregating on the grass for picnics.

I noticed a surprising number of couples in which the female was performing serious grooming on the male--imagine a guy stretched out on a picnic blanket with his head in his girlfriend's lap, and her picking lice. Or popping zits. For a half hour at a time.

There are several small, artificial lakes in the park, and we rented two swan shaped paddleboats to explore. Mostly it was pretty, but then we spotted the 4 foot long lizard swimming around! Fortunately for my heart rate, just about the same time I first saw it, it stuck its tongue out, so I knew it wasn't an alligator only 10 feet from the boat. I called Declan and Richard over to see it, but a Thai guy had spotted it, and began herding it way too closely. We were trying to maintain a respectful distance (admire the wildlife, but don't harass it), while this guy seemed to think the game was to see if he could get close enough for his kids to pet the thing on the head. He chased it the entire length of the lake.

After that we got on the sky train and headed to a shopping mall. We sought out the food court for lunch. There were the rich folks restaurants (entrees for a mere 8 to 12 dollars a piece), and the working stiff/backpacker stalls (entrees for 2 to 3 dollars a piece). Guess where we ate? The system was interesting. At the entrance to the cheap eats, you bought a debit card, loading it with approximately what you thought you'd spend. After ordering, each stall would swipe your card. At the end, you could take the card back and get a refund for whatever you hadn't spent. It made service much faster at each stall, since they didn't have to count any money.

After lunch, Richard and Aidan headed back to the hotel to get some writing/homework done, while Declan and I planned to go to the aquarium (in the basement of the shopping center). We got distracted by the "gourmet market" (think Whole Foods gone Thai): I'll let him tell you about the samples.

We then explored the mall a bit (after going to the movie theater to discover whether or not the american movies were subtitled in Thai (meaning the soundtrack was still English) or dubbed (in which case we wouldn't need to consider buying a ticket). Most of the films are subtitled, so we may go to a movie soon. (As an aside, we were shown a Claude Von Dam movie on our VIP bus. I think that dubbing it into Thai actually improved it, as we didn't have to be distracted from the bad fight scenes by even worse dialogue.)

The mall contained lots of high end shops, including a BMW store and a Lamborghini store, complete with cars. The place was packed, but the impression I got was that there were lots of people window shopping, but not that many people actually buying. And the teenagers were busy hanging out, trying to impress.

We finally headed to the aquarium, and discovered that tickets for one adult and one kid would cost over $50. We did a quick rethink, and decided that a)even if it was the largest aquarium in SE Asia, maybe that was a bit much, b) if we were going to spend that kind of money, we should consult Richard and Aidan first, and c) if we were going to spend that much, we should at least come first thing in the morning and spend the whole day.

We probably won't go back, but we are still wondering just how they pull off the glass bottom boat ride under the mall.

After some gelato, we re-boarded the skytrain and headed back to the hotel.