Our trip started off a little crazy on Friday afternoon because we were a bit late checking in and it turns out Alex wasn't listed as a lap infant and it took a long time to get it sorted out. A Singapore Air representative escorted us through immigration so we could make the flight on time and we even got upgraded to business class (not too shabby for Alex's first flight!). Alex did great and Ben got a little freaked out by the noise and the pressure on his ears, but he was much better on the way home. Things are looking pretty good for the trip to Houston next month! As soon as we arrived in Bangkok, an airline rep met us in the jetway and escorted us through immigration again, but this time so that we could finish booking Alex and, more importantly, pay for his ticket. It worked out fine because we never had to wait in line and got out of the airport fairly quickly. We settled into our hotel, a 2-bedroom serviced apartment - which was perfect since we brought our maid along - got the kids to bed, and Matt and I went out to explore the town. We went to the Silom area and checked out some markets and pubs.
Later, we caught a little Thai boxing. I've never seen a live fight before but I think this was probably a lot more interesting than regular boxing because they're using 6oz gloves and kicking. These two guys were wailing on one another.
Here was the winner...I had no idea he was so little until I stood next to him!
We went to a seafood market restaurant that was pretty unique. The kitchen was open to the outside so we could watch all the chefs working and smell the food cooking as we walked in.
The really interesting part was inside where there was an enormous seafood counter and produce rack so the customers walk through and select exactly what they want to eat, check out, then take their "groceries" to the table and tell the waiter how to have everything cooked. These lobster and fish were all alive and kicking....doesn't get much fresher than that!
Our groceries made for one delicious dinner.
Meanwhile, back at the hotel Ben was calling for room service. Our maid Jocelyn spent the weekend hanging out in the hotel with Alex so she ordered room service for lunch and dinner and Ben thought it was great fun. We finally unplugged the phone so he could call for chicken nuggets as much as he wanted.
Ben got very friendly with everyone he met and most people were crazy about him. He learned how to say hello in Thai and it got him a lot of attention, on top of being fair-haired and blue-eyed.
Alex, on the other hand, only got to say hello to people in the restaurant at breakfast because the little guy never left the hotel. Bangkok was not exactly infant-friendly so he enjoyed his toys in the comfort of the room. We are extremely fortunate to have a full-time maid who likes to travel with us because it's also a vacation for her, because she gets to have someone else do all the cooking and cleaning. Since we have no family around to watch the kids it's the only way we're able to take trips and actually see anything.
Headed back home Monday Ben had one last mandarin orange juice in the airport. He wore his sunglasses most of the trip....maybe that's another reason he turned so many heads?
He was really good on the plane and we didn't even need the portable DVD player on the way home. It's only a 2-hour flight, though!
Alex checked out the bassinet and even slept in it for a while until one of the flight attendants bumped it with a cart. It gives me hope for a pleasant journey to Houston because Ben would have nothing to do with it when we flew over here the first time and I was really disappointed.
We got back to rainy Singapore this afternoon and Matt and I decided it's one of the best weekend trips we've ever had. Check out the next two posts and you'll see why....
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