Red Shirt - When Blood Covers The Shirt

It's 3.43PM. The staff has left the building. 

BTS station closed. More soldiers had been deployed.

And they carry guns and mean business.

Tension is boiling.

Even BN has turned green here.

And... Hello...Why am I still in Bangkok?

Bangkok Dangerous - Damneon Saduak Market

It has been a while since my last blog on Thailand. Well, been busy lately. So, without wasting any more time, my last day trip in Thailand... Damneon Saduak aka The Floating Market. On our last day, we decided to hire a taxi driver for an one day tour. Business is bad there after the riot. Taxi drivers are desperate to get passengers. They are willing to bring you everywhere even if they don't know the road. This is the case of my driver. He used the wrong route. Damn, I was lucky it is a lump sum charge however. He brought me to the place eventually but to the wrong boat ride agent.

That scumbag agent charged us RM 200 for a boat ride when there is public boat ride deeper inside from the entrance. For those going to Thailand, don't be lazy when the taxi driver parks straight on a tour agent ground. Insist you want to walk around and find public transport tour. All you need is ask. You must learn to say "NO" to those persuasive scumbag that will use all kind of grandmother story to bargain with you. Even boat ride fare can be bargained.

In Thailand, you must be prepared to be cheated or at the losing end when it comes to price bargain. I encounter this lady there who I bought small boat souvenir. She began the offer at RM20. All you need to do is shake head even if you think the price is reasonable. She dug out her calculator and asked me how much I can offer? The easiest way to come with a value is just follow your instinct. Come on. How much can a small hand made wooden boat cost? Probably less than RM10. I pressed "1" and "0" and showed to her.

The second rule of the bargain is she will shake her head no matter what price I came out with even if I pressed "2" and "0". The next thing you do is simple. No need to teach. A small kid also know what to do. Chinese has a 36 Greatest Escapes. The first one is "LEAVE". On the third head shake this time by you, I'm sure you will probably get the price you want. I was correct. The lady budged to my offer. Just when you thought you were the winner of the "Battle Of Price Bargain", you will come to sense that you are the loser no matter what. Just answer this question, "Will she sell me something without profits?". Definitely no, right? Therefore, I lost to her. Some comforting words, maybe by a smaller margin.

Damneon Saduak is actually a morning market. It is of no different with the normal wet market. Maybe this is wetter. They sell almost everything. Vege. Fruits. Souvenir. Food. Drinks. Wait. Vege? Come on. Which tourist will come to a country and buy cucumber? And why would the locals find the fuss to pedal a boat just to bargain and buy onion when he/she can get it directly from Tesco. Parking FOC some more. No need to bargain also cheap liao.

I'm sure it used to be one busy and hectic market those days. It is the atmosphere that reminiscent of the days when water transportation is a norm. Here if you go for private boat like mine, there is no safety jacket. And I you are unlucky like me that I am not Michael Phelps then all you need is one thing. PRAY.

Selling fruits and vege is ok for me. When it comes to people actually turning this uncomfortable yet small boat into a kitchen, you will praying again that the hawker doesn't wash the cutlery from the river. Or scooping one cup of water from the river and claim it is teh tarik. The tradition is so important for them until the shop I ate is so stubborn to leave the boat. What? Cooking inside a boat tastes better one meh?

As for me, I prefer to eat on solid platform no matter what.

Thais are very inventive. They turn limited space into good use. This reminds me of another Chinese sayings. Get one inch, want one foot pula. But for the Thais...

Give them one inch they will turn it into one foot.

Bangkok Dangerous - Wat Arun

Alright, after seeing the title of this post, your reaction might be "Wat Arun? Wat the @#*%! Not again" . I totally agree that after reading so many "wat" post and me coming up with another, I can understand the "Wat the @#*%!" reaction.

But of all the the wats, I would rate this Wat Arun second after Wat Phra Kaew. You have to take a ferry to cross the Chao Phraya river at just 3 baht one way. It should be cheap considering the toilet at Wat Arun even costs 2 baht?

Wat Arun was named "Temple of the Dawn" because the first light of morning reflects off the surface of the temple. Steep steps lead to the two terraces. Wat Arun is very small if compare to Wat Pho and Wat Phra Kaew in terms of area. But it sure conquers the skyline in Bangkok. Wat Arun is the icon of the city. Looking from far, you might think Wat Arun is the Eiffel Tower of Bangkok.

Climbing up the very very really really steep steps can be very very really really scary. For the ladies who plan to come here. Please don't wear skirt! It can be quiet disadvantage when people is trying to take bottom top shot and it happens you are at the top. Please don't distract the attention of the photographer.

All you can climb is until the second level of the Wat. And I can assure you that those with acrophobia (scared of height) should never attempt to climb up. All this while, I dislike my mom for saying that I had acrophobia. Reason is:

Because she is scared of height.

All her sons will scared of height.

I am one of her sons.
Therefore, I am scared of height.

It's a moment of truth trying to make my mother's theory looks dumb. I took the giant step to prove the theory is totally unacceptable as well.

It's not the ascending that freaks you out but it is the descending part is the one killing you. After reaching the top, I noticed even descending is not frightening part, it was the first step of descending that is the defining moment of truth.

Just like bungee jumping. Making the step to the platform and jump is the toughest decision for one to make. After you jump it's all about Newton's grandmother story. You put your life in the hand of Newton's law of gravity and hope it really what it claims to be. Most of the tourists face towards the steps while descending. I tried the extreme (prove my mom wrong). I face outward with my back against the steps. I can guarantee you that you wish there's Pampers for adults.

But having done that, I guess the handrails are the one that gave me some courage to complete that feat. Grasping strongly on both rails, I took each steps carefully so that I won't step on the head of others. If you have tried Batu Caves before, this is 5 times Batu Caves in terms of steepness. After the feat, one will feel like King Kong has captured the World Trade Center .. Grhhhh...

Paying another 3 baht to cross the river back to Tha Tien Pier and then the unlimieted public boat ride back to Sathorn Pier, I think this boat tour along Chao Phraya is worth one day trip with all the wat tours. Less than 600 baht for all, I guess is worth it.

One day unlimited boat trip ride = 120 baht

Wat Phra Kaew = 350 baht

Wat Pho = 50 baht
Wat Arun = 50 baht
Return ferry to Wat Arun = 6 baht

Prove your mother wrong = Priceless!

Bangkok Dangerous - Wat Pho

After walking around Wat Phra Kaew, we had a simple lunch and with some local direction we got to our next location. Wat Pho aka The Temple Of Reclining Buddha. After a few chicken and duck conversation with the locals, I told Han Ching we had enough. We have to be selective of the person we approach to ask for direction. Ask only students or someone dressed up working in office. You have a higher percentage of knowing the answer in your preferred language.

Before that, let me explain my philosophy. I don't look down on people that don't speak well in English. Well, why should someone speak English at first place? Neither conversing well in English does make you look intelligent nor the other way round. Only the people who loves their country like Thailand are proud of their language. Just like Japanese and French. They don't speak English well but I am sure they are much more intelligent and smarter than a 12 years old (from MIX FM) some of us who boast they know how to speak English well. OK, back to this story, I asked those who I assumed know English is because I don't want to get lost. Nothing personal here. No looking down on people.

Wat Pho is the one of the largest and oldest wat in Bangkok and is home to more than one thousand Buddha images, as well as the Reclining Buddha. The Reclining Buddha is forty-six metres long and fifteen metres high, decorated with gold plating on his body and mother of pearl on his eyes and the soles of his feet.

Here, you can't touch the Buddha's feet. Who would like their feet to be tickled, ok? Ironically, the temple is known as the birthplace of traditional Thai massage. With these big feet, who wouldn't think of foot massage, right? Talking about foot massage, Han Ching has been pestering me to go for this Thai foot massage to which I won't give in. Reason? Well, I don' t believe any part of my body to be knead by some unlicensed yet claim to be reflexologist. I'll be using Bus Number 11 for all the time in Bangkok. I don't want my tired sole to be battered and knead like a a piece of playdough. In the end, what I got is a tired and painful feet. And the people will come up with these comforting rubbish like:, "Pain means your body is not healthy" or " No pain no gain" to which I will lambast with " Big pain, no brain!".

Getting to the entrance to see the Reclining Buddha can be a bit unpleasant. You will be greeted with some pungent smell. Ok, no offensive or disrespect words to the temple here. But you will agree with me because all the visitors need to take off our their shoes to enter. And you have to do it by passing by a long shoe rack where the visitors put their smelly-sweat-drenched-salted-fish-smell shoes.

Advice: Please eat your breakfast/lunch before coming here.

Bangkok Dangerous - Wat Phra Kaew

Wat Phra Kaew is regarded as the most sacred Buddhist temple (wat) in Thailand. It is located in the historic center of Bangkok. Getting there is easy. I didn't took their tuk-tuk (tuk tuk is only for the locals, if a foreigner hitches a ride it will be way expensive) or taxi there. I took public boat from Sathorn pier. At first the taxi driver brought us to a private boat trip tour that charged us 1200 baht per person. For those who are going to visit Bangkok, beware of taxi drivers that make pact with the local tour agents.

Not falling to their trap, we decided to look for ourselves the public boat. We manage to get local directions. The one day unlimited boat trip along the Chao Phraya river is just 120 baht! The original price was 150 baht but because of the recent strike that ruin the tourism sector, they reduce it by 30 baht. Not a bad timing to visit Bangkok though. We were concerned before we go to Thailand that there might be another strike this time by the red team (Thaksin supporters). I told Han Ching, no yellow and no red shirts for the whole 3D 2N tour.

A majestic guardian figure guarding an exit to Grand Palace. You can find this figure almost in every temples. To be frank, this figure can be quite scary at night. Just imagine this figure turn to life and fight with Ultraman. Sure Ultraman will lose.

They even employed "Kwan Kung" as the second line in defence of the temple. Who knows Ultraman might win the first battle jsut in case? Sometimes, you do find it weird that you can actually see some Chinese ancient deities blended into their Buddhism religion.

Architecture wise, it has its own uniqueness. Wondering what engineering standard or code they used to come up with this structure? A little bit of Buddhism effect, gem, gold, cement and concrete and walla... A wonderful structure that withstood the test of time and also the threat of thieves. If you mange to cart away with one of the column or door, I'm sure you can buy a new Ferrari by selling the gem itself.

I guessed I am lucky to visit Bangkok at this time of the year. Source says the best time to come to Bangkok is early of the year. The morning is cool and windy. Although in the afternoon the weather is warm but it certainly not like the hot and humid weather in Malaysia where you will certainly lose gallons of sweat. Having said so, that does not mean you can get away from bringing along your cap and drinking bottle. Because you are moving around in the city, the air is tend to be filled with exhaust gas from cars.

Talking about car, Thais love to use truck more than passenger car. You see all those 4WD trucks to hit the road so often that you might thought what sort of heavy equipments they bring everyday. Thais are very innovative and creative. They basically convert their truck into a multi-purpose killing machine cash earning vehicle. You will notice truck turned mini public bus everywhere. They put a hood on the back of their truck and install cushioned seats. Don't be surprise if you see 10-15 peoples crammed up the places at the back of the truck. One taxi driver told me that Japanese dislikes the Thais because the people here basically turn their luxurious Toyota and Nissan into some cheapskate four wheel vehicle.

During my stay here, I noticed they even have this motorbike taxi. Just imagine you are 5 minutes from being late for your job interview in the city because of traffic jam. The car won't even move an inch. Your taxi driver is honking and honking but to no avail. Your destination is still 2km away and judging from the thick makeup and mascara you painted on the face, you are actually of no difference of looking like a daytime zombie if you decided to embark on sweaty marathon dash. Or worse for sweaty guys, the interviewer might thought you broke their office toilet water tap. How you wish there's a motorcyclist that knock on your windows and told you:

"Don't worry ma'am , I will drop you to the destination for 20 baht."

You can reach on time and no need to mess up your hair by wearing any helmets. Sounds great? Yup, there is this service available in Thailand. I'm sure if this service are being implemented in Malaysia, there is sure a way for the Mat Rempits to turn over new leaf.

Who wouldn't pay a cheap RM2 for a 4-5km ride from LRT to their house right? Business opportunity. Modal is low and demand is high.

I'm a Buddhist and I have to shamefully admit that I'm not that religious in the sense that I go to temple during Chinese New Year. In Thailand, the people here have strong believe in Buddhism.

Go to any store in the vicinity of this Wat Phra Kaew, you will notice thousands or millions of effigy or figure or amulet of Buddha in any sizes, colors and materials.

I have people that collects Coca-Cola can, soccer trading card, stamps and postcards. How about effigy of Buddha for a change?

Even though, you might see that the youngsters here are Westernised, yet they are all very polite. They look polite behave polite. Not like us. We look impolite but actually very polite.

I guess that is even better than look polite but actually impolite. Hmm.. sounds like our politician right? Perhaps, that is why they are called politician (POLITE-ONLY-IN-ELECTION).

Bangkok Dangerous - Suan Lum Night Bazaar

In Malaysia, you have all these Up Town , Down Town, New Town, Old Town, and Petaling Street as if there are many towns are booming like mushroom. Then come this bazaar thing. Actually, back to origin, they are actually just night market aka pasar malam. After spending a fortune for the amount of food that only can feed one ant's colony, we decided to walk to the nearby Suan-Lum Night Bazaar.

There, they have one of this Indiana Jones shape arch which I think is the landmark of this place. What it gotta with pasar malam is beyond anyones' idea. Well, sometimes we don't need answer to every question right?

Gee. I regret that I didn't came here first and just spend the 1500 baht at the Vertigo restaurant for supper instead. Now I have to do the other way round. Anyhow, the truffle smell still making my tummy felt reluctant to gorge down any food. There are a lot of stalls here. Walking along the tables, one will notice Singha or Chang beer bottles everywhere. Beer anyone? Not for me..

Thais love their king. His picture is hanged everywhere like national hero. Let me ask anyone of you: What is the name of our previous Agong? Bet you will be googling it in the Internet after this.

With a gigantic portrait of this size to show your loyalty to the ruler, I guess it will even put Sapok Biki into shame.

Christmas is way back last year and the decoration is still there. Oi.. Chinese New Year is approaching and you still with your last year Christmas decoration? By the way, take a deep look at the bear's mouth. Very devilish looking right?

My Wedding Bell? Jennifer, you can use this photo on your blog with a minimal charge. Still, a luminous night in the city of Bangkok.