Seven hours in Bangkok

I arrived at 5 o′clock in the afternoon with Thai Airlines TG 434. Hot and humid air just like Jakarta, I got off the plane at the last line and for that I have to ride on mini van provided by the air port because the airport bus was full and was impossible to pick up the rest of the passengers that only three left.
Because I have 7 hours to standby at Bangkok air port, I decided to take a city tour which costs vary depends on the route. There is a USD 38.00 course, USD 43.00 and USD 52.00 course. I took the last one because a dinner has also be included. I leave the airport accompanied by tour guide and a driver riding on an 8 seats mini van, feel like a VIP guest 🙂
It takes about 30 minutes to arrive at the destination, a tourists shopping center called SILOM VILLAGE. Nothing too much special about it, only a handicraft shops with cook-in restaurants which serve Thai food. The guide gives me one hour to take shop before the dinner is served, so I leave the Silom Village and take a walk along the Silom street.
I just feel like being in Blok M Jakarta, except for the Indian temple which shines beautifully. I take a close look at the temple, unfortunately there are signs NO PHOTO everywhere so that I can′t take pictures of it, I didn′t enter it because make me sick seeing them pray in front of statues, dummy thing I think. Everytime I see such a view, I always feel guilty that Islam was not spreaded among them, how can they think that god is as many as thousands? How can they think that the statues are worthy to be worshipped? Pathetic. Well, I like the beautiful shines they made in the perspective of art, but not with the worshipping things.
I take my steps along the street and stopped in front of Holiday Inn hotel, a chain hotel which has business all around the world. There I find again a gold pagan, some pedestrians give me an odd look as I take a videocam on it, probably they think I am a Thai because our faces are not different so much. A Thai videocam a pagan? Probably just like seeing an Indonesian take a picture in front of the mosque in Kebon Jeruk area in Jakarta. A Thai girl passes and take a praying gesture in front the pagan, and also gives me an odd looking, I continue my walking.
On the street I also found a Family Mart and 7eleven convinience store, after buying a juice which is made from fruit they call longan I take a seat in a bus stop next to the convi and spend 15 to 20 minutes watching the people getting off and getting on the buses. There I can see what is different from what you can see in Jakarta, the bus in Jakarta will never really stop and make the passengers run to get on the bus. In Bangkok, the buses really stops and don′t move until the passengers perfectly get on. And also there are no windows for economy class buses, so that even the buses are not air-conditioned it won′t be too hot inside because the fresh air can flow freely inside the buses, pretty smart I think. I wondered why buses in Jakarta are not designed like that. If you are familiar with non AC buses in Jakarta you know what I am talking about, being in economy class buses just like being inside a toaster 🙁
After spending one hour, I go back to Silom village and having dinner while watching the traditional dances. Expecting special dances? If you are Indonesian, you′ll be dissapointed because the dances just look like Indonesians dances, they even admit one of the dances is modified from Bali dances 🙂
9:30, the guide comes again and take me back to the airport. 12:00 o′clock I have been on the plane and wake up 7 in the morning at Kansai airport. After brief inspection at immigration I proceed to custom clearance. A young female staff gives me a smile, after looking at my student visa she asks me 荷物はこれだけですか? and pointed to 2 bags and 2 plastic bags, I smiled back and say yes and she asked me to proceed. About 15 kgs over-weight without any charges from Cengkareng and absolutely no bag-opening no further questions in Kansai, alhamdulillah.
Around 11 o′clock I arrived back in Kobe.