Bangkok Week 825

April 18, 2024

Bring on the holidays! Jasmine and Josh are here — it’s the visit we’ve all been waiting for (for years)! Songkran is in full swing, and we experience hot and sweaty sightseeing like never before. It’s a fun week for everyone; Arlo and Lucy are especially excited to have “UncleJasmineJosh” visiting.

They're here! Bright and early on Friday morning, the honeymooners emerge in Bangkok ready to take on Thailand!

Lucy is wondering if she woke up in the right house or not.

Jas and Josh brought super-fun bubble guns!

Giving a tour of the moo baan. This is already proving hot and sweaty.

Getting the guests oriented with a trip to MaxValu.

What a great welcome lunch - fresh Pad See Ew!

Arlo is really testing Uncle Josh by showing him all his cars (when he'd surely much rather be sleeping; we already lost Jas.)

Post-nap dip to cool off.

And trying the mango sticky rice they (wasted no time) buying this morning.

And they're off to Chinatown! Hope we see them again!

Special breakfast the next morning: fresh pancakes!

Arlo's job - and he really can't believe it - is putting the chocolate chips on the pancakes.

Could they make an "A"?

The two chefs, and the "A"!

I've never seen Arlo eat breakfast this quickly!

Let's not forget that today marks the start of Songkran!

Happy new year, from these two monkeys.

And let the games begin, eh Lucy?

Everyone's all set to go!

And we're off to K-Village, our proven Songkran celebration spot.

Stopping first to pour water on the buddha.

Game on!

When they advertised "Shark slide", they weren't kidding!

Arlo can't wait to try it out (good thing we got there early).

I guess it was fun!

And again...

... and again.

Fitting right in with the locals.

I guess Lucy doesn't remember doing this last year. But she's not shy.

It got busy quickly.

Taking matters into her own hand, and grabbing a bucket.

Wait a minute, I thought we were on the same team!

A good time was had by all.

Cooling down with some drinks from my cafe.

What good sharing.

If Songkran splashing weren't enough for one day, we're off (via subway!) to the old city, to see the famous temples!

For Arlo (and maybe Lucy?) getting to ride the Subway was the highlight of the trip!

First stop: Wat Pho, home of Thai Massage and the giant Reclining Buddha.

Browsing the stalls.

Who did the pose better?

Wondering who this guy is.

Building his own sand tower as part of the festival.

Family shot!

Banging the giant gong.

Arlo and Lucy's first time visiting the giant reclining Buddha.

The bottom of his feet; last time we were here, they were covered by scaffolding.

Arlo and Lucy both had fun making merit by dropping coins into each of these many, many bowls.

Next stop is across the river! Heading over to Wat Arun!

The longtail boats on the river were busy that afternoon.

On the ferry. They've increased the price from 3 baht to 5 baht!

The temple giants.

Selfie with m'girl (while Arlo and Dad look for a bathroom).

There's Jasmine!

It's hopping at Wat Arun, too; they've got a special Songkran festival going on as well.

Thrilled to be here for the first time.

Lucy's making lots of friends at eye level today.

Aww, cat!

A likeness?

On the ferry heading back to the main side of the city.

Stopping to explain the "transit map" of the river boats, before heading home.

Pizza for dinner after what was a very, very, very long day.

Fast asleep before she even made it to her bed.

Enjoying leftover pancakes for dinner, before heading out for another exciting day!

Today, we're at Khlong Lad Mayom floating market.

A display of fighting fish right at the entrance.

These two pint-sized Songkran revelers are standing on a bridge over the canal.

We're going to do a canal tour before it gets any hotter.

Patiently waiting for our boat to arrive.

And off we go!

Stopping at an orchid farm...

... I couldn't resist, and we brought one home.

And heading back to land.

Lunch time! So many things to try!

But uh oh, it's getting busy! Better head out soon.

Last stop: ice cream.

Look at how much this tourist bought!

Enjoying Songkran Day 2, by ourselves at home.

The new orchid, in its new home.

Oh, and as always, Arlo celebrates a month-a-versary during Songkran. This boy is closer to 5 than 4 now.

Never one to be left out, Lucy takes a tree photo too.

This girl lugged Uncle Josh's giant water gun over to the pool all by herself!

It must be Songkran; there's no one else in the pool!

Auntie Jas and Arlo are making French toast this morning for breakfast.

The two hard-working chefs, sitting down to enjoy their work.

Here we are in Ayutthaya, the ancient capital of Siam.

And boy is it hot here!

Posing with the famous tree-enshrined buddha head.

Who's this photo bomber?

Woah! Blue-headed lizard - good eye, Jasmine!

They give out umbrellas now for all visitors to borrow while here.

Group shot, after which we all melted into puddles on the ground.

Arlo's doing it right.

Stopping for cold drinks at a cafe right outside the temple.

Taking one of the funny fish-shaped tuk tuks about 200m down the road to the next temple.

That was fun!

At Wat Ratcha Burana, which is different because you can climb and enter the stupa.

That's where we're headed.

The view from the top (and the breeze) is nice!

It was cool, but also smelled a little suspect...

... because of all these bats living in there too!

Great views, but time to head down and back under the umbrellas.

Lunch at our favorite riverside spot. We were last here in 2017, with Julia!

Everyone is hungry!

Greetings from Ayutthaya!

These two ate very well. Granted, they ate fries and sweet potato fries. But they did well!

On the river, before heading home!

Trying the famous Ayutthaya snacks: Grandma's Hair!

It's a hit!

Relaxing with some Sesame Street.

Jas and Josh are off -- by pickup -- to their cooking class!

Our guests have left for Kanchanaburi, but we still have one day of holiday left...

... and so we're off to IKEA!

Everyone seems to enjoy the train these days.

And a long walk along the elevated skywalk.

Arlo investigated every room in IKEA!

Checking out the shower...

... and lucy did her best Goldilocks.

Making themselves at home in the bedroom.

Wondering why the shark is alseep in bed.

Playing in the kids area.

And the best part: 8 baht ice cream, dispensed by machine!

Heading home, monkey in tow.

Arlo could probably stand there looking out the window all afternoon.

Late afternoon activity today is biking. We need to give Lucy's cold a rest and take a break from swimming.

These two are real liabilities at the playground now.

That sparkle in his eye suggests he's up to no good!

Lucy is really into trying to dress herself these days.

Close, Lucy!

A visit from Ba Ratt, who adores Arlo.

Sitting there, enjoying the light under the island.

Enjoying museli for breakfast, influenced by dad.

Chalk time.

And the travelers are back after their 2 Thailand roadtrip!

Here's Jasmine, trying her best to clothe a 2-year-old.