Got Bangkok

Her name is Blacky, she’s 3 years old and she’s volunteered to be the official Got Bangkok mascot!

Thank you Blacky, you are big, black and beautiful!

The Bangkok curfew was dragging on and on so this past weekend I took a cheap Air Asia flight to Udon Thani Bangkok, in the Issan region. I have never been here before, but here’s some info I’ve gathered..

Centara Hotel & Convention Centre Udon Thani
“”
Open 24hours/day
website: http://www.centarahotelsresorts.com
Call: +66 (0) 4234 3555
Address: 277/1 Prajaksillapakhom Road, Muang, Udon Thani, 41000, Thailand

Centara Hotel (formerly known as Charoensri Grand Royal Hotel, Udon Thani)

The Rooms:
The Menu: You will love the menu here, they have late night room service and it’s full of many thai foods, italian foods, sandwiches, burgers, and many many more.
What I Ate: I had the ham and cheese sandwich and french fries, was good, but the food took a long time and was cold, then tonight I order pa-nang moo (pork in a brown coconut-based curry) it wasn’t very good, and pad ka paow gai (chicken basil) was a huge order and tasted aroi mak (delicious)
The Staff: The staff was very nice here, from the front desk reception to the spa receptions to the food delivery staff, all were nice, speak English well and friendly.
The Facilities: Most of the facilities are on 5th floor, swimming pool is medium size, the sauna is massive, the steam room is really nice and big also, the fitness center is big with many different things to use, I have to admit the facilities here are great! But for the sauna/steam/jacuzzi it’s an extra 100 baht charge. But, I advise against using their internet and business center, I need to print 1 paper, it costs 250 baht for 30 minutes internet in their business center, and even the wifi in room is expensive, 600 baht for full day. I suggest you invest in buying an “aircard”, it’s a usb connection to the internet. (TIP: I don’t know how long the card is valid for, but I paid for 30 minutes card, and I used only 1 minute, if you stay this hotel you can try, my User ID: aaf4398 and Password: 65901, if you try this please let me know, thank you)
The Bathrooms: all were clean and nice

Conclusion: In conclusion,

Extras: Centara Hotel is in a prime location, it’s connected to the Central Plaza mall, Robinsons, and Tops supermarket. Also, there is a moo ka ta restaurant, and a thai style food and drink market very nearby also. 7-11 is about 5 minutes away, and Mojo’s Bar and Restaurant is around the corner also. Also directly across the street is Brothers Disco if you want to try the Udon nightlife

Those last pictures are from the Moo Kra Ta which is about 8 minutes walk from Centara Hotel, it’s a delicious all-you-can-eat buffet with fresh meats that you cook on your table, with bbq sauce and chili’s, garlic, veggies, meats, seafoods, etc, I HIGHLY recommend it.

Looting and fires are still going strong, I can see from my apartment view

So Bangkok is still burning and filling the skies with smoke. When they going to finish???

For Songkran, I decided to get out of Bangkok to a more quiet place, so I chose to go Rayong for the few days during Songkran, here’s a review of my hotel there.

Hinsuay Namsai Resort Hotel
“The best for anyone who really loves to spend their unlimited imagination with hillside nature and the sea”
Open 24hours/day
website: http://www.hinsuaynamsaihotel.com
Call: 0-3863-8260-5
Address: Hinsuay-Namsai Resort Hotel, 250 Moo 2, Sakpong District, Klang, Rayong 21190, Thailand

Hinsuay

The Rooms: The room I had at Hinsuay Namsai was very big, and had a very big balcony, a little table and chairs, a desk and a minibar with drinks. The bathroom was big too, the water wouldn’t get hot at times, but otherwise I think the room was a good value, except for the fact that there was no internet in room, that is a huge downfall for me (internet in hotel lobby only). And it was nice when we 1st walked into the room they had the aircon blased already, and it is very powerful, great for when it’s really hot in Thailand. The tv channels only have Thai language stations, so it’s very difficult for those who cannot speak Thai to enjoy watching tv, but then again, at a nice resort why spend time indoors watching tv anyways, right!?! hehe. In Chomsamed building rooms range from 1600 – 3000 baht. In the Plernpim building rooms range from 1900 – 12000 baht per night
The Menu:
What I Ate: Kua Kling Moo was very delicious, and so was the namprik kapi
The Staff: The hotel staff was very nice and friendly, they brought the 2 prong adapter to my room when I needed it, they worked on fixing the wifi internet in lobby when it was down, and assured me it’d be fixed soon. Also, the old man at the fitness center/sauna area was very nice and helpful.
The Facilities: There are 2 massive swimming pools, they are perfect if you enjoy taking a swim. The sauna was nice, and there is a staff member to assist you with it, cost is 50 baht per person per use. The fitness center is ok, it’s outside and it has just the basic gym stations. There are 2 snooker tables. There is a buffet restaurant every night for 500 baht per person, many great thai cuisine. There is also a free buffet every morning too. Taruer Tangkae restaurant has Chinese, Thai and European foods.
The Bathrooms: all were clean and nice

Conclusion: In conclusion, for approx 2000 baht per night, I think Hinsuay Namsai Resort was a great value and I will be staying here again for any future trips to Rayong

Extras: Free wifi in lobby. Free breakfast buffet for 2 people per room.

Pics from the scenery, and from the buffet and lobby pics from Hinsuay

This website has been blocked by ICT, Ministry of Information and Communication Technology

I went to a site today, and found this, I still think Thailand is pretty lame when it comes to their internet rules, they are still censoring things, it’s so old fashioned 🙁 I hope someday there is more online freedom in the great Kingdom of Thailand 🙂

I hope despite having the Bangkok Red Shirts situation going on, that you will still all enjoy your Songkran Festival here in Thailand. From driving around Bangkok in a bus heading towards Rayong, I see the fun and water play is still running strong!

I will be spending my Songkran holiday in Rayong, my first time here and it seems nice.

I will post my pictures and information afterwards

Where are you going for Songkran? What will you be doing? Staying in the hustle and bustle of Bangkok, or planning to get away? Please comment or send in your experiences, pictures, information, we’d love to hear from you and post your knowledge 🙂

I was coming back from Pattaya to Bangkok and on the way there are many little markets and shops on the side of the highway. We stopped and I decided to try these things, they come in a long corn husk type of thing, they are stapled shut, when you open it up, there are these brownish super sticky treats, I think with some coconut pieces in there, but I have no idea what it is, it was delicious!!!

So today I’m walking around from Wireless Rd all the way back to Ratchadapisek, and I’m wondering what the hell is this “BNE” and “BNE Was Here” stickers and graffiti that is all over Bangkok city? Does anyone have any idea? I’ve searched the net and I’ve found nothing that explains it.

Some pics I took today:

Anyone know the insider about what this is all about? Please contact us

The Thai Immigration in Sathorn Soi Suan Plu is no more!!! I went all the way there today to extend my visa-on-arrival, and I find out they are closed and that the new office is out passed Lad Prao, at Chaeng Wattana.

Here are some tips

1. Take passport
2. 2 passport photos
3. a copy of your passport and your arrival card (should be stapled inside your passport)
4. the cost is 1900 baht for visa extension fee (+500 baht per every 1 day overstay)
5. if on tourist visa, you can get 30 day extension, if visa-on-arrival then only can get 7 day extension

They are open 8:30am til 4:30pm and they have noon-1pm lunch break.

Some pictures of their new location:

Thai Immigration address:

Immigration Bureau of Bangkok Thailand
Building B,
Bangkok Government Center,
Chaengwattana Road (close to the Department of Consular Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Chaengwattana Road.)
BANGKOK

Hope you have a great and prosperous new years!