Home » Thailand » Southeast Asia Travels #3: Thailand's Urban Bangkok, Laos' Rural Muang Ngoi

More recently (Dec. 2001 - Jan. 2002), I spent a month in Southeast Asia. A week in Singapore, two weeks in Laos, and a week in Thailand. I sent some letters home to friends during this trip. Check 'em out if you like:

Southeast Asia Travels #3: Thailand's Urban Bangkok, Laos' Rural Muang Ngoi

Luke Melia
2006-01-12 10:16:58

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January 14, 2002

To my dear friends and vicarious travelers,

I made it to Thailand to meet Elbert and within 15 minutes of his arrival at
Bangkok's beautiful Shanti Lodge, we'd decided to go explore Laos some more, and
we had our plans organized a few hours later. We're now back in Thailand, on the
resort island of Phuket, where we spent yesterday on an empty beach and catching
up with Patti's friend Scott and are planning a trip to explore some submerged
caves by sea canoe and do a bit of scuba diving (Elbert) and snorkeling (me).

I'm feeling a little homesick around now, but not enough to keep me from
enjoying every day and every moment here.

Here are some bits and pieces from the journey:

+ Movies in Style in Bangkok

We had a bit of time in Bangkok, though, and so after spending the a day on
foot, we decided to catch a movie.

We caught a cab over to Siam Center, a big mall with a movie theater on the top
floor (a common arrangement in Asia -- I saw "Lord of the Rings" in Singapore in
a mall with a similar configuration). They sure do malls well here -- creative
architecture, great use of light and plants, and an impressive lineup of stores
make for a very modern, hip feel. We saw lots of hip Bangkok teens in high
fashion and funky hair hanging out at the mall that night.

We purchased two Gold Class tickets for "Ocean's 11" for 300 baht each (US$7.50)
and got a bite to eat before the flick. I had pad thai from a fast food joint at
the mall called Rider. Their slogan is "Good Guys Eat Noodles". :-)

Once it was time for the movie we showed our tickets and were ushered along a
red carpet where a pair or translucent doors automatically slid open as we
passed ...