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  Thursday 19th of February 2015 and my friend called me at 8 thirty. He had a head ache and we changed the boxing until tomorrow. I had my tea plus pineapple and 2 papaya before taking the subway to China Town.  Hmm, a few weeks ago that could have been in a taxi. I always took the taxi, even to school.
But now I cannot remember last time I was in a taxi, it had become too much of a hassle. And now I'm used to walk and I really like it. And the sky train and subway are easy and quick so this is a good way to get around Bangkok. But my favourite is the Chao Phraya Express Boat  I was a wee bit disappointed with the cancelled boxing and I really hope I can spend the day in China Town without eating anything. At least not anything that is no good for me. I know that I will have to eat something if I'm going to spend the day in China Town. I know from experience that there is no restaurants that I want to eat at. There will be plenty street vendors selling all kinds of stuff so I'm not worried about finding any food but I'm worried about how much food I will eat. 
And there will be plenty tourists from China and they have received an etiquette manual at arrival to Thailand according to Bangkok Post. So I don't expect any problem while in China Town.  From Bangkok Post - Click HERE for original article
I walked to the subway station and there were quite a few people going to Hua Lampong subway station. There is not much money remaining on my subway card. And when I passed the gate I  discovered that my subway card was almost empty, 12 Baht remaining. Well, I will have to fill up my subway card before checking out at the Hua Lampong station.
I stopped at the ticket office at Hua Lampong but they told me the check-out first and then I could refill. I was told that there were a 50 Baht “credit” on the card. I didn't knew this and when I checked out it showed -16 Baht. Good to know. I filled up my card with 500 Baht and I went to EXIT #1 to get to China Town. It is a few years ago I was here to celebrate the Chinese New Year last time. And I expected it to be further away than it was. I crosses the road when I came up from the subway and then around the corner and I reached a road block.  Road block
 No cars on the roads
 A temple
 Soldiers on the streets
   Mobile toilets, something to avoid. At least when sober
  Yet another temple
   And what I came here to see, the dragon
 The Maggi Man
 The Maggi Man
   Street food
 Selling red shirts - Bangkok 2015
 Selling red shirts - Bangkok May 2010
  Yaowarat Road
I walked down the Yaowarat Road and I started to get hungry. I didn't found anything tempting even though there were plenty food vendors. And no restaurants, at least no restaurant I wanted to eat at. I reached an intersection and I spotted the Grand China. Looked like a shopping center  but it was a hotel. I asked if they had a restaurant and they had an international restaurant on the 10th floor with a buffet.
International, buffet, it sounded great. It looked like a very nice hotel. I took the elevator to the 10th floor and the restaurant was a wee bit different than the entrance. The buffet, I just needed a glance to decide to skip the buffet. I looked at the menu and they had smoked salmon and I asked for a plate and a bacon sandwich. And of course, a pot of tea. - We have Chinese tea - I want black tea - We have Chinese tea - I want Lipton - OK, just a minute I took a seat and I was soon having a pot of tea in front of me. I asked if they had any newspapers and they brought me Bangkok Post and New York Times and I started with the Bangkok Post while I was waiting for the food. I got my smoked salmon and the salmon was very good. Well, it was frozen and not fully defrosted. But it what OK with the salad and the capers. There was also a small bowl of a delicious  horseradish paste/ sauce. I enjoyed my salmon and tea and when I was ready I continued with the Bangkok Post
There was an article by Songkran Grachangnetara - In the Thai political rule book, not all crimes are equal - Quite interesting and you can read it by clicking HERE My bacon sandwich came to the table and this was very good. And I ordered a second bacon sandwich. Not good and I really felt  bad about myself when I left.
I was soon back on the road and as there wasn't much to do. The festivities was mostly street vendors and people waiting for the Princess to come. When I entered the Grand China for my lunch there wasn't all that many people on the streets. But when I came back out it was full of people everywhere. There were fences along the Yaowarat Road and Polices started to get ready to guard the fences. And the Police marched along the fences taking their posts. And how do I know it was the Princess coming? Instead of waving the yellow flag for the King people were having the purple flag, the Princess flag together with the Thai flag.  Yaowarat Road is by now full of people
 Yes, I felt bad about myself after the lunch. But not worse than I was looking for an ice cream. I  don't shop at 7 Eleven so I was looking for a Family Mart or an ice cream vendor. There  are always ice cream vendors around, but not today.
My search for ice cream, just to get some sweets after the lunch at Grand China brought me to small sois and streets in China town. I ended up on a soi and there were plenty food vendors and I ran in to a BBQ place and they had sausages on display. I looked at the sausages and I had a few words with the girl selling the sausages. I left just before I took out my valet to buy a sausage. I was back for another look a10 seconds later. And after a few of these looks I asked the girl: - ไส้กรอกแบบเยอรมนี ( Do you have German styled sausage)  She pointed at a delicious looking sausage. And the deliciously looking sausage was the one knocked out my diet and I asked for one sausage แบบเยอรมนี. I went to a corner  to hide while munching on my sausage.
The sausage was good, but by far not as good as the sausage looked wile laying on the grill at the BBQ I came out from retreat when I finished my sausage. But I was soon running in to more trouble. There were egg tarts on display, huge egg tarts and I was “hanging around” the food stall for a while. I was soon back to buy one egg tart, just to try. It was the best egg tart I have ever had. I wanted to buy more. But as I didn't wanted to carry around the egg tarts I asked when they were closing in the evening. They were closing at 11 o'clock in the evening and I even remember being worried if there would be any egg tarts left when I was going back home. So I asked about their bakery. The Tarts & Bread,  Bakery World was located on Prachachuen Road. Luckily enough it was far away from me.
Darn, they had some good egg tarts. I will be back before going back home. I continued up the Yaowarat Road and when I reached the Gate of Yaowarat I was not allowed to walk on the streets anymore. The Princes would arrive and we had to wait on the side walk. There were the military police, ordinary police and the special police along the road. And I even saw the “Cigarette” Police. I had one of the Special Polices close by me and we were talking, turned out to be a nice guy and I killed the time by talking to him.  Dancers that is going to dance when the Princes is coming
 Gate of Yaowarat
 Waiting for the Princes at the Gate of Yaowarat
 Waiting for the Princes at the Gate of Yaowarat
 Princes at the Gate of Yaowarat
 Princes at the Gate of Yaowarat
 Waiting for the Princes to leave the Gate of Yaowarat
 Princes at the Gate of Yaowarat
The princes was soon leaving in a road tram and I think she was going to a temple. I Also saw Prime  Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, he was sitting in the second tram and he was wearing a red shirt. When the trams had left I walked across the Charoeng Khrung Road to the Wat Traimit the Golden Buddha temple
I stopped to buy water as it was very hot. There were a group of children with the dragon dress. People took pictures and they held up placard with ads for a Real Estate Agent so I guess these children were sponsored by a, yes, a Real Estate Agent. I hanged around for a while and I started to walk towards the subway station at the Hua Lampong. I decided to stay for a little bit more. If I had wasted the time coming here I can as well stay for another hour or two, the MIGHT be something exciting happening. And if something exciting happening I didn't want to miss it having spent all the time here. Hell, I even foocked up my diet by coming here.       The “Special” Police taking selfies at the Gate of Yaowarat
Some differences form the Special Police Uniform, maybe Trainees? Volunteers?
 The “Special” Police taking selfies at the Gate of Yaowarat
Some differences form the Special Police Uniform, maybe Trainees? Volunteers?
 Chinese temple next to Bangkok Hospital on Yaowarat Road
 Chinese temple next to Bangkok Hospital on Yaowarat Road
 Waiting for the Princes to come back from the temple
I was back at the Yaowarat Road and now there was so much people so it was almost impossible to walk. I went in to the Chinese temple next to the Bangkok Hospital. OK, I was following a beautiful girl. And not because she was beautiful, but because she had the same camera as I have. A Canon D60, but I have left that camera at home. And what I gain in comfort carrying my small IXUS in my pocket I lose in quality. I was thirsty and as there was so much people my only option was to see if there was a coffee shop or restaurant at Bangkok Hospital. The security guard came rushing towards me when I approached the hospital. - What do you want? Where are you going? - I'm looking for a coffee shop - We don't have any coffee shop! The girls in the reception told us that there was a coffee shop on the 6th floor. The Security guard had to escort me, I don't know what they are afraid off. I asked for a bottle of water in  the Coffee Shop. And I spotted a fridge with desserts and there was chocolate mousse.
- Do you have whipped cream? - Yes - OK, one chocolate mousse with PLENTY whipped cream. I took a seat and I chatted with one of the girls while waiting for my chocolate mousse. I was not, this time I was REALLY NOT happy with myself when I left. It had been fun speaking with the girls, but I could as well have done that while enjoying my water ONLY. I bought another bottle of water before I left and I took the elevator down to the entrance. When I stepped out from the Bangkok Hospital the road was closed and the Police and Special Police was keeping the road clear. The Princes was about to come.  Waiting for the Princes
 Waiting for the Princes
 Waiting for the Princes
 Waiting for the Princes
 Nurses from Bangkok Hospital waiting for the Princes
 Nurses from Bangkok Hospital waiting for the Princes
 Time passes by and it is getting dark
 Time passes by and it is getting dark
 Princes arrives
 Princes arrives
 Princes arrives
 Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha passes by dressed in a red shirt
   I was waiting outside Bangkok Hospital while talking with the other people. The people were sitting on the side walk and there was a police passing by. He told them that they could not sit with the  feet on the road as this was not polite.
He also told the people standing up to sit down. Some of them pointed at me standing up. The Police was quick to explain for them that “he is a foreigner” I was also told that it was not allowed to take pictures, same as when the Princes was at the Gate of Yaowarat. The police were running around telling the people not to take pictures. But this time I took pictures as all the other people took pictures. The Princes arrived and they stopped  at the Chinese temple next to Bangkok Hospital.
I was hoping for the street to be “walkable” when the Princes had left. But there were so much people that I decided to go back home. I walked towards the Hua Lampong subway station when I passed the golden Buddha and there were 2 dragons and people banging on a drum. I crossed the street to go to have a look. 
Well, it was kind of exciting for a few minutes and I left for the sky train station.
And was I lucky that I have my subway train card. I have never seen so many people at the subway before. Millions of people lining up to change money to coins and millions of people lining up to wait to by the ticket in the vending machines. I just walked by all this, but the train was still full. But I got on and I was soon getting of the train at Sukhumvit. Chinese New Year, but ordinary working day and the Sukhumvit station was full of people waiting to get on the subway going up Ratchadapisek  The subway was full going back to Sukhumvit
 They have to wait for the next train
I was back home and it was nice to be alone. If I ever go back to celebrate the Chinese New Year in China Town I will do it in the evening. Maybe there are more festivities by then. Just to walk  around with millions of other people among street vendors is nothing I call festivities. Maybe tomorrow night, but I'm not sure.
The next adventure is available by clicking HERE  
    
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To www.aladdin.st since December 2005
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