At past noon, we finished touring the Grand Palace. I was waiting for my Mum in the exit gate while she returned the skirt which she rented for 100 Baht to the counter. Wearing shorts and sleeveless are not allowed inside the Grand Palace.
It was understandably busy because the next day would be the Thai New Year or Songkran Festival.
While waiting for her, a drizzle of rain started to drop. I looked at the sky. I instantly knew that a heavy rain was still to come because the sky was a carpet of dark clouds. We supposed to head to Jim Thompson House, a museum of traditional Thai Houses. The entry pass for Jim Thompson House was included already in the entrance ticket we purchased for Grand Palace.
So, we didn’t want to miss it for two reasons. It was another tourist attraction and we paid for it but the moment we stepped out from the main gate of Grand Palace, the heavy rain started to pour. Luckily, there was an empty Tuktuk, a three wheeled public transportation, adjacent to us. We hopped in to avoid getting drench.
So, we didn’t want to miss it for two reasons. It was another tourist attraction and we paid for it but the moment we stepped out from the main gate of Grand Palace, the heavy rain started to pour. Luckily, there was an empty Tuktuk, a three wheeled public transportation, adjacent to us. We hopped in to avoid getting drench.
We told the Tuktuk driver that we were heading to Jim Thompson House. I showed to him the entry pass to make sure we understood each other. By the way, the pass is valid within the day of purchased only.
Then he suggested going first to the Golden Buddha because Jim Thompson House was closed during lunchtime and besides entrance fee was not required to visit the Golden Buddha. So he drove and to our surprised, the driver could speak well in English though there were instances that we hardly understood him. He explained the general facts about Bangkok and promoted other local attractions.
Too bad, the heavy rain started to pour down after we entered the entrance (I believed it was a back entrance) to Golden Buddha. We ran to look for a covered area and ended in an open space with a roof. It was a busy place with a monk on the other side and many Thais were praying to the Buddha which was just situated opposite to the monk.
It was understandably busy because the next day would be the Thai New Year or Songkran Festival.
From the place where we were standing and hoping the rain would end soon, we had a glimpse already of the Golden Buddha from his head to chest only. It seemed that they were refurbishing the statue as there were traces of construction materials and wooden ladders. The heavy rained continued and there were other tourists who were stranded with us too. I believed they were headed to Golden Buddha also which I thought just few minutes walk from where we were.
It rained heavily for almost an hour and the water on the ground was around two feet high. So, we removed our shoes and rolled up our pants. Shortly, the Tuktuk driver was heading towards us. We were grateful otherwise we would be stuck there for another hour.
After we hopped in, we asked the driver to take us to a good Thai restaurant. It was passed 3 o’clock already and we didn’t have our lunch yet. Then he said something which we could hardly understand. Anyway, we said yes. To our surprised again, we stopped at a tailor shop that sells customized silk suits. Hmm... This was great, I murmured to my Mum though I was not really keen to shop and it was not part of our itinerary. We were still thankful to the Tuktuk driver for taking us to the shop. We hadn’t known that kind of souvenirs and customized suits were available until he took us there. After few minutes, we came out and eventually the driver took us to a Thai restaurant.
It was almost five in the afternoon and we knew that we missed already the opportunity to visit the Jim Thompson House. So, we decided to go back to our hotel by taxi but the Tuktuk driver bargained for 200 Baht fare including the charge for touring us around from Golden Buddha, tailor shop and restaurant. Honestly, we thought, if not cheaper, it would be the same cost for taxi fare. So it was fair enough to take Tuktuk instead of taxi.
The Tuktuk driver asked us for two more favors, to visit two more shops before heading back to our hotel. This time it was a jewelry shop and another tailor shop. He in fact insisted for more other shops but we firmly refused. Well, we really appreciated his gestures for showing some part of Bangkok but it started to irritate us. We had more detours than expected.
I supposed to pay him with an extra tip, in fact considering to double it, but I realized I didn’t bargain which they normally expect. They set the price high enough that when the customer haggles, they still get the right price with profit. My hunch then was that we were overcharged (of course!).
In the end, I ended up paying the amount of 200 Baht that we agreed. Later we came to know the reason why the driver insisted to make several detours and stopovers to various shops. Every time the Tuktuk driver will take tourists to these shops, they receive incentives and rewards. It can be in kind such free petrol, some vouchers, and so on.
So, on your future trip to Bangkok and your Tuktuk driver insists to follow his itineraries instead of yours, beware!
