Hooray... Thailand Photos

OK, OK. I know that I have been promising some photos, so here you go. I just got back from a 4-day trip yesterday, and it was so great to just spend the evening with Cheryl and the girls. We had a great dinner in good ol KL, and enjoyed sitting outside under the stars as we ate amazingly good Thai food (ironically enough!)

When I landed at KLIA (Kuala Lumpur International Airport) yesterday, something different happened: For the first time since we've been here, I actually felt like I was returning "home". Cool, huh? The airport is becoming more familiar, the traffic -- more familiar, the skyline -- more familiar. KL is really starting to grow on me. By the way, did you know that KLIA was recently voted the 6th Best Airport in the World. No wonder, either -- the place is absolutely amazing. It's clean, high-tech, and intelligently designed. And I used to think O'Hare was nice looking... From the link above, you'll also notice that 5 of the top 10 airports in the world are in Asia. They have a thing about great airports here. Believe me -- the Singapore Airport would blow your mind. I fly through there almost weekly these days.

SO, onto the photos from the week. First, here is a shot of my hotel room in Bangkok. I stayed at the Conrad Hotel, a five star place. Wow.


Here is a view slightly left of the one above. The room was perfectly designed. Just wish I was there to ENJOY the place rather than work.


The bathroom was sweet. Here you see the tub through the glass window that faces into the main part of the room. The curtain at left was motorized for easy, quick closing. Check out the sink as well. Also, speakers in the bathroom allow one to hear the TV even if the door is closed and shower on.


This is the view of Bangkok from my hotel room window on the 30th floor. Not bad.


Notice how clean the air looks. It's actually not very polluted. Lots of unfinished buildings though. One article I read stated that there were over 500 buildings left unfinished due to the 1997 Asian economic crisis.


Huge signs adorn Bangkok buildings. Here, drivers are told "Drink Don't Drive". Hmmm.. Not sure how I'm supposed to interpret that.


In Bangkok, you can find anything with wheels on the road. I'm not kidding. Check out this guy's sweet ride:


Also, there doesn't seem to be much regulation on what you can and can't carry on the road. I saw several trucks overloaded far beyond safe capacity. Here is a typical load -- nothing but pineapples!!


Thai billboards put American billboards to shame. They are easily 4 to 5 times larger, and that INCLUDES those you'd find in New York's Times Square. Many are built with a truss structure, such as this one. Simply amazing in size.


Thai people absolutely adore their king. This year they are celebrating his 60th year on the throne. All over town you see billboards and shrines honoring the king. The official color to honor him is YELLOW. On Monday's (as we found out), the entire country wears yellow shirts. No joke. We kinda stuck out as we navigated town... Here is a typical building display.


If you didn't already know, Thailand uses a completely different alphabet than ours. It is very beautiful, actually. According to our host, there are something like 44 characters in Thai. Here is a typical road sign:


OK. The sign is orange, so I'm thinking this means "Construction" or "Warning". But how can you obey a sign where not even a single word makes sense???? Check it out:


Taxis come in all shapes and sizes. In Thailand, they also come in HOT PINK. I rode in one of these babies this week. Like the spoiler??


Ahh, but not so fast. Look closely. This taxi is not quite sure of its brand. Would you believe four different auto emblems??? Is it a Toyota.... or a Ford.... or a Honda.... or a Mitsubishi??? We may never know.


That's the end of the slide show, boys and girls. Please let me know what you think. Also, since I'm traveling almost weekly, let me know what you'd like MORE or LESS of.

Your favorite Asian,

greg