lebua | trying to travel light

Becky catching the bus

So this time we decided to stay in a different hostel in a different part of Bangkok, and what a difference! We were in the newer part of town where many international and business hotels are located. Of course, this meant that there was still a 7Eleven within spitting distance but added to this was a sky train and metro station and a giant mall called Terminal 21. This place kept us entertained for a good few hours as we ate amazing and cheap food in their food court and took silly photos as each floor was themed. There was a London themed floor with Royal Guards, a giant London bus, a giant tube train and post box, Brick Lane (near where I live in London) and lots more. Becky had to leave the same day we got to Bangkok and I will be forever grateful to her for taking a whole bunch of stuff (shopping) home for me – thanks Becky!!!

London calling

So Anushca and I were left to our own devices for a few days until I flew to Singapore on the day Thai New Year started and until Anushca left after New Year to go back to India/Miami/Jamaica. We could have filled our days going to see some ruins out-of-town or going to another beach or to another waterfall but what did we do instead? We explored some crazy gigantic shopping centres, visited some important little temples that we’d missed before, drank more iced coffee, had a dodgy massage, ate more delicious food and then checked ourselves into a 5 star hotel for one night.

The shopping centres were crazy! One was two buildings, each five storeys high, filled with clothes (and a food court, of course). We also went to another that had one floor entirely filled with electronic goods, stall after stall of iPhone covers, mobile phones, computer accessories etc etc except that they all sold the same stuff. How anyone could actually choose what they wanted to buy in these places was beyond me but it was fun looking and people watching.

Temples and shrines in the middle of the city

As for the dodgy massage, we only wished that Becky had been there because it would have been even funnier! The hostel recommended a cheap place round the corner but maybe we should only have had a leg massage or Thai massage. Of course, feeling adventurous, and not knowing when we’d be able to get cheap massages again, I opted for a Thai herbal oil massage and Anushca an oil massage. We were shown to a small cubical (literally, some partition walls with a door) that had to thin shabby mattresses on the floor. We were given a towel each but no instruction whether or not to undress (and how much) and what to do… and so the giggling started. My massage was ok and I enjoyed the traditional Thai herbal compresses after the oil but Anushca said the girl doing her massage was copying everything my lady did but not so well. So all was fine until we sat at the end with the towels draped around our shoulders while they massaged our necks. After this they did that famous Thais massage manoeuvre where you hook your hands behind your neck and then the lady hooks her arms in, swings you from side to side and then flings you off to one side to release your spine. Of course when they did this the towels didn’t stay in place and all four of us ended up in a fit of giggles! Not quite what we had in mind when we paid for a massage but you learn to expect the unexpected when you’re travelling!

We came back to find our slipper laid out, the lights turned down, the beds ready and a small note with the weather forecast

The five-star hotel called Lebua was amazing! It’s where the famous Sky Bar is located so after spending the afternoon lapping up the luxury in our suite (they don’t have rooms, only suites) and enjoying the swimming pool, sauna and steam room, we treated ourselves to a cocktail and a wonderful view of Bangkok by night.

Finally, I had to say goodbye to Anushca too and I was back to travelling on my own. I’d had so much fun travelling with both of them and spent so much time laughing that I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about travelling on my own again. Only one way to find out – next stop Singapore!