BACK TO BANGKOK

After a large, late lunch in Mae Hong Son; I was driven to the airport. Now, I would be flying back to Chiang Mai, there I would catch a flight to Bangkok. My luggage would not be checked thru, I was dispirited to hear. However, there was good news; this airplane would not be small as the one before. My luggage wasn’t overweight and there was no fine when I checked in!

The flight was delayed by an hour. However a TV with a 48 inch screen was in the seating area to entertain the passengers. A Thai game show was just beginning.  And it seemed quite a physically challenging one! Contestants had to race across a lake jumping on giant rubber lily pads. Half-way, a tall man in a monster costume was unleashed. He would sprint across those pads like an Olympic athlete often catching-up to the struggling contestants and hurling them into the water. If they managed to beat him and reach the other side, men wielding long poles would try to prevent them from stepping onto the platform. However, the majority of contestants made it nowhere near that far! But it was fun to watch!

The flight back to Chiang Mai was a short one. I would be returning to Bangkok via THAI airways. The only one I was familiar was THAI LION, but the counter was empty. Since my Mae Hong Son flight was late, I worried I had missed this one! I grabbed someone who looked official and explained my situation. We walked to a computer where she looked over my passport & papers.

OK, it was THAI SILK I was booked on! The counter was way down at the end in the opposite direction. Then I frantically raced around searching for my gate! Finally, I came to what appeared to be it, but it looked closed. A nice lady noticed the panic on my face and spoke up. “If you’re going to Bangkok you’re in the right place.” She pointed to an empty seat across from her.

We chatted pleasantly as her husband snoozed in the next chair. I showed her my itinerary. “You sure got yourself an impressive birthday present,” she said.

Well, it was much more than that. I was scouting a possible future home. Though I’ll admit there was an element of bucket list wanderlust. But had you told me 5 years ago that I would be riding elephants in Thailand just weeks after my 65^th birthday, I would have replied, “Yeah in an alternate universe!”

The flight to Bangkok took little over an hour, but we were served a tasty dinner. Or at least I was, because I’d placed a special meal order throughout.

After landing, more crowded lines, confusing directions, and another luggage carousel mix-up awaited me. My final guide was standing at the exit; a petite Thai lady; this one, only to pick me up and take me to the hotel and then the airport the following day.

As we stepped outside it was hard to believe this was the same Bangkok I had left not long ago. It was COLD!  -- Actually Florida cold, not Michigan cold, but still quite an extreme from before!

“This weather is rare and I don’t like it,” the guide said.

“I wish it had been like this during the first part of my trip,” I told her. ‘I was drenched in sweat and that was in the shade! But under the blazing Thailand sun I was baking in my own juices in summer clothes and it was January!”

Standing bundled-up by the van was Pako! But Ketsara had been reassigned and she was missed!

I was driven back to the Chatrium Hotel. This would be my final night in Thailand. Thanks to the heavy Bangkok traffic it was already 10:00 PM when I checked-in. But WONDERFUL news awaited me; I’d been upgraded to a suite!!! A bellhop picked-up my luggage and led the way.

As I stepped inside, I couldn’t believe THIS was actually mine, even briefly! Before me, was a nicely furnished apartment! Here, was a sitting room along with a complete kitchen with a full-sized refrigerator & stove, plus a counter with chairs. Just off the sitting room was a wide porch overlooking Bangkok and the Chao Phraya River plus a table to sit and enjoy the view. A sliding door separated all of this from the spacious bedroom & bath. Next to the bed was a floor-to-ceiling picture window with the same glorious view.

And I thought the view from my previous stay was spectacular, but this one kicked its butt! I was now on the 29^th floor and not the 21^st. This was the type of atmosphere a politician on a fact-finding trip would enjoy! I stood in awe of the wonder of it all. Looking around, everything felt amazing and incredible. Just this morning I had been riding an elephant thru a mountain jungle. My ant bites  still fresh and now I was HERE!