By Lawrence Casiraya
INQUIRER.net
ARRIVING in Bangkok past midnight without a hotel booking, I took my chances on Khao San Road tagging along with two French women I met at the airport. I figured it was a lot easier to find a place to stay there. Turns out I had to cherry pick hotels in the wee hours of the morning.
Khao San greeted me with its bright lights, thumping music (Blur’s “Girls Against Boys” mixed with this shalala-la ditty), streetwalkers and all the revelry — exactly like that scene in ”The Beach” as I remember it.
After scouring through every available signboard I laid my eyes on, I spotted one leading to an alley — Sawasdee Bangkok Inn, the familiar purple giving me some sort of comfort after flying Thai Airways thrice in the last two days.
Patience is indeed a virtue, it was the most decent-looking room I found — the rest were either too big or too ratty, depending on your tolerance. D&D Inn (where the two French women were staying — WITH RESERVATION) looked really nice but it was full, apparently a traveler’s favorite. Stay away from Khao San Palace, shitty rooms. O
My room was cozy enough in size, the TV small but an essential antidote to loneliness. Hot shower, check. With breakfast, check. 1,375 baht for a three-day promo, not bad.
Nevermind the not-so-picturesque window view, the al-fresco restaurant downstairs makes up for it. A Continental breakfast and watching the NBA Finals on their big screen TV while I was writing this was a huge plus — and they have wifi.
June 15th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
This article doesn’t say when the writer made the trip - it can be very difficult to get a room in the high season - October to March. You should book!