Memories are one of those fantastic things you bring along when you travel a lot. I love watching pictures again and again and compiling them for one of my several photo books. You can somehow dive back into these places you've visited - a wonderful escape from challenging (or boring) everyday life. Another kind of memories are those that are just in your head. I can think of thousands of ways to trigger those souvenirs. It could be a conversation with someone who visited the same place, reading blogs, listening to music, watching TV-shows, movies or just reading news or advertising. Mostly those memories can be considered great. As I am a lot into TV series and as they really often take place in New York city I always get excited. I loved this city (a report is gonna be launched here at the blog soon too) and especially the Chrysler building - in my opinion it’s one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. That’s why it always makes me happy when they short clip the skyline in those shows (Castle, Unforgettable and Gossip Girl are just awesome)! That’s just one example for those „Oh, I’ve been there“ lucky moments. Awhile ago I traveled to Thailand for the first time with my younger brother Konstantin. Many parts of our 3 days stay in Bangkok cross my mind again and again and I would like to share them today.
Our local city guides
My brother has a friend in Bangkok. Her name is Gem and she showed us her city together with her friend Noon. Knowing locals is one of the best things that can happen to you if you like to travel cities. You can be sure you stay away from tourist traps and get to know the real face of the city. It's really cheap to get from one place to another in this city. I remember that we spent about one hour and a half in rush hour in our taxi from Suvarnabhumi Airport to our hotel - and we had to pay round about 280 Baht (7 Euros). For short distances tuktuks are a perfect alternative and really great fun. It’s one of the must dos in Bangkok to go on a tuktuk tour. But if the driver’s (taxis as well as tuktuk) recognize you as tourists they might try to screw you a bit by insisting on a fixed price (I learned that taximeter is always cheaper!) or telling you the place you want to visit is „too far away“ or that there is „too much traffic“ right now. So we let Gem and Noon talk to them and there were - of course - no discussions. But even if you don’t have the opportunity to be shown around by locals, you will not become poor in Bangkok because of taxis or tuktuks. The same applies to food. Thai food is delicious and really the opposite of expensive. The famous food-stands offer everything you can possibly desire - different Thai curries, Pad Thai (a noodle dish) and fried rice variations for example. There was one desert I had never eaten before and can highly recommend: rice in coconut milk with fresh thai mango. A colleague of mine had spent a long time in Thailand and provided me with a lot of inside tips. One of them was a restaurant called „the View“. It’s located next to the river with a garden full of lampions and live music inside. The food and the location is very authentic (be careful if you are not used to spicy food!). When we had dinner there, we were the only tourists. Is there a better way to let yourself drift into a foreign city?
Movie memories: Hangover 2 and the Beach
There are several movies I associate with Bangkok. Just a few weeks ago I watched the movie „Mammoth“ in which one main character stayed at the same hotel we did, the Millennium Hilton Hotel. The breakfast buffet is one of the best I ever had in a hotel. My brother could have had breakfast for hours there. The hotel also has a rooftop bar (called „360“) with a stunning view over the city and the river. Another lovely rooftop bar - the „distil“ - is famous because the „Hangover 2“ guys were there too. That’s why many tourists go there but it’s still really worth it. When we were there it rained - so we were’t able to got outside but the photos we took got a special and mystical atmosphere instead. Another must see is „Khao San Road“ - it’s a crazy street where you can find everything most people associate with Bangkok in the first place. We did’t drink any snake blood like Leo DiCaprio does in „the Beach“ but we were offered many other crazy things, for example scorpion lollipops, funny little frogs you can produce real croak sounds with or (again and again) someone wanted to take my brother to a "ping pong show“ with very suggestive facial expressions. As a caring older sister I managed to prevent that. On „Khao San Road“ you can of course also find several bars, restaurants and shops - everything you need to have a really good night in a vivid city.
Other clearly unnecessary and funny things can be bought at several (day, night and weekend) markets and (often theme) shopping centers. It’s also something you should’t miss if you want to get the full Bangkok experience. I don’t tend to spend a lot of time doing real shopping when I am on holiday (except when being in the United States - I have to admit that). But of course Bangkok’s city center takes care of that, too.
Of course we did not miss to visit some of Bangkok’s hundreds of temples. I think those buildings are perfect photographic opportunities. We visited the temple complex around the Grand Palace (ticket price 500 Bhat). You get overwhelmed there by all those colors, sparkling and expressions. Fortunately those buildings provide a lot of shade too - it can be really hot in Bangkok. There is not much talk about the temples - sometimes pictures say more than words can describe. So check this out:
Moments of remembrance I could do without
Finally there are also memories I would be glad without. In August there was a bomb attempt near the Erawan shrine in the city center. Of course we also visited this must see together with Gem and Noon. It’s a lovely place where so much Thai culture can be experienced right in the middle of the urban hustle. I cannot understand why things like this happen. It makes me angry and sad at the same time. I do not want to sound too philosophical. Of course there are times in which I would never visit certain destinations as for example due to the political situation. But the sad truth is that we are never and nowhere immune to such terrifying events. Therefore, as far as I’m concerned they will not discourage me from traveling. There are still so many magnificent memories to collect… .
Hotel: Millennium Hilton
Getting there: Etihad flight (Frankfurt via Abu Dhabi) or Lufthansa (Frankfurt non-stop) flight
Special thanks to: Gem & Noon - Thank you so much for showing us around! We had a wonderful time in Bangkok!
Anselm - You gave me so many advices for that trip - I still remember our lunch and coffee breaks about this topic - thank you so much for all that inspiration!
And last but not least - thank you Konny - you are the funniest and best brother one can wish for!
Soundtrack: Murray Head - One night in Bangkok, Bruno Mars - Treasure
I have to admit that whenever someone told me he or she was going to have a club holiday I was rather wondering why than green with envy. I always associated this kind of holiday with being forced to take part in rather annoying activities and not even having the possibility to read a book at the pool/beach or to be on my own (meaning being with whom ever I travel but without any talkative strangers) when having breakfast or dinner. As sometimes things turn out otherwise, I ended up having a club holiday with my lovely friend Lena in Andalusia - and guess what? I loved it! Now I want to share my experiences from a whole different perspective. I was taught once again that it is always worth giving things a try - with an open mind.
I do love experiencing new cities and places, absorbing nature and new images and of course taking thousands of (different) pictures with my beloved camera (or iphone). That's why my holidays often involve at least a few stops at different places, a hired car and I tend to make sure I got to see everything the very city or place has to offer. The truth is: club holidays are different. Although our club was only an 1 hour drive away from Granada with its famous Alhambra, we did not leave the club grounds once during our 6 days stay. We wanted the complete picture!
Everything is taken care of!
It was fitting that we both had recently overcome a few very demanding weeks and therefore were longing for nothing more than laziness, pleasure, delicious food and good company. And we received it all: We had booked an all inclusive arrangement - in our case this did not only mean that we would have had the opportunity to eat exceptional good food from about 8 am until 10 pm but also could participate in every course of the huge sports program. So pancakes, fruits, scallops, scampi, beef filet, permesan tortellini and varying dessert delights (just to name a few of those sins) were (at least partly) trained down by step aerobic and spinning classes. My favorite course was the yoga class at 8.30 am - even though I am more the sleepyhead type! The course took place just next to the beach with the sea breeze waking us up and the sun coming around the corner right when our sun salutation was almost finished. On top of all that we spent our days at the private sunbathing lawns which are located between the (in this area of Andalusia pebbled) beach and the pool. Enriched with our favorite music and books we tried hard to become evenly tanned and refresh ourselves optionally by jumping into the pool or the Mediterranean Sea or getting another fresh juice or soda. It's perfectly practical that you can order whatever you want whenever you want at the beach or pool bar or just grab a bottle of water out of the refrigerator - especially under a radiant sun and 30 degrees. Before we went to our afternoon sports classes or just to get ready for dinner we often had another cappuccino at the lovely beach bar. From there you can watch the beachfront hustle (especially during the weekend it's nicely crowded with the colorful sunshades of the locals) and listen to some chillout music or sometimes even a live band (in our case called "Westbunch" - Sven West is awesome!). The club grounds are lovingly created and integrate perfectly into the natural surrounding. From any location you can enjoy the breathtaking mountains silhouette (of which I definitely took the most pictures). The rooms are spacious and distributed over several buildings.
Special challenges: choosing the right outfit and dancing barefoot in the sand
When you think about this holiday you might assume that you do not need a lot more than your sunglasses, thongs (flipflops), beach- and sports wear. Wrong! Our biggest challenge (and great fun for a real girls trip) was choosing the right outfit every evening. There is always a special theme (but no one is forced to participate - casual outfits are just fine too, even for dinner). If you enjoy dressing up a bit, you might put a few more dresses into your suitcase. We managed themes like black and white, neon, white night and gala night. After dinner there was always the possibility to watch the sun go down in the beach bar or just wait until the next party begins somewhere near the pool. The themes usually match the motto of the parties such as rock, 90s or Angels & Devils. Our highlight was the "Noche del Mar'. Most people were dressed all in white and the barbecue dinner was served just next to the beach. Afterwards there was a party in the sand at the beach bar. Later in the night the party got silent: everyone was provided with headphones. Two DJs spun records onto two different channels we were able to choose between. I will always remember that night as very special and full of joy: dancing in the sand, smelling the sea and watching the stars. Plus, it's really worth putting away the headphones from time to time and listen to the dancing crowd at such a "silent party".
Clearing up prejudices
It must be clear that there are more talkative people in such clubs and there are more events during the whole day than in regular hotels. Many people sit together at rather big tables but it is always possible to find a place to just to be with your companion whenever you feel like it. We easily made the acquaintance of nice people and enjoyed many conversations. But there were also many places of retreat and we were never asked to participate in events we didn't join voluntarily. You can go to sleep early (and will not be disturbed), sit near the sea and chat or party all night - it's all up to you. After Australia I kept on having those more "adventurous" holidays (of which I do plan to report here again) and of course I will keep doing so - but whenever I need some time off just to take a deep breath, relax and have a great time, I will definitely stand by being into club holidays and do it again!
Thanks Lena for the most beautiful week of this summer ❤!
Hotel: Robinson Club Playa Granada, Motril, Andalusia
Getting there: Lufthansa flight (Frankfurt - Malaga), about 90 minutes shuttle drive from Malaga airport to the club
Soundtrack: Cro - MTV unplugged, Julien le Play - Rollercoaster (filous remix), Gestört aber geil - Unter meiner Haut
Special thanks to: Adrian, Micha & DJ Daniel
