The Wheel and Axle

Bangkok By Night

So my vacation ended last Saturday night in a place I’d fallen in love with before: Thailand.

And yes, I still love the place.

Arriving Wednesday night from Mandalay, I managed to do a few more new things this time around, including getting to see the famous Jim Thompson House and Museum (where I saw an authentic silk-weaver), the Erawan Shrine, Platinum Fashion Mall, the Victory Monument, a dinosaur theme park, and Kamthieng House. I ate the highly-rated papaya salad in the famous Som Tam Nua as well as noodle soup in one of the street stalls of Sukhumvit Soi 38.

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Hua Hin is known as the Royal Beach Resort because it has been the favored holiday destination of Thailand’s royal family. In fact, the royal family apparently have their own special “receiving dock” in the train station; it’s as opulent and gorgeous as pretty much anything associated with Thai monarchs.

Well, I may not be a member of any royal family, but I certainly enjoyed my stay there – from the very lush and luxurious Putahracsa Hotel and Resort to the food-coma-inducing Night Market where one can enjoy lots of excellent meals and cheap goodies. We almost had not gone to Hua Hin due to possible time constraints and, to be honest, just a tad bit of laziness, but I’m glad we got rid of that funk and made our way to this town.

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I still remember learning about King Bhumibol Adultadej (Rama IX) back in high school circa 1992 during Ma’am Stella’s Asian History class. I became fascinated by Thailand’s monarchy afterwards.

The King was one of the most beloved monarchs in the world. Aside from their law that disallows the defamation or insults of their king, queen, and heir (in place even before he was crowned), he comes from a line that ensured that Siam would never be colonized. Moreover, he himself has been seem as a calming and unifying force in Thai politics; although he has limited powers (being a constitutional monarch), he has used his influence to ease high tension periods of the country.

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