New Year in Thailand

My Thai Airways flight took off from Heathrow at 10.10 pm on the Sunday and touched down in Bangkok about 3.30 pm the next day. I'd managed to get a window seat so slept as best I could most of the journey. I also declined the aircraft food as usual as it usually gives me wind and isn't that great to begin with. Plus it's always a struggle to eat it without making a mess everywhere.

I got the airport limo to Pattaya - the driver expected a tip. I offered him 20 baht - he muttered - so I gave him 40 - at which he said he expected 100 - so I told him it was tough and went off to the hotel reception.

Pattaya was well geared up for Christmas with plenty of tourists - and it was almost "standing room only" at my usual bar one night. New Year's Eve and New Year's Day were (I believe) public holidays so there were a lot of local folk from Bangkok having a day on the beach.

New Year's eve the traffic was absolutely solid - I saw in the New Year with friends (and Jameson 12 Year Old) at the hotel before a 30 minute walk to the bar. Leaving there at about 2.30 instead of the usual "Baht Bus" a motorcycle taxi was called for. I'm not usually in favour of these but I wasn't going to walk back. As we weaved through the traffic I realised that Thai motorcyclists drive in just the same manner as our Indian drivers in Chennai!

Christmas in England

Viewed from Chennai the news of snow in the UK on Friday 18 December was not encouraging. On arrival at Heathrow at about 10.00 am the next day it certainly felt very cold (after six months in the Tropics) and I was glad I'd packed a sweater, fleece and cagoule in my hand luggage.

I caught the bus to the car hire location, scraped snow off the hire car, and was on my way in bright sunny weather by 10.45. Other than a delay near Luton due to an accident it wasn't such a bad drive and I was back in civilisation by 3.00 pm.

I spent until the Wednesday in Yorkshire - I took a walk to the River Ouse on the Sunday and took photographs of the frozen landscape - which actually makes some of it seem quite pretty!

On the Wednesday I drove south again to St Albans for Christmas at my sister's. I somehow found my way to Luton Airport to dump the car - where a nice young Bulgarian lady took the keys, complimented me on not scratching it, and gave me some free sweets.

On the morning of Christmas day we went for a walk into St Albans as an appetizer for the Christmas Dinner. It was pretty cold outside so it certainly did the trick.

Christmas in the UK came to an end on the Sunday as I took an hour long taxi journey to Heathrow and a flight to Thailand for the New Year.

All in all - despite the cold - it was a good Christmas. Unlike most other foreign assignments there was no feeling of Christmas at all in Chennai - even in such "non Christian countries" (whatever that means) as Malaysia and Thailand there were celebrations, parties, decorations etc during my time there. Of course some of this is driven by the tourist trade - but in Kuala Lumpur the locals all seemed quite keen on it.

It was also a chance to catch up on all the food I've been missing - pork chops, roast beef, Yorkshire Puddings, fish & chips - as well as a pork pie and a Cornish Pasty. Some Bushmills 10 Year Old, Newcastle Brown Ale and Theakston's Old Peculiar did not come amiss either!

So whilst some may decry the commercialisation of Christmas I still enjoy it as it's the best time of year to see friends, stay with family and do nothing useful for a whole week!