A new design, a new blogging platform, and new server. I hope you like it. Obviously it’s not complete - I still need to re-arrange all the side bar information. I wanted to change from Typepad to Wordpress for some time now. At the same time, all the clean and sterile Wordpress templates just weren’t “me”. I had Lisa from E.Webscapes design the new look for me. I didn’t want to waste a lot of time fiddling around with the design of a blogging platform I didn’t understand (yet). In the past, I found that I tended to spend more time fooling around with templates than actually blogging.

I’m leaving for Phuket tonight with Raswan. We’ve never been to the major beach tourist areas of Thailand, and I was curious to see it. It’s going to be a 12 hour bus ride! We just went by a pharmacy to try and get sleeping pills for the ride down. Maybe it’s just the language barrier, but this is what I heard the pharmacist say, “I can’t sell you sleeping pills, but we have tranquilizers.” We kept moving.

After my dentist appointment yesterday, I went to the shopping center, "Siam Paragon."  I figured I’d browse, eat, and catch a movie.  I don’t know when this place opened, but it looks brand new.  The whole first floor of the mall was a gourmet food court and supermarket.  The area was modern, spacious, and a food-lover’s dream.  In the back of the building was the supermarket called, "Gourmet Market."  Upon seeing it, it looked like an upscale, trendy, natural food store… at least that’s what it seemed to me.  There were huge fruit displays, fresh juices (including grass), deli food, tons of free samples, and a surplus of staff everywhere (who, with their dated uniforms, looked like they should have been cashiering on the USS Enterprise).

As anyone who’s traveled with me knows, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to browse foreign supermarkets.  It’s so interesting to see what the staples of different countries are.  What do Thais like for a snack, compared to Indonesians, or Costa Ricans?  It’s also a great way to try out different foods and drinks. 

Anyway, I felt I had died and gone to supermarket heaven.  This store was B-U-tiful!  Just very aesthetically pleasing.  The aisles were wide, and every food item was immaculately stocked, with all the labels facing out.  I could imagine this supermarket being run like a tennis match.  Every time someone takes an item off the shelf, a store clerk scurries to pull the items from the back to the front of the shelf before anyone notices.  Look at the pictures for yourself.

For lunch, I had Japanese octopus balls and a grass jelly drink.  No dessert, but I’ve made a mental date with the gelato for a later time.

After lunch, I went upstairs to the movie theater.  I held back on watching any "guy" movies, just in case Raswan wanted to see them when he got here.  So, "Snakes on a Plane" and "Miami Vice" were out.  I almost spontaneously bought a ticket for a Thai movie.  I had no idea what it was about, but I knew there were English subtitles.  Instead, I decided to go for a safe bet and bought a 140 baht ($3.78 USD) ticket for "Lake House" with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock.  It was a nice romantic movie about finding love, not being able to be with that other person, but deciding waiting for them.  I think we could all relate to that in some way.  My only question… if she was in the future, and he was in the past, why didn’t he ask for lottery numbers?  Duh!

On my way out of the mall, I went through Paragon department store.  Riding down the escalator, I notice there was some kind of event at one of the make-up counters.  There were cameras being shoved at some woman below.  A Thai star?  Maybe.  I had to get a closer look.  All the Thais were gazing from afar, afraid to step over the invisible party line.  I figured that if I just walked up and pointed one more camera at her, she wouldn’t notice.  Plus, if any of the waiters serving hors d’oeuvres question why I was at a private party, I’d just feign foreigner ignorance.  I was very stealthy and was in and out in less than a minute.

I continued on my way out of the building by taking one more escalator down.  This time, I was greeted by a really BIG party, with the words "ESTEE LAUDER" splattered everywhere.  Cool, an Esteee Lauder make-up party.  Again, I maneuvered myself up for some good photo opportunities - right next to the Big Boys with their Nikons and Canon SLRs.  The woman on stage introduced some make-up artist "all the way" from Australia.  His name was Brad *something* - a very forgettable last name.  He talked about the fall make-up line - mauves and violets (for you trend-setters out there!).  He also mentioned the clothes the models would be wearing - BLACK.  As he said, "Black is the new black!"  As well as taking photos of the people on stage, I tried to snap pictures of people that looked like Thai stars.  If they were being interviewed, having their picture taken, or were posing for cameras, I also took their picture.  I don’t even know who these people are.  Does anyone else?

They sat on the left side of the stage.

The covered the event from the front of the stage.

Afterward, I grabbed some more food from the Gourmet Market and made it home to have my dinner a la carte.  Coconut sticky rice with mangoes…. YUM!

I arrived at my dental appointment an hour late because my taxi driver didn’t know where he was going.  Still, he was a nice guy as he chit-chatted about Laotians visiting Bangkok from Nong Khai and how much money they had because they could afford to do that (yeah right, the Lao are rich).  He asked where I was from, where I was traveling, who with, for how long, etc.  He even questioned why I was even going to a dentist because my teeth looked fine.  Maybe I should wait until my teeth are black with rot???

The cleaning was pretty quick, in comparison with a very thorough session I’ve had in Oregon.  I didn’t even get a toothbrush or toothpaste afterward!  Next, the dentist came in and I had a consultation about my root canals.  She said the roots would need to be cleaned out first, and medicine put in, before they could perform the rest of the procedure.  I asked how long the whole process would take to finish, even though I had a sinking feeling I knew the answer anyway.  About 3 months.  Doh! 

"Umm, I’m only going to be in Thailand for a month, is it possible to start the procedure and finish at home?" 

"No, I don’t recommend that.  You should get it all done with one doctor so they can evaluate your progress."  (sigh) "OK."  I guess it’s good to know they’re not only trying to get money out of patients.

Plan B:  I’m going to replace my silver fillings with inlays and replace one crown.  I’ve made four more appointments to finish my procedures and will be able to leave Bangkok for an island a week from today.  (Sigh)  Now I’ve got to find some touristy things to do and fill up my week.

Since this is my 5th time back to Thailand, some of you are probably wondering why I didn’t go somewhere else for a vacation.  I would have loved to have gone to Sulawesi, Indonesia, because as "Noodles" had said, the diving was so great, “I would have shit my pants”.  The main reason I’m here is because I’m now one of thousands of people in Thailand for “medical tourism.”  Medical tourism is a booming business in Thailand, and encompasses medical, surgical, and dental procedures.  When I’ve told some people I was coming to Thailand to get dental work, their reply was “Thailand?!?”  I’m sure they were envisioning me in a dark and dingy room in some back alley of Bangkok.  This couldn’t be further from the truth. 

In reality, Thailand actively promotes medical tourism, along with Costa Rica, Hungary, India, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa, and more.  This year, more than 250,000 patients will visit Singapore, where 500,000 will go to India.  The numbers aren’t too surprising in India, where 20,000 to 30,000 doctors and nurses are churned out each year. 

“With the growth of medical-related travel and aggressive marketing, Bangkok became a centre for medical tourism.  Bangkok’s International Medical Centre offers services in 26 languages, recognizes cultural and religious dietary restrictions, and has a special wing for Japanese patients.”  At Bangkok’s Bumrundgrad Hospital, more than 200 surgeons are board-certified in the United States.  A few years ago, I went to Bumrundgrad when I had a dental problem pop up.  The hospital is really posh.  There were valets, doormen, a bakery, and Starbucks in the building.  This hospital was also featured in the U.S.’s “60 Minutes” and "Today Show."  "Bumrungrad Hospital in Bangkok alone sees more foreign patients than all the Singapore hospitals combined." [source]

A year ago, before I left for Korea, I went to a dentist for a check-up.  My x-ray revealed that both root canals I had done on my molars had abscesses on them.  I was advised to get them re-done soon before they became worse.  Soon after, I came to Korea and eventually went to see a dentist.  Basically, the dentist in Kunsan said that if it didn’t hurt, don’t worry about it.  That’s completely opposite of what a western dentist would tell you.  Everyone knows that prevention is the key to healthy teeth.  Even after some urging, he still wouldn’t tackle my root canals.  I then resigned to the fact that I’d have to get it done in Thailand.  When I return to the States, I’ll be like 120 million other Americans who won’t have dental coverage.

Not only are the facilities in Thailand first class, prices are cheap when compared to the West.  For example, when I had a filling done in southern California at a dinky clinic, it cost me $100 (for less than 10 minutes).  In Thailand, the same thing would cost $15-$40.  A root canal treatment for a molar would cost over $800 back home.  Here, it’s $200-$250.  My aunt came to Thailand a few years ago and had dental work done at a smaller Thai clinic (she speaks Thai).  Her teeth looked fantastic, and nothing like the mouth full of Chiclets I was expecting.

As for me, I’m going to a bigger and more “expensive” dental facility.  I called last night at 6:30 pm and was able to get an appointment for a cleaning and consultation today at 11:30 am at Thantakit Dental Clinic.  There are 30 dentists who all speak English, and many of them had overseas training in New York, Missouri, Toronto, and various other places.  The location I’m going to, opening in 2004 and is a 6 story stand alone building with 2,500 sq.m. of floor space.  I’m looking forward to the visit, and will give a total review later.

After a one hour layover in Taipei, I arrived last night in Bangkok around 11pm.  An hour later, I had cleared the long line at customs and hoped that I hadn’t miss the last bus out of the airport.  Fortunately, the airport bus runs from 5:30 am to 12:30 am, and I was able to leave the airport at midnight for the cheap price of 100 baht ($2.70 USD). 

Before arriving in Bangkok, I tried to book a room at the Sawasdee Khaosan Inn, because I knew the airport bus stops directly in front of the hotel.  After sending two emails, I never received a reply back.  I resigned myself to that fact that if they didn’t have my reservation, I’d just walk around and look for a place at one in the morning.  No big deal, it’s Khaosan.  Somebody’s always up.  At 12:45, I walked into the hotel and told the girl in English that I think I had a reservation.  She asked me what my name was, and I told her, but in the proper Thai/Lao accent.  "Oh, that sounds like a Thai name."  "I know, I’m khon Lao."  (Laotian.)  "Can you speak Lao?"  "Yes."  From there, the whole conversation was in Lao and I felt a little awkward trying to remember my rusty Lao, since I hadn’t used it constantly in over a year.

The comradery of an almost common language had its advantages.  She didn’t even look at any computer, but proceeded to ask me what room I had booked and started checking me in.  (Right before I left Korea, I had called the hotel to confirm my reservation, but the person told me all rooms were fully booked and hung up on me.)  The pretty, petite girl then asked if I was by myself (yes), and said a tour group of 40 Laotians had just come in this morning.  I was having small talk with a Thai(!),  so I guess I wasn’t that rusty.

This morning, I had the free breakfast buffet around 8:30.  Just some advice, go there early, because you could tell the omelets had been there since the buffet had started at 6:30 am.  I ventured for it anyway.

I then walked around Khaosan a bit while the vendors were setting up their stalls.  The street seemed almost peaceful.  Later tonight, it will be teaming with freaks, geeks, hippies, Euro trash, families, Thai teenagers, lady boys, police, and the rest of the gawkers.  I have a love/hate relationship with Khaosan, since this is my 5th time in Thailand.  The street is practically visual diarrhea and makes you feel a little dirty just for being there.  At the same time, there are so many travel agencies, PC rooms, cheap places to eat, and a plethora of information for people passing through.

Upon the recommendation of Reardon, I decided to try out a new area and am now at Reno Hotel near MBK.  I’m staying here for only a couple days because those were the only availabe days with rooms, then head back to Khaosan and wait for Raswan to arrive later this week.