Serendipity

This past week Joe and I both had vacation and we thankfully got a chance to spend some much needed time together (he works days and I work nights and weekends). First on our agenda was to go to Bangkok to see the new Harry Potter movie in IMAX 3D and then immediately head to Khao Yai National Park to spend some time in the woods.

After a rough start- we barely made it out of Khon Kaen due to over-crowded busses at the end of a holiday weekend- we arrived in the capital at about midnight and quickly found a cheap hotel near the movie theater to crash.

In the morning we ate a leisurely breakfast at le bon pain. I thoroughly enjoyed a bagel sandwich, the likes of which I hadn’t feasted upon since I left the states. We then headed to the top floor of the swanky Siam Paragon Mall to purchase our tickets for the much-anticipated spectacle.

We were devastated to learn that the IMAX machine was broken and that there would be no 3D Harry that day or the next. Thankfully the regular theater was still showing the film so we purchased tickets for the next show. The awesome movie immediately lifted our somewhat defeated spirits and erased any ill-will I was feeling toward IMAX theaters and/or Thailand.

After discussing the film over pizza in the basement of Paragon, Joe and I headed to Khaosan road, the acclaimed backpackers haven of Bangkok. I wasn’t that impressed, most of the place consisted of overpriced cheap clothing and expensive beer. I was able to unearth some really cool yarn made out of recycled silk, a find that’s even sweeter considering the fact that I can only find really wimpy acrylic stuff in KK. We ate dinner at May Khaidee’s vegetarian restaurant (the initial draw to Khaosan) and discovered a little soi of vegetarian restaurants that I’m sure we will visit on subsequent Bangkok visits.

The highlight of the day (other than the movie- of course) was the tuk-tuk ride home where Joe and I held a very decent conversation with the driver. About 85% was in Thai, and this despite the loud noises of the tuk-tuk and the general bedlam of Bangkok. We went to sleep with the idea that we would get up early and catch a bus to Khao Yai. Luckily, things did not go according to plan.

After our alarm went off, Joe was suddenly struck with the idea that we should stay in Bangkok for another day (did he just want to sleep in or were there greater forces at work?). I’m not normally one to break from the decided course, but I figured we had nothing to lose since we didn’t yet have reservations at Khao Yai. Without any real plans we headed back to le bon pain for breakfast again (chocolate croissants-mmm…) and decided to visit Jim Thompson’s house which just happened to be a short walk away.

Jim Thompson is an American famous for revitalizing the Thai silk industry (and for disappearing without a trace on Easter Sunday in 1967), and his house is a prime example of a traditional Thai-style dwelling (that's where we are in the picture). We took a tour of the beautiful house and settled down in the café there for some sodas with lime juice to people-watch the other tourists.

Just looking around a particular middle-aged man caught my eye and I thought to myself, “He definitely looks French,” followed by, “He looks really familiar,” and then, “I think that’s my host father from Paris.” After I got a look at his wife and children I became even more convinced this was the family I stayed with 5 years ago in France. You might think that I would more readily recognize them, but their sons had aged considerably and it was simply unbelievable that we would run into each other in such a random place. I ran out of the café and confirmed my suspicions. We caught up for a few minutes (in a very broken mixture of French and English) and then went our separate ways, they on their tour of the house and me shaking my head in bewilderment.

Without any further plans for the day, Joe and I guiltily decided to see Harry Potter again only to discover that the IMAX was fixed- after the worker assured me yesterday that there was no chance of this! The movie was even better on the huge screen, although the 3D portion was somewhat disappointing.

We spent the rest of the day wandering around the streets surrounding Siam Square (where you can find much cooler shopping at competitive prices than at Khosan road in case anyone is planning a visit) and ate a nice dinner at a Thai restaurant. The Thai food in Bangkok is very different from the extra-spicy Issan food in Khon Kaen where it’s hard to get a good peanut sauce.

All in all the decision to stay an extra day couldn’t have been better or more serendipitous.

Details on Khao Yai to come.