It was absolutely pouring rain last night and I was supposed to meet Rocky and Rose at the front door to Siam Mall. Siam Mall is the same size as the New Orleans Super dome, 13 acres. A football field is just a little more than an acre, so Siam Paragon Mall is 13 football fields in size, the largest mall in Thailand until the mall in Bang Na opens and is in South Bangkok and will be three time the size of Siam. I the pouring rain, I walk nearly the perimeter of the mall to find the "Front" door of the Siam Paragon Mall. All I had to go on was the memory from the photo that Rocky sent me a week ago. I went in six doors looking for my companions to no avail. Now I am fifteen minutes late, having walked 25 minutes in the pouring rain searching for the elusive front door. I finally went into the mall and asked information where the main entrances are for the mall. Finally, I took the escalator upstairs to the second floor entrance from the BTS station and I heard "Brandin". Forty-five minutes of searching paid off. I have been here for a month without a cell phone. This one incident would have made a Thai cell phone worth it. I think Rocky was surprised by my happiness in finding him. Hallelujia!!!!
Above: We had a delicious meal with eight various Thai dishes. It scored a 9/10 and the company was "the best". Rocky is Chinese and married a Thai wife. The have a soccer camp business where young players come from Asia to learn skills. (Mainly potential Chinese superstars). The evening was a 10 out 10. Thank you Rose and Rocky for a great meal.
One for the memory bank!!!
I had a wake up call at 5 AM today. I wanted an early start to go to a golf course considered one of the nicest in Southeast Asia. It is usually 170 USD but a June special (off season) allowed me to play for 45 dollars. Golf is very comparable in price to America. Thailand has over 200,000 millionaires. Nearly two-third of those are in the Bangkok area. Golf is considered essential among businessmen in Thailand. It is truly a "rich man's game" here in Thailand. There is a huge barrier between economic classes and entrance into a number of places is not allowed socially. I do not want to start a discussion on Thai culture, but a caddy, taxi driver greens keeper would NEVER enter the club house with the "elite" clientele.
I went to Pandra Indra Country Club in southern Bangkok. It was beautiful!! The driving range was a LAKE!! The distance markers were floating in the water. All the balls floated on top of the lake and were collected by swimmers with snorkels.
Below: Boney Beak Nok. The driving range markers in the background. There are three golf courses, A, B and C. I played C today.
My caddy's name was Fone (Phone). I asked if she would call my home..........Joke. She spoke very little English but was a pleasure to have as a caddy. We did quite well with her little English and my native Thai tongue. Each caddy has a number from 1-700. There are 700 caddies at this golf course. That is a staggering number of caddies at one golf course,
(there are 3 courses in one).
It threatened to rain all day with thunder rumbling. There were only a couple rain drops but the city of BKK has several inches of rain, again, Pictures are a little dark but still very pretty.
Below; Clubhouse restaurant at Panya Indra Golf Course.
Below: What a cool looking bird with the hooked beak.
Black Faced Spoonbill
I had an appointment this afternoon at Bangkok Hospital for a migraine follow-up Everything went well and I have had a great day!
Thailand Facts:16. The Thai national anthem is played every day at 8am and 6pm. Every TV and radio station plays it. When the anthem is played, everybody has to stand up still until the end of the song if it is convenient. If you are in a public place, you may notice the crowds also stand up to pay respect, you should follow suit.
Thailand’s national flower is Ratchaphruek or golden shower tree , not the orchid although Thailand is the world’s number one orchid exporter.
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