Muli, samahan si Teh sa panibagong chapter ng kanyang adventures in the Kingdom of Thailand! ^_^
Karamihan ng mga Pilipino ay gustong pumunta sa Thailand, specifically sa Bangkok, dahil naturingan itong wholesale shopping capital. Mura kasi ang mga bilihin dito, mapa-fake man o original na branded na mga damit, sapatos, bag, at marami pang iba. Ayon din sa mga taong na-interview kong nanggaling na ng Thailand, majority ng mga ibinebenta sa Divisoria, dito galing. At muhkang totoo naman kasi uso ang wholesales dito... :)
Aside from shopping, maraming magagandang tourist attractions ang bansang ito. Most of them are Wat or Temples, na siyang mga gustong makita ni Teh in person.
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| A temple extension in Wat Traimit. |
Anyway, share lang muna ni Teh sa inyo kung paano ako nag-prepare sa adventure na ito...
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| Ready na si Teh. :) |
~ Preparing for Thailand ~
Bago ka lumabas ng Pilipinas, katulad din sa pagpunta ko noon sa Beijing, heto ang mga bagay na kailangan mong itanong sa sarili mo:
1. May plane ticket na ba ako?
2. May visa na ba ako?
3. May napapalit na ba akong pera? (Forex: THB 1 ≈ PHP 1.35-1.40)
4. Nagpaalam na ba ako sa teacher (para sa mga nag-aaral pa) o sa boss ko (para sa nagtatrabaho na katulad ni Teh)?
5. May titirhan na ba ako doon?
6. May itinerary na ba ako?
7. May tour guide na ba ako?
At para naman sa mga empleyado ng gobyerno, may mga karagdagang tanong si Teh para sa sarili niyo:
8. Wala ka bang existing na Provident Loan? Kung oo, may Clearance ka na ba mula sa GSIS?
9. May Indorsement letter(s) ka na bang pirmado ng mga bossing mo?
Kung ang sagot mo sa lahat ng tanong ay OO, then you are more than ready to get out of the Philippines and see the world outside... (Megano'n?)
By the way, for Philippine passport holders, no need to secure a Thai visa. Dahil tayong mga Pinoy ay member ng ASEAN countries, kasama tayo sa mga exempted sa pagkuha ng Thai visa. Yey! Less hassle! ^_^
At payong malupit mula kay Teh, kung government employee ka at ang sagot mo sa #8 ay hindi, I guess nganga ka muna dahil hindi ka makakalagpas sa Immigration kung wala kang Provident Fund Clearance...
Isa pang advice, #7 may seem optional para sa mga nais mag-DIY ng kani-kanilang mga Thailand tours, pero Teh strongly advices that you get a guide when visiting Thailand, dahil sa dalawang matinding kadahilanan. Una, kung ikaw ay hindi nakakabasa at nakakaunawa ng Thai, magiging malaki ang problema mo dahil karamihan ng signs, maliban sa mga nasa major, major highways, ay nakasulat in Thai. At pangalawa, karamihan ng mga tourist attractions within the outskirts of Bangkok ay malalayo. Kung wala kang guide, baka maubos ang oras mo sa paghahanap ng masasakyan papunta sa nais patunguhan.
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| Where do you want to go? Name it, we'll take you anywhere! ~ Van |
Salamat sa isa sa mga travel buddies ni Teh na si Little Pig, na-discover ko ang Travel Hub Thailand Tours kung kaya't naging sulit ang aking pagpunta sa Thailand. Sila ang ni-refer ni Little Pig, dahil isa sila sa mga nakakapag-offer ng murang tours without compromising the quality. Infairness, totoo naman, based on Teh's first-hand experience with them. Mas okay ring mag-book sa kanila kaysa hahanap ka ng Philippines-based travel agency dahil mas alam nila ang Thailand kaysa sa ating mga Pilipino at silang mga taga-Thailand din ang kokontakin nila. By the way, they generally offer affordable private tours, which, in my opinion, is always better than the group tours. ;)
One more thing, which I believe na super important. Aside from being helpful, knowledgeable and accommodating to additional requests, provided din sa tour ang complimentary bottled water to quench your thirst! ^_^
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| Ang car beverage holder na nanganganak ng tubig... :)) |
And since you will be dealing with travel agencies, it is always best na ikaw ang mag-provide ng tour itinerary sa agency. List down the places you wish to visit then bigay mo sa kanila 'yung plano mo. But of course, be open to their suggestions. Ask kung feasible 'yung ginawa mong itinerary. Otherwise, prepare to tumbling for N times kasi baka mapagod kayo nang sobra or hindi ma-optimize nang mabuti 'yung time ninyo.
Sa kaso ni Teh, ako ang gumawa ng itinerary. Simple lang naman ang method ni Teh. Una, tumingin sa pre-made na itineraries ng kahit anong travel agency. In Teh's case, tinignan ko ang pre-made itineraries ng Travel Hub Thailand Tours at namili ako ng mga nais kong puntahan or gawin. Pangalawa, kung marami kang nais puntahan sa labas ng Bangkok, tulad ni Teh, tumingin sa mapa to check kung paano mao-optimize ang oras ninyo. It helps, sa totoo lang.
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| Oo, antok na antok si Teh. -_- Pero kailangang sulatan habang nakapikit! O, hindeh~~~ may sasagutan pa pala sa likuran... >_< |
~ Approaching Thailand ~
Cebu Pacific Air flights to Bangkok depart from NAIA Terminal 3 and arrives at Suvarnabhumi International Airport. And same thing during our Beijing trip. During your flight, bibigyan kayo ng flight attendants ng Arrival and Departure Cards for Thailand Immigration. Again, Arrival Card ang isu-surrender sa pagdating. By the way, 'wag kalimutang fill-up-an ang likuran ng Arrival Card. :)
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Zzz... Approaching BKK... Zzz -_-
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And so, we arrived at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok during the wee hours of the night, around 1 AM. Pero pagdating ni Teh, nawala ang antok ko na parang magic kasi napanganga ako sa sobrang ganda ng airport! With the trace of blue-violet lights, Mount Everest-inspired architecture and all. Very majestic aura! As expected from a Kingdom... :)
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Departure sights... Fully-decorated! :)
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Sa airport, hindi ka naman mawawala dahil may English translation naman sa mga signs. Pagkatapos makalagpas ng Immigration, kunin ang gamit at bumaba sa Level 1 to get a taxi kung darating ng wee hours of the night. Pagdating kasi nina Teh, closed na ang BTS Skytrain kaya no choice kung hindi mag-taxi. And always get a metered taxi. You can get one sa pila ng taxi sa Level 1. Just make sure na mabibigyan ka ng receipt ng airport staff before riding the taxi. Taxi fare from the airport to Pratunam costs more or less THB 250 plus THB 25 toll fee and THB 50 airport dispatch fee. So mga around THB 325... Something that shocked Teh, may babaeng taxi drivers pala sa Bangkok. ^_^
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| Mga commuting methods na na-try ni Teh in BKK. |
Aside from taxis, kung darating naman anytime sa pagitan ng oras-tao[1], you can reach the city center by riding a bus or a train. At siyempre pa, dahil tinatamad si Teh umintindi ng Bus Routes, mas nag-rely kami sa pagsakay ng BTS Skytrain at Bangkok MRT. And one thing na naging bago sa paningin ni Teh ay ang paggamit ng plastic chips sa pagsakay ng Skytrain. :D
Now that we are in Thailand, this is it! Tumbling time!... But before that, let me introduce the Kingdom with some quick facts... :)
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| Preview ni Teh: A glimpse of Bangkok... :) |
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| Screenshot from Google Map... |
Geographically, Thailand is bounded by Burma in the Northwest, Laos in the Northeast, Cambodia in the Southeast and then Malaysia in the South. Personally, nagagandahan ako sa location ng Thailand dahil nasa gitna ito ng iba't ibang bansa. At bahagi ito ng mainland Eurasia, making it possible for Thailand to reach many countries by land. For example, as mentioned na rin by our tour guide, Robbie, mula Bangkok, Malaysia can be reached by land in 2 days and Singapore in 3 days. Tedious and tiring, though...
Oh, and if you are curious kung bakit parang worms ang written language ng Thai, it is actually because the origin of their alphabet is Khmer, na sulat worms din. But dear Thailanders and Khmers, please don't get offended. Teh finds it cute. ;)
With this, you can tell how powerful and influential Cambodia was during the old times. Pero dahil gumawa sila ng magagandang kalsada palabas ng Cambodia para makapanakop ng mga lupain, nabuksan din tuloy ang Kingdom nila to their enemies. Sad story though... Anyway, Thai language is probably the hardest to learn, may it be in written and in oral. Even our guide himself, who is a half-Thai, half-Lao[2] pero tubong Ayutthaya, 'yun ang nasabi niya sa amin.
With this, you can tell how powerful and influential Cambodia was during the old times. Pero dahil gumawa sila ng magagandang kalsada palabas ng Cambodia para makapanakop ng mga lupain, nabuksan din tuloy ang Kingdom nila to their enemies. Sad story though... Anyway, Thai language is probably the hardest to learn, may it be in written and in oral. Even our guide himself, who is a half-Thai, half-Lao[2] pero tubong Ayutthaya, 'yun ang nasabi niya sa amin.
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| Half-raised Thailand flag in a school beside Wat Traimit Nakikidalamhati sa mga Khmers |
One proof na idol ng Thailand ang Cambodia ay ang half-raised flag na nakita ko sa isang school. Kaya raw naka-half raise 'yan dahil kamamatay lang nitong October 15 ni King Sihanouk, ang hari ng Cambodia. This is to show sympathy towards Khmers.
And another evidence is the existence of the mini-Angkor Wat inside the Grand Palace. Well one trivia from Robbie, if the real Angkor Wat was built in a span of around 34-37 years, ito namang mini version ay natapos ng mga 4-5 years. Imagine the hardwork for the love of this masterpiece... ^_^
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| The highly-detailed mini-Angkor Wat inside the Grand Palace. Hankyot! ^_^ |
Thailand is the center of Buddhism, specifically Theravada Buddhism, which Teh will be sharing in the latter part of Thailand adventures...
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| The 5 sacred monuments that you'll commonly see in a Wat: Prangs, Stupa/Chedi, Wall, Pedestal and Buddha Images Identify which is which. (10 pts.) |
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| The Palace... So grandeur... |
Currently, ang Thailand ay governed by Constitutional Monarchy system. So the head of state is a King, though they also have a Prime Minister, making them a Hybrid Monarchy-Parliamentary Government. In the whole Thailand, merong 22 palaces ang Royal Family. Isa na rito ang Grand Palace. Also, when in Thailand, you will notice na sa katabi ng Thailand flag, may nakawagayway ring yellow at light blue flags. FYI, ang yellow flag ay ang personal flag ng current King ng Thailand, si King Rama IX, at itinataas ito kasama ng Thailand flag every Monday to honor His Majesty. At ang light blue flag naman, which is raised every Friday, ay ang personal flag ng current Queen, si Her Majesty Queen Sirikit.
And speaking of flags, everything about the Kingdom is summarized by their flag, wherein tatlong color ang nakikita ninyo. (Kung less than or more than four ang nakikita ninyong kulay, kumunsulta lamang sa pinakamalapit na Opthalmologist.) Red color symbolizes the Thai people; white color symbolizes the Theravada Buddhism; and blue color symbolizes the government, which is monarchy...
Well, with the physical, mental and financial preps done beforehand, I guess handa na si Teh to explore a slice of Thailand, but this time, kasama na ang imagination ninyo, mga teh! Ating unang bibisitahin ang 4th and the current seat of the Kingdom of Thailand, which is Bangkok. And a little bit of Thonburi, which is the previous capital of the Kingdom. Abangan dito sa the Adventures of Teh... Thanks for visiting! ^_^
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| The Noodle Session with Tour Driver Sakol (Left) and Tour Guide Robbie (Right) |
Special thanks to the following people who made the Adventures of Teh in Thailand successful:
- Little Pig's Adventures for some information about Thailand
- Cebu Pacific Air (kahit hindi nila alam) for their promo fares
- Tour Coordinators Matt and Supattra of Travel Hub Thailand
- Tour Guide Robbie and Tour Driver Sakol of Travel Hub Thailand
~ Vocabulary ni Teh ~
[1] Oras-Tao - kabaligtaran ng oras-bampira, between 6:00 AM and 9:00 PM.
[2] Lao - people from the country of Laos.
[2] Lao - people from the country of Laos.
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