Bangkok & beyond

[flossie009]

Tomorrow we will join Navigator in Laem Chabang for a 20 night cruise ending in Abu Dhabi.

We were originally booked through to Athens but tragic events caused the second half of our planned itinerary to be abandoned.

 

Prior to the cruise we have spent a few days in the friendly, vibrant city of Bangkok and so we will use the next few posts to catch up on our vacation thus far.

 

 

Our journey started last Sunday with a couple of firsts.

First time we have used the local firm Butler’s for our transfer to Heathrow. Excellent service and the driver was definitely not like the character ‘Butler’ from ‘On the Buses’

Next first was flying with EVA Air. This Taiwanese airline is only one of two flying direct non-stop from LHR to Bangkok. 
The flight was late leaving Terminal 2, but once settled on board we were presented with a chocolate, a glass of bubbly & a poem

 

A good start. Next came a very quirky safety video

Despite much turbulence during the flight we made up time and arrived slightly earlier than scheduled in Bangkok.

A limo from our hotel met us and took us through the notoriously bad Bangkok traffic to our hotel, where we have enjoyed the rest of this week.

 

Our first full day, Tuesday, was mainly spent shopping.
During the day at the enormous MBK complex and then in the evening it was off by tuk-tuk to Patpong night market (smaller than we remember it from pre-pandemic times)

Wednesday was sightseeing (see subsequent post)

Today was by the pool, a massage and a final fitting for tailored ladies trousers, made to measure by a shop in the hotel - perfect for one or two evenings on the cruise.

 

Tomorrow our transfer is arranged for the long journey to Laem Chabang port.
Navigator was due to dock in the heart of Bangkok,  but a late change moved embarkation to Laem Chabang, which was disappointing.

 

 

 

[flossie009]

On previous visits to Bangkok we have visited many of the usual tourist spots in the city, so we decided to book a private tour to two more distant attractions:

The Damnoen Saduak Floating Market and the Maeklong Railway Market.

 

At Maeklong the market stalls encroach over the railway track; the stallholders withdrawing each time a train passes through.

 

 

 

 

The 3 to 4 trains each day attract many tourists who come, like us, to witness the bizarre spectacle

 

 

Some stallholders obviously find it more lucrative to sell space rather than goods

 

 

Eventually the train slowly passes; the passengers can go on their way; the tourists disperse; and the market resumes its trade

 

 

 

 

 

[never2home]

I look forward to reading your posts of this cruise.  We, too, had booked the Bangkok to Athens cruise, but cancelled it all.  I will vicariously enjoy your experiences.

[flossie009]

At the floating market we boarded a long-tail boat for a look around the market and then along the river

 

 

Some parts of the market were very congested with tourist boats, making it difficult for the vendors to negotiate

 

 

Once out into the river it was a much calmer atmosphere

 

Some nice riverfront properties

 

Mango trees with the fruits covered for protection from birds & insects

 

 

At one location we were given some fish food to throw in the water “for luck” . We couldn’t believe how many Tilapia surfaced to enjoy the feast !

 

 

[flossie009]

I suppose we can’t have a CC blog without some food photos. 
Thailand has offerings to suit all tastes

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not sure that we will see any deep fried scorpions or cicadas during our Regent cruise 😧

 

 

 

[lprp]

Looking forward to your reports @flossie009.

How lovely to sail on Navigator with Ray - “Helloooooo”.

Hope the trip from Bangkok to Laem Chabang is not too tedious.

[flossie009]

The markets in Bangkok sell everything ………. and still at a good price if you enjoy bargaining with the stallholders

 

…………… but how many elephants do we really need ?.

 

 

[liptastic]

Great photos. Looking forward to your onboard posts too. Have a great cruise. Jean. 

[EAGLESLOVER]

Your pictures are gorgeous.

Thank you for taking the time to post.

Have a wonderful trip

 

Sharon

[CardowMD]

Looking forward to seeing the Navigator in photos! If you can include a daily agenda one day that would be appreciated! I have a cruise out of Istanbul starting Nov 5, and have not been on navigator for over 18 years! Also want to do a Singapore to Hong Kong cruise soon.

[flossie009]

On 4/5/2024 at 8:42 AM, CardowMD said:

Looking forward to seeing the Navigator in photos!

Anything in particular you would like to see ?

 

On 4/5/2024 at 8:42 AM, CardowMD said:

If you can include a daily agenda one day that would be appreciated!

I will try to remember to include a sea-day & a port-day copy of Passages later during the cruise.

[flossie009]

We had a very comfortable vehicle & excellent driver for the 2 hour journey from Bangkok to Laem Chabang port yesterday.

 

 

Boarding started at 11:30, with check-in being administered by Navigator staff.
eVisa for India and ETA for Sri Lanka were checked & Passports retained.

We took lunch in La Veranda, as it was very hot & humid outside. An excellent, delicious buffet. Then off to our suite to unpack.

 

 

Before dinner there was a show by local Thai dancers. Very colourful but unfortunately we could not understand the narrator’s description of the various dances (I got the feeling that she didn’t understand her English script either !!)

 

 

 

………….. audience participation was encouraged

 

Dinner in Compass Rose, sharing with an “interesting” couple.

Highlight of the meal was the Black Mussels 😋
 

 

 

 

[flossie009]

Our cruise started with an overnight in Laem Chabang, before heading off to Ko Samui tonight.

 

 

 

We opted to stay on board today.

Plenty of sun loungers available but some still couldn’t resist staking claim to ‘their’ territory before heading out on tour 🤨

 

Very warm & humid again today so might be time to head indoors for a drink before lunch 🙂      Life is good 😎
 

Edited April 6 by flossie009

[flossie009]

We are just leaving the pretty port of Laem Chabang …………….. sorry, pretty industrial port ………. 😉

 

Pre-dinner the speaker, Deborah Ayres, is talking about “The Amazing Kingdom of Thailand”

 

The 9:30pm show is “World Rhythms”, which should showcase the standard of the Production Cast for this cruise.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Thanks for the great photos of Bangkok. Brings back fond memories.

[alainciao]

Great posting!  Question about the long tail boat tour.  Were you happy with the quality of the water on this tour? Thanks.

[Jlhalldc]

Thanks for taking us along, Flossie! What an amazing cultural adventure. Have a wonderful cruise and say hi to David from Bill and I. 

[crusin7]

Hi Sue. I hope you and David see the elephants in Phuket.  That was one of my favorite excursions ever.  They also have the best local tender service…with much needed AC!

 

[Gilly]

@flossie009 we are just home from Voyager and I am thrilled to be able to join in with you on Navigator to alleviate the post-cruise ennui!!

We loved the EVA Air safety video - these quirky videos are quite the thing now aren't they? (A good way of holding our attention too)

 

Have a wonderful cruise on what is my favourite itineraries too.  Thank you for sharing the fun!

[flossie009]

On 4/6/2024 at 11:39 PM, alainciao said:

Question about the long tail boat tour.  Were you happy with the quality of the water on this tour?

Bottled water was fine 😂
 

River water looked OK; no trash & plenty of fish.

 

We didn’t have our water quality test kits with us 😉

[flossie009]

This is the senior team looking after us on board.

 

Plenty of familiar faces among the crew plus some new ones. All very friendly, helpful & efficient.

 

On 4/6/2024 at 6:48 PM, flossie009 said:

The 9:30pm show is “World Rhythms”, which should showcase the standard of the Production Cast for this cruise.

The production cast gave a stellar performance; singing & dancing was some of the best we have seen on Regent. Looking forward to their other shows this cruise.

 

[flossie009]

Yesterday we visited the beautiful island of Ko Samui.

 

 

 

Navigator dropped anchor some distance from shore and local boats were used to ferry guests from & to the ship

 

 

 

[flossie009]

Our excursion in Ko Samui was the “Thai Traditional Cooking Class” (KOS-003); a paid tour.

 

We started with a look around a local food market, where all manner of ingredients were on display

 

 

 

 

After a visit to see the local Buddha we then went to a hotel by the sea for our cookery class.

 

First the chef demonstrated the ingredients & method for each dish

 

…………… then we were let loose to show our skills

 

 

 

After preparing each dish (3 in total) we then sat down to eat our delicious results ………….. washed down with beer, wine or soft drinks.

 

It was a very enjoyable day 😎 😋

 

 

[flossie009]

Today is a day at sea on our way to Singapore. Captain Abhi tells us that he had Navigator at full throttle this morning and we certainly seemed to be zipping along through the calm waters.

Weather is still very warm, but we passed through a few heavy showers.

 

 

 

Today’s schedule

 

 

[labonnevie]

16 hours ago, flossie009 said:

This is the senior team looking after us on board.

 

We found Captain Singh to be one of the most visible, engaging captains we have had in well over twenty years of cruising.