Sydney - September 2016

Home for the end of Year 12 celebrations. Had a good week with that.

Alex and Immy...

Formal number 1...

Last day of school...forever...

Alex and Callum...

Formal number 2...

With Aunty Megsie...

And Nemi...

With the date...

View from the house at Terrey Hills where we had pre-formal drinks...

With Callum after his trumpet exam...

Hong Kong - September 2016

My friend from Sydney, Rodney, arrived to spend the weekend. It's always so nice to see people from home.

Went to Fu Lo Shou, a rooftop bar in Hollywood Road I had heard about. Really cool space. No signage and you had to buzz for the door code. Interesting aspect looking at Soho buildings.

Then to Wang Fu for dumplings and then another bar. Home to crash. Getting to use my spare double bed !

View from Fu Lo Shou...

I had some hikes planned today but it was raining.

Breakfast at Peel Street Espresso, then MTR to Mongkok. Rodney wanted to buy some model planes from a specialist shop there.

Looked at the Lego store in Langham Mall. I'd been there when I stayed at The Langham, some years ago. A very confusing mall !

After that we trekked further into Mongkok and had a nice lunch at a local restaurant.

Then to the model plane shop where Rodney made his purchases.

MTR back to my place for a quick change. Then tram to Wan Chai to try a couple of bars.

Firstly Thaiwan which I had read about. Very new. Mix of Thai and Taiwanese beers. Cool.

Then to Back Bar which I had been to before.

The MTR to Taikoo Shing to meet another mate, Davey, for dinner at his hotel, East. Sugar Bar is fantastic rooftop bar on 32/F. I haven't been that far around the island so the view was different. Great night. Pizza for dinner.

Back and crashed.

Bangkok - Sunday 4 September 2016

Left hotel and walked short distance to Lumphini Park. Bought breakfast from a street vendor which was actually an all you can eat buffet. It was good but I steered away from a couple of things.

Buffet breakfast..ridiculously cheap...

Walked around Lumphini Park park which is a nice piece of green space in the city. 

Then caught cab to Wat Saket - Golden Mount. It was nice and peaceful.

Views from the top...

Then cab to Khao San Road which is a famous backpacker area. Was quiet being early Sunday morning. Walked around a bit. Would be worth seeing at night.

Taxi back to hotel for a swim.

Then taxi to airport. Trip was too short. I need to come back !

Bus from the gate to the plane at DMK Airport...

Bangkok - Saturday 3 September 2016

Woke early. Lots to see today.

Caught Skytrain to Central Pier to catch Express Boat to Grand Palace.

Skytrain...sounds more futuristic than it is...

Got on the wrong boat which only goes back and forth across river. D'oh. Came back to starting point and got on right one up river. Crowded but fun. Pay a small amount onboard to a girl with a tray thing.

The river is a main artery and good way to get around.

Central Pier...

It's warm but not unbearable.

Had a nice breakfast at a local restaurant somewhere up river. Nice pad thai.

Went into Grand Palace. Very busy. Joined a free walking tour which was good. Very impressive temples and statues.

Left after a couple of hours and walked next door to Wat Pho - Temple of the Reclining Buddha. Much less busy. Impressive.

Then caught boat across river to Wat Arun. Had scaffolding on it and couldn't be climbed. Nice to see.

Boat back to Central Pier and Skytrain back to hotel.

Grand Hyatt Erawan lobby...

Had a quick rest then back to Central Pier by Skytrain. Skytrain is good but you need the right change which is a bit annoying as you can only buy tickets at a machine. The have people at the ticket office but all they do is give you change for the machine...

Got a feeling for the scale of the city. Very large and spread out. Doesn't seem to be a city centre per se.

Then caught special Mandarin Oriental water taxi to Mandarin Oriental. Had a nice beer at Verandah Bar. Even at a nice hotel, drinks very reasonably priced.

Mandarin Oriental boat...posh...

Then back on Skytrain to meet some work colleagues for dinner. Had drinks by the pool at their hotel (Sheraton Grande) then dinner at nice outdoor restaurant called Rosabieng.

Back to hotel and crashed.

Erawan Shrine right next to my hotel. It was bombed in 2015 and 20 people died.

Skytrain on tracks above the road...

Traffic...no worse than Sydney...