Choei Yala sounds very typical of the hood, and, like so many Thai districts, it bears no geographical reference to its namesake or any other significant Thai treasure.
We were talking to two Thai women, preparing to take pictures of the Red Rain garden at the Siam Niramit Thani. But the pool of water wouldn’t close and I was told to go right upstairs. My lunch companion insisted on staying downstairs for reasons that I would later learn were as unprovable as her constant excursions to get bigger bangles in the jewelry store across the street.
A little walk upstairs, past the rattan beds that are the hotel’s signature features, and up to my room I went, with my dinar wallet and all of the Thai and international currency in it. I was to have my choice of cash as well as contactless or magnetic debit cards, but the hotel itself uses just a contactless system for payment.
The bathtub at Choei Yala hotel. (Photo courtesy Siam Niramit Thani.)
The message in these posters is that bathroom mirrors must be kept clean. But there is room for interpretation. There was nobody in the bathroom when I arrived, but the bathroom did indeed appear to be completely clean. It would take a further three days to show the same observation by the same photographer.
The restaurant was a hostess’ lounge, usually closed on Saturday mornings.
But the staff even though it was only a half-hour walk across the hotel grounds were chatting away with us and being accommodating to our needs.
The elephant sculpture by a Thai artist who purchased it from art dealer Robert Wirtz.
The statues in Bangkok are not only meant to provoke but generally are whimsical or narrative in their design.
The system does work and takes no “hit.”
No other good time to explore Thailand is better than summer, which this year can be a little different than all others. Plus, the prices go up during the tourist season (usually between November and April), and will continue to do so until the moon’s month of May.
Let’s chat and see if the hotel encourages you to wear your take on Thai culture and fashion at lunch when you are renting bikes in Nong Khai or Ataman and then at the extended dinner back at the hotel.
