The bus claimed to be a VIP luxury bus. It lied. If that was VIP I'd hate to see economy. After an excruciating overnight bus journey from Chiang Mai, which had been uncomfortable and sleepless for just about all of us, we were back in Bangkok. None of us had particularly enjoyed Bangkok the first time round and now we were back for three more days. What's more we were saying goodbye to some people who were leaving the tour, people we'd grown very fond of over the previous few weeks. It was a bittersweet feeling.
On the day we returned to Bangkok, grumpy and sleep-deprived, once we'd checked into the hotel and had a brief rest, there was an included excursion to the Grand Palace. We were led around by an over-enthusiastic tour guide who insisted on taking lots of group photos and going into very detailed history of each building. The Palace and the other temples in the grounds were stunning. Among some of the most beautiful buildings in Bangkok. Gold-plated temples, beautifully tiled pagodas, Chinese inspired architecture, there was even a replica of Angkor Wat. The whole site was spectacular and well worth a visit. But we weren't really in the mood. It was hot, we were exhausted, bad-tempered and biding our time till we could leave Bangkok. Tour over, we headed back to the hotel to relax or catch a few hours snooze time.
That night at dinner, we said goodbye to some familiar faces, people we had been travelling with, many for five weeks, others for only a couple. Regardless of the length of time we had spent together, we had all grown fond of each other. Everyone was a character, some louder than others, but as a group of mixed ages ranging from 22 to 66 and mixed nationalities ranging from Australian, Kiwi, American, Canadian, English and Welsh, we had all got on extremely well. As we said our goodbyes and looked back over everything we'd done together, the group dynamic shifted on its axis once again. Nine people from the original group remained. Tomorrow we would be joined by three more people before containing on the final two week leg of the tour.
Lack of sleep finally catching up with me, I headed to the bar across from the hotel for a nightcap then headed for an early night, leaving the others to party long into the night.
Next morning, Saturday, I had booked to take a vegetarian Thai cooking class with a couple of girls from the tour. The proprietor, May Kaidee, collected us and brought us to her cooking school a few streets away. A decade or so ago, May recognised the health benefits of switching to a vegetarian diet and has since become something of a guru promoting vegetarian and vegan Thai cooking.
We cooked three dishes, Tom Yam soup, pad Thai and Massaman curry as well as enjoying a complimentary dessert of coconut mango rice. The basis for each dish - spices, herbs and coconut milk - was quite similar but each dish had its own unique taste and was incredibly easy to cook, each taking less than five minutes. It was a revelation. The tastes were exquisite, the Massaman curry being a particular favourite. Cook books purchased and doggy bags filled we headed back to the hotel, triumphant at having mastered Thai cooking.
That evening we met the last three people who would be joining us, two English and one Irish girl. Next morning we said our final goodbyes to our friends who were leaving, then spent the remainder of the day getting ready to leave Bangkok for Koh Samui. After five weeks of a pretty relentless travelling schedule, we were all ready for a few days R&R at the beach. For the remainder of the afternoon I planned my Australian itinerary, my destination after Asia, and booked travel and hostels in readiness for the next part of my adventure.
After our experience on the overnight bus from Chiang Mai to Bangkok it was with some trepidation that we left for the bus station to catch the sleeper bus to Koh Samui. The bus on this occasion was the height of luxury. Comfortable seats with recline and massage functions, ample leg room, refreshments, pillows and blankets, it was a vast improvement on the previous bus. Curiously though, sleep was not forthcoming for many of us again. The Thai karaoke that was piped through the PA system at 4.30am as a wake-up call was also particularly unwelcome. However, we were on our way to Koh Samui and the promise of beaches, sunbathing and birthday parties.