March 29 - 30, 2009: Obama Makes a Surprise Visit to Bangkok

We were so exhausted and were so comfortable in our bed at the five star hotel that we didn’t even wake up until 2 pm! Although we were both still feeling the effects of upset stomachs and wanted nothing more than to continue sleeping in the plush bed, we forced ourselves up so that we could experience Bangkok before having to leave the next day.

We began by daringly playing a game of "Frogger" across the street of dizzying traffic with brightly colored cabs and tuk-tuks buzzing speedily in every direction. Once safely across, we went into a gigantic shopping complex where we grabbed lunch. After eating, we walked around the shops and checked out the deals. Sarah managed to find some jewelry at a shop named “The Pink Pussy”. I found that pretty humorous and she turns red every time I ask her to remind me where she bought that necklace.


After leaving the shopping plaza, we decided to try to find the Imperial Palace. We were approached by a friendly Thai man who spoke great English and informed us that the palace was closed on Sundays and that he knew the “really good” places to shop. I quickly realized he was trying to con us, so we left and took a taxi to the palace. By the time we arrived, it was in fact closing. But it had been open all day, contrary to what the man earlier was trying to tell us. I watched as Sarah fiercely bargained with a street peddler for some postcards, and then we made the regrettable decision of taking a tuk-tuk to another palace with a giant Buddha statue.

A tuk-tuk is the motorcycle-like buggy that Thailand is so famous for. It seemed charming enough, until we had to deal with the driver. Before embarking on our ride, we agreed on a price of about 40 baht (or one US dollar) for the short ride. (In comparison, we had earlier taken a real, air conditioned cab all the way across town for only about four dollars). As he drove us the short couple of blocks to our destination, the cabby asked where we were from. We (unfortunately) had told him we were Americans. He proceeded to sing a little song that went like this: “Obama…..Obama……….rich, rich Obama! You are like Obama…..rich, rich like Obama….!” You can see where this was going. Sarah decided to sing him her own little version of “We’re not rich like Obama!” but he didn’t seem to care.

Once we arrived at our destination the cabby decided that the fare was actually going to be about $20 instead of the $1 he had originally quoted us. I guess my striking resemblance to Barak made him confident I would just pay up. However, I was in no mood for his crap and tossed him the 40 baht we had originally agreed on. I told Sarah to get out and start walking, and I did the same. As we walked away he hollered at us with a scowl on his face. At this point, feeling sick at my stomach from whatever illness was plaguing me, coupled with my building irritation for Bangkok tuk-tuk drivers, I wanted nothing more than to punch that guy across the jaw. Instead, I made the wiser choice of entering the palace area and turning my mind to happier thoughts. Sarah still managed to snap a quick picture of him as we walked away!


We walked around the temple grounds for a little while and snapped a few pictures of the glimmering palace structures. We still weren’t feeling very well, but we sucked it up and fought on. The palace was very interesting, but we were more focused on not getting sick in front of anyone at this point. So we decided to move on.



After bailing out of a couple of cabs with unscrupulous drivers who wouldn’t take us to our requested destinations, we finally managed to walk to the Siam Center, which is the popular shopping center we were headed for.


After a little more shopping and watching a Thai show of dancing, we finally succumbed to our fatigue and infirmities and made our way back to the hotel.


On the way back, Sarah noticed a very appetizing food cart of all sorts of delectable insects and worms. She somehow managed to keep her upset stomach in check as she snapped a few photos. I, however, marched swiftly into the hotel.


Once there, I felt absolutely awful. I broke out in a cold sweat and couldn’t get warm no matter how many blankets were piled on top of me. My body, however, was very hot to the touch and I was sweating immensely. My stomach was killing me too. We ordered room service and I was able to get some tomato soup and bread down. Sarah wasn’t feeling great either, but she managed to get all of our things packed and ready for leaving early the next morning. Eventually, we both fell asleep.

The following morning, we got up bright and early to catch a cab to the airport. At the airport, we decided we would have time for one more foot massage at the parlor where we got our first massages. It was wonderful and made us temporarily forget about our infirmities. However, this almost proved to be a fatal move. We were held up in the customs line for so long that we were literally ushered, at the very last minute, onto the plane which was ready to take off. In all seriousness, we were probably about one minute from missing our plane all together! Thankfully though, we were able to board the plane we made our way back to good ol’ Fukuoka Japan!

The trip may have ended in little bit of a sour note with our aching stomachs, but it was an amazing trip; one that we will always look back on with fond memories of adventure, travel, and new experiences. As with our Australia trip, we hope that it is only the beginning of our worldly travels.