Sunday, May 18, 2014

#CousinsBKK Day 1 & 2

It all started when Scoot was having 50% off airfare for their Christmas promotion so i did a randomly check on the air tickets and found out that it cost about $140 to fly over to BKK and back! I immediately asked on the *cousins group chat if anyone is interested in flying to BKK in April and the whatsapp convo just went on and on with a few of them interested. Soon i had to leave for night duty (and will have no phone reception) so i told Jing Long - "Here are my passport details, if you and the rest eventually decides to buy, help me buy also. LOL" Christmas to April is like 4 months and i had no idea if my workplace will clear my leave but heck it! Don't care, just buy, think later. HAHAHAHA

The next morning when i had phone reception once again, my phone was bombarded with a few hundred whatsapp messages. Guess how many of us bought the tickets in the end? A TOTAL OF 12 OF US. I was initially quite shocked because i was only expecting at the most 4, including myself. It's gonna be a super epic trip with so many of us going! :D

For the next 4 months before departing, the group whatsapp convo was constantly on the topic of BKK like which hotel to stay, where to go, what are the must try food blah blah blah. There was even a point of time where the convo led to a few suggesting refunding the tickets due to the ongoing riots in BKK! Eventually about 4 gave up their tickets, 8 remaining. I had the mindset that no matter what happens, i will still not refund my ticket. Worse come to worse if the situation in BKK worsen, i will just forfeit it and not fly. At the same time, Joyce and Kaizhi who missed out the promotion eventually decided to join us by booking their own air ticket! In the end 8 + 2, a total of 10 of us in total! :D

Fast forward to April where the day has finally arrived and just nice a week before, Bangkok declare something like they are going to stop all the riots and there will be peace, something along that line, lolololol By the way, this post is not a travelogue to BKK because #1: I think i blogged about BKK twice already and #2: It's the same few places that a shopaholic like me can go. This post is more like a photo post for me to record down the happening and my thoughts!
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Met up at the airport in the noon because our flight is at 5pm+ (I know right, scoot has the weirdest timings but then again we shouldn't complain much because of the discounted airfare...) First time traveling in such a big group, it was also the first time almost the whole *cousins go on an overseas trip together! Legoland Malaysia not counted hor? LOL
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It was also my first time taking Scoot! 2 rows of fours for the eight of us while Kaizhi sat at another area because he bought his ticket separately and upgraded his seat to the more legroom "yellow" seat. Joyce whom bought tickets from JetStar instead will join us the next day! The overall experience on Scoot was not bad and the seats were much more spacious compared to other budget airlines! I will also be taking Scoot again for my trip to Korea next month! YAYYYY
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Was bored on the plane so i took out a pen and started doodling on the barf/ vomit bag that i found in front of my seat, whatever you call it. One of the air stewardess saw it and commented that it was well drawn, lol. *blush So shy HAHA
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Reached BKK in the evening and instead of taking a cab to town like i always do, we planned to take the subway instead! It was my first time taking the subway from the airport. I thinking next time i might consider taking the train too since i get to avoid the massive evening jam and save some money as well. It took about 30 mins for us to reach...
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The skies were dark by the time we reached town.
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Found our way to our hotel - The 93 Hotel. The room was very spacious and clean! I think we paid only $60 a night. Very worth it, clean and comfortable, plus the location is not bad too. It's located at Pratunam market area and perhaps just a 8 to 10 mins walk to Platinum mall? I think Bangkok has one of the cheapest hotel compared to other countries. Good!
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First time after putting down our luggage was to gather and find dinner! Wanted to have cheap and good zi char so a few of us suggested those road side zi char stall near Platinum mall. The moment you step into the zi char area, you will be swarmed by the stall helpers. Basically they sell the same thing so i guess it doesn't matter which stall you go to.
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Divided ourselves into 2 tables and ordered our own dishes. As you can see from the photo above, we ordered a lot! There were roasted chicken, grilled fish, tom yam soup, omelette, mango salad etc. We just ordered without knowing the price of the food and when the bill came, we divided the amount among ourselves and the meal cost just about $8 per person! Where to find such good and cheap zi char in Singapore!!! After the meal, we went for a walk and decided to head back to the hotel and rest for the night because the real BKK shopping adventure officially starts the next day!
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Woke up early the next day and went down to the streets to look for breakfast. Specifically went to look for this auntie that sell omelette rice. I've been to BKK thrice and i never once fail to visit her because her omelette rice is freakin' delicious and it cost only 2 bucks! The way she prepare the omelette is like how anyone would normally prepare a omelette (with the usual soy sauce, salt and what so ever) but the end result is so different. I had her omelette rice like once a day throughout the trip, LOL It's like no matter how you try to do it yourself, you can't seem to replicate it.
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First stop Platinum Mall! Literally spent the whole afternoon inside this mall and bought ALOT of stuff! The group of us eventually spilt up and started shopping on our own. Joyce took a morning flight, went to the hotel to put down her luggage and came to join us at Platinum! Oh ya, while shopping i spotted Josh who came to BKK with his group of friends. So qiao! Met up with the rest for a break at about 5 plus and decided to grab a bite at the A&W next door, love the authentic root beer float in the chilled mug and the curly fries! I remember having them in SG when i was little...

Planned to head over to Siam paragon for dinner but a few of us decided to head back to the hotel to put down all our stuff before heading to Siam. I cannot imagine carrying all my super heavy barang barang and walk all the way to Siam and back, LOL Something funny happened along the way back - Angie bought a pack of mangoes along the way and while crossing the overhead bridge, she was so focused on her mangoes until she missed the last step and fell! The mangoes on her hand flew all over the place and landed right in front of this unlucky sweeper #FHL #hermangostory
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Since Mr. Jones Orphanage is one of the must visit cafe in Siam, we decided to give the place a visit! The varieties of cakes and pastries is oh my tians... Imagine if they decided to open an outlet in Singapore, it will confirm be packed!
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The last time i visited this place, i had the famous kit kat chocolate cake. (which you always see on FB and instagram nowadays -_-) This time i ordered the Strawberries and cream waffle. It's simple the best that i ever had! The waffle comes with a generous amount of cream and strawberries, and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Totally worth it! 5 stars
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After our meal at Mr. Jones, we continued shopping at Siam area till late and decided to end our night with a massage! Went to "Number One" that is recommended by Angie and had to wait for about 40 mins before our turn. Did the leg massage and it's damn ticklish until i couldn't take it at some point of time. I swear i almost wanted to retract my legs and give the masseur a kick! I think she spoke to her colleagues beside her about me, something like "Psst, look at his face ah, look at his face ah" then she add more pressure on my foot. Then i will cover my face with my cap. TMD.  The wifi at the place was damn good though. (the hotel one sucks ttm.) That's all for Day 1 and 2 for my BKK trip with the *cousins! Next post would be on Day 3 and 4 where we head to Chatucak weekend market and a few more places! :D


Day 1 & 2 | Day 3 & 4