Hello people! It's been a while since my last post as I've not only been busy with work, but also with my foodpanda curator's network collaboration for the past month and then a short weekend trip with the girls, to Bangkok! Apparently, the months of June to July marks the rainy season in Bangkok and true enough, our 4D3N stay in Bangkok was an extremely rainy one, ranging from comfortable light drizzles that cooled down the extreme heat to extremely heavy downpour that flooded the streets in mere minutes.
Set to return to Singapore in the evening of the 20th, we were lucky enough to only experience the very beginning of the heavy downpour that caused the widespread flooding across Bangkok early Tuesday.
Staying at Analog Hostel located in Sukhumvit area, we first flagged a cab at EMQuartier Mall to return to our Hostel, which is actually a 10 to 15 minutes walk away, when we saw the heavy rain. After getting into the cab, the driver quickly turned into one of the Soi and his worry gradually intensified into pure panic when he realised that the water level on the road was getting higher and higher, swishing around dangerously close to the exhaust pipe of the car we're trailing behind.
"WHOA, WHOA, WHOA!" was all we understood from the cab driver, who barely spoke English and his worry was easily understood from his constant attempt to reach out to fellow cab drivers who drove past us from the opposite direction, asking on the road conditions up ahead, to which some of them simply shook their head vigorously at him.
Eventually, he took the risk of driving past a seemingly "too deep for his car" submerged spot after seeing all the cars going through unscathed, and dropped us back at EMQuartier, repeating, "FREE! FREE!"
Now, it's our turn to panic as our agreed meeting time of 2pm with our airport pick up service, Mr. Udon, is near and he has been calling us to remind us of even slower traffic due to the heavy rain and flooding road conditions. Left without a choice, the 5 of us braved the rain (and shoes ruining water on the streets), armed with only 4 umbrellas and hands full of last minute purchases from Naraya, and finally made it back to Analog Hostel. A huge sense of relief washed upon me when I saw Mr. Udon's silver van parked right at Analog's gates. He has arrived at 1:30pm, half an hour earlier than our agreed pick up time and waited for us to show up.
Upon seeing us, he quickly helped us load all our luggage into the van and whisked us off to the airport, making some lighthearted joke at the then-current road flooding conditions, saying in another hour's time we will need to be travelling in a boat.
On hindsight, we would have been in serious trouble if Mr. Udon had decided to save his van from the rising water levels that started off from the sois (like the cab driver) and ditch us, especially when we couldn't adhere to the agreed meeting time of 2pm. Not only did he waited for us, he also helped with all the loading and unloading of our luggage in the pouring rain and charges reasonably at a rate lower than what came up in my google search for airport transfer.
I guess we do share some sort of affinity as we actually met Mr. Udon during our last night at Bangkok while he's taking the cab shift for his relative and we somehow decided to seriously consider his offer of an airport transfer on a private van (we're usually more wary of overly friendly cab drivers asking for our holiday schedule) and eventually hired his service. Owning 20 vehicles, Mr. Udon not only provide airport transfers but also private tours around Bangkok.
He doesn't seem to have a website, but he does have whatsapp so if you're keen on engaging him, do drop him a message.
There's no need to quote my name or whatsoever as this post is done solely out of my appreciation for his good service.
And also, do stay around for my Bangkok's cafes reviews that's coming up real soon!
Meanwhile, my review of Analog Hostel is already up HERE
Till then,
Mia Foo
Set to return to Singapore in the evening of the 20th, we were lucky enough to only experience the very beginning of the heavy downpour that caused the widespread flooding across Bangkok early Tuesday.
Staying at Analog Hostel located in Sukhumvit area, we first flagged a cab at EMQuartier Mall to return to our Hostel, which is actually a 10 to 15 minutes walk away, when we saw the heavy rain. After getting into the cab, the driver quickly turned into one of the Soi and his worry gradually intensified into pure panic when he realised that the water level on the road was getting higher and higher, swishing around dangerously close to the exhaust pipe of the car we're trailing behind.
-credits to nationmultimedia.com-
"WHOA, WHOA, WHOA!" was all we understood from the cab driver, who barely spoke English and his worry was easily understood from his constant attempt to reach out to fellow cab drivers who drove past us from the opposite direction, asking on the road conditions up ahead, to which some of them simply shook their head vigorously at him.
Eventually, he took the risk of driving past a seemingly "too deep for his car" submerged spot after seeing all the cars going through unscathed, and dropped us back at EMQuartier, repeating, "FREE! FREE!"
Now, it's our turn to panic as our agreed meeting time of 2pm with our airport pick up service, Mr. Udon, is near and he has been calling us to remind us of even slower traffic due to the heavy rain and flooding road conditions. Left without a choice, the 5 of us braved the rain (and shoes ruining water on the streets), armed with only 4 umbrellas and hands full of last minute purchases from Naraya, and finally made it back to Analog Hostel. A huge sense of relief washed upon me when I saw Mr. Udon's silver van parked right at Analog's gates. He has arrived at 1:30pm, half an hour earlier than our agreed pick up time and waited for us to show up.
Upon seeing us, he quickly helped us load all our luggage into the van and whisked us off to the airport, making some lighthearted joke at the then-current road flooding conditions, saying in another hour's time we will need to be travelling in a boat.
On hindsight, we would have been in serious trouble if Mr. Udon had decided to save his van from the rising water levels that started off from the sois (like the cab driver) and ditch us, especially when we couldn't adhere to the agreed meeting time of 2pm. Not only did he waited for us, he also helped with all the loading and unloading of our luggage in the pouring rain and charges reasonably at a rate lower than what came up in my google search for airport transfer.
I guess we do share some sort of affinity as we actually met Mr. Udon during our last night at Bangkok while he's taking the cab shift for his relative and we somehow decided to seriously consider his offer of an airport transfer on a private van (we're usually more wary of overly friendly cab drivers asking for our holiday schedule) and eventually hired his service. Owning 20 vehicles, Mr. Udon not only provide airport transfers but also private tours around Bangkok.
He doesn't seem to have a website, but he does have whatsapp so if you're keen on engaging him, do drop him a message.
There's no need to quote my name or whatsoever as this post is done solely out of my appreciation for his good service.
And also, do stay around for my Bangkok's cafes reviews that's coming up real soon!
Meanwhile, my review of Analog Hostel is already up HERE
Till then,
Mia Foo
Also in Pattaya, Thailand, there are some floods, it's good to know that you are safe.
ReplyDeletewww.itsbeyondimaginations.blogspot.com
OMG! Life comes to such a standstill when such things happen! Glad you are safe. It looks quite bad!
ReplyDeleteBad weather is always a bummer during vacations. A flood makes it worse because you are trapped in the hotel, and may affect your trip home.
ReplyDeleteWhoa, that's terrible flooding. The cars that are trapped on the roads must be in a lot of trouble.
ReplyDeleteNature's way of saying "sorry" because of constant rain and flooding. Bad weather really hindered travel in some places around the globe. Here in the Philippines, last month, reain and thunderstorm captured our environment. Better luck next time around.
ReplyDeleteWhat bad timing! I'm glad you were able to fly back to Singapore just as the storm arrived. It's really terrible to experience the floods on vacation.
ReplyDeleteStay safe! It's the rainy season here in Manila as well. :O
ReplyDeleteThat's excellent service for Mr. Udon. We have floods here though it's been rare for me to be in floody areas.
ReplyDeleteFloods like this can be a real deal breaker in a vacation. But always put your safety above anything else. Floods can also become a big problem when you need to catch a flight. Good thing you have Mr. Udon. :-)
ReplyDeleteWow... I did met heavy rain last year when I was in Bangkok but I did not see any flooding despite many reports of such across social media news. Never knew it's that scary!
ReplyDeleteOh my God!!! One gentleman he is!!! And that's one messy situation you were in and glad you reached airport on time.
ReplyDeleteI have also heard such a thing from a friend who visited the city. It can be a break and boring when such thing happen during vacation.
ReplyDeletei know that some part of bangkok is flooded every rainy season as like here in Manila Ph as well. but not all
ReplyDeleteOh, such natural disasters can turn life topsy-turvy...good to know that u are safe..
ReplyDeleteA unique experience you will always remember.
ReplyDeleteHowever, Mr. Udon's name is now stuck in my head.
Definitely someone who knows how to make a deep impression.
:)
Oh man I saw it on the news too and it was quite bad. Hope the situation is getting better now.
ReplyDelete