Holiday Over
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- bigken
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Holiday Over
Well thats it for this year ( i think ), a lovely 3 weeks break starting off with a couple of nights in Dubai, then 2 weeks Pattaya and finishing with 4 nights in Bangkok, but no Cambodia .
Dubai, i feel like I've ticked the box and no need to go back, we did what i wanted by going up to the 148th floor at the Burj Khalifa ( glad i paid the extra when we booked to do the 148th and not just the 125th), not the easiest place to take pictures, everything had to be done through glass windows and the haze didn't help. We also made use of the Metro and ended up at The Atlantis Hotel on The Palm.
check out the shadow
The Atlantis
We then moved on to Pattaya Thailand, having been before we knew what we was in for, no flash beaches or stunning islands but we picked a nice hotel out of the way and for about 80p we could get into Pattaya on a Baht Bus, one reason for picking Pattaya was that i wanted to do Angkor Wat Temple in Siem Reap, Cambodia by road, ( every tour company we asked would only do it in groups of at least 4 ). The hotel was only a few hundred yards from a place called The Sanctuary of Truth, so we had a walk around it one afternoon
The whole temple is carved out of wood inside and out .
Then it was on to Bangkok, 20hrs a day rush hr traffic, tuk tuk's that charge you £2 per hr and you'd be lucky to do a mile , taxi motorbikes that will take to the pavement to gain some distance. The deal was she could have her days shopping ( I'm talking 7 floors of shops and thats in just one of many shopping centres, another had Rolls Royces, BMW, Aston Martins ect ect for sale in it) as long as we took a trip to the River Kwai, we went 13yrs ago and i fancied going again.
It was a nice day out, 3hrs travel to the river where you board a long tail speed boat ( picture 2), that takes you down to the bridge, then on to a museum about the Death Railway, then back on the bus for another hr to a restaurant that is out in the sticks before catching the train back to the bridge before heading back to Bangkok and its traffic that never moves, sitting here now i wish id seen about doing a 2 day trip and going further to Burma and seeing Hellfire Pass.
So that brings me to shopping in Bangkok floor 1 - 2 - 3 -4 then 5 , wall to wall camera shops, do i need a new one NO but such a saving compared to the UK, so should i upgrade my dslr. So i decided to do a little bit of research before parting with cash, well a night of hotel wifi = a lot of talk of Grey Imports ( they say serial number problems means no firmware updates and Thai only warrant).
So we move on to Bangkok International Airport and a bit of Duty Free "King Power", it was love at first sight Olympus OMD EM1 + 12-40 pro lens, 58000bhts thats about £400 cheaper than uk, as i turned to walk out with should i shouldn't i going through my head this lady says its on offer at 39000 bhts, so as i was walking away the phone came out, a quick tap on the calculator then it was about turn and back in, by this time there was a battery hand grip, spare battery, 2 memory cards and a worldwide warranty on the counter so I am now the proud owner of a OMD EM1, just have to sell my D300 and gear now
Firmware updated, registered it on Olympus website 2yr warranty on body 2.5yr on lens
Dubai, i feel like I've ticked the box and no need to go back, we did what i wanted by going up to the 148th floor at the Burj Khalifa ( glad i paid the extra when we booked to do the 148th and not just the 125th), not the easiest place to take pictures, everything had to be done through glass windows and the haze didn't help. We also made use of the Metro and ended up at The Atlantis Hotel on The Palm.
check out the shadow
The Atlantis
We then moved on to Pattaya Thailand, having been before we knew what we was in for, no flash beaches or stunning islands but we picked a nice hotel out of the way and for about 80p we could get into Pattaya on a Baht Bus, one reason for picking Pattaya was that i wanted to do Angkor Wat Temple in Siem Reap, Cambodia by road, ( every tour company we asked would only do it in groups of at least 4 ). The hotel was only a few hundred yards from a place called The Sanctuary of Truth, so we had a walk around it one afternoon
The whole temple is carved out of wood inside and out .
Then it was on to Bangkok, 20hrs a day rush hr traffic, tuk tuk's that charge you £2 per hr and you'd be lucky to do a mile , taxi motorbikes that will take to the pavement to gain some distance. The deal was she could have her days shopping ( I'm talking 7 floors of shops and thats in just one of many shopping centres, another had Rolls Royces, BMW, Aston Martins ect ect for sale in it) as long as we took a trip to the River Kwai, we went 13yrs ago and i fancied going again.
It was a nice day out, 3hrs travel to the river where you board a long tail speed boat ( picture 2), that takes you down to the bridge, then on to a museum about the Death Railway, then back on the bus for another hr to a restaurant that is out in the sticks before catching the train back to the bridge before heading back to Bangkok and its traffic that never moves, sitting here now i wish id seen about doing a 2 day trip and going further to Burma and seeing Hellfire Pass.
So that brings me to shopping in Bangkok floor 1 - 2 - 3 -4 then 5 , wall to wall camera shops, do i need a new one NO but such a saving compared to the UK, so should i upgrade my dslr. So i decided to do a little bit of research before parting with cash, well a night of hotel wifi = a lot of talk of Grey Imports ( they say serial number problems means no firmware updates and Thai only warrant).
So we move on to Bangkok International Airport and a bit of Duty Free "King Power", it was love at first sight Olympus OMD EM1 + 12-40 pro lens, 58000bhts thats about £400 cheaper than uk, as i turned to walk out with should i shouldn't i going through my head this lady says its on offer at 39000 bhts, so as i was walking away the phone came out, a quick tap on the calculator then it was about turn and back in, by this time there was a battery hand grip, spare battery, 2 memory cards and a worldwide warranty on the counter so I am now the proud owner of a OMD EM1, just have to sell my D300 and gear now
Firmware updated, registered it on Olympus website 2yr warranty on body 2.5yr on lens
- LovelyLadyLux
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Re: Holiday Over
Fantastic photos BK!! Sounds like you had one terrific holiday Can't even say from your photos which country impresses me more as each has strong positives going for it. Can't believe that entire Temple is carved out of wood. That is phenomenal and everything presents as so intricate.
That new camera looks pretty nifty too!! From time to time when I've looked at tech items on line from different places I've read about the "grey" market but I think Duty Free is pretty secure. Definitely think you've got a steal of a deal
That new camera looks pretty nifty too!! From time to time when I've looked at tech items on line from different places I've read about the "grey" market but I think Duty Free is pretty secure. Definitely think you've got a steal of a deal
- Kiya
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Re: Holiday Over
Fantastic photos & the wooden temple looks amazing
Hoping to see soon some photos from your new camera
Hoping to see soon some photos from your new camera
- LovelyLadyLux
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Re: Holiday Over
I think it would be fascinating to see Dubai. It is on my bucket list with a "TBA" behind the city name ......
- Ruby Slippers
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Re: Holiday Over
Great photos, BK! Can't pretend any interest in the camera deal because I'm not a photo person but DH is certainly interested!
- Jayway
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Re: Holiday Over
Great photos, loved the Temple, amazing. Dubai looks really ugly, like a cancer on the earth .. saw The Atlantis on TV, showed the expensive suites - - - BK, where do the real working people live ?
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Re: Holiday Over
Fantastic pictures and narrative, wish I was there moment, which is lingering.
I went to Dubai in February 1998 my goodness how it's changed (of course ) We found it very humid especially near the Creek, but I loved it. So clean and well organized. I wanted to start a balloon business in Hatta Fort about an hour's drive I think from the city and my idea of a sub-tropical heaven.
I went to Dubai in February 1998 my goodness how it's changed (of course ) We found it very humid especially near the Creek, but I loved it. So clean and well organized. I wanted to start a balloon business in Hatta Fort about an hour's drive I think from the city and my idea of a sub-tropical heaven.
Smile! It confuses people
- Grandad
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Re: Holiday Over
Very interesting BK, and thanks for posting.
When we first went to Dubai about 20 years ago there was none of the high rise that is there now. Our hotel, the Oasis Beach on Jumairah was just 6 floors high and nothing around it. We have been back over the years and seen the changes as they happen including The Burg Hotel, but have not been since the Burj Khalifa was built.
We have been to Thailand and loved it but did not go to the Kwai river......but we have visited the river and site of the making of the film 'Bridge over the River Kwai' in Sri Lanka.......second best I suppose.
When we first went to Dubai about 20 years ago there was none of the high rise that is there now. Our hotel, the Oasis Beach on Jumairah was just 6 floors high and nothing around it. We have been back over the years and seen the changes as they happen including The Burg Hotel, but have not been since the Burj Khalifa was built.
We have been to Thailand and loved it but did not go to the Kwai river......but we have visited the river and site of the making of the film 'Bridge over the River Kwai' in Sri Lanka.......second best I suppose.
- Grandad
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Re: Holiday Over
BK, I forgot to comment on the camera. That sounds an amazing price. Am I right that 28000 baht is around £500. I believe the pro kit is about £1400. Is that right? If so......WOW! What adeal.
- bigken
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Re: Holiday Over
28000? i paid 39000 for it, worked out about £720 that is including the power hand grip @ £189 and a battery £50, uk price for camera and lens is £1499 ( but you get a £100 cash back at the min)
- Grandad
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Re: Holiday Over
Still a great deal BK
I did look it up and it looks like a very nice piece of kit. Pictures in due course please
I did look it up and it looks like a very nice piece of kit. Pictures in due course please
- Grandad
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Re: Holiday Over
BK, it could be considerably fewer than 20 years when we first went to Dubai, more like 16. But as mentioned, our hotel was isolated on Jumeirah (spelling?) beach. In this picture just a few years ago The Oasis Beach Hotel is circled red, the blue circled hotel was a Hilton also there at the time, so all the development around it occurred in under 10 years.
- bigken
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Re: Holiday Over
Grandad & Mad Dilys i can well imagine Dubai has changed a little since you where both there , we only had a couple of nights in Dubai while on route to Thailand so we picked a city centre hotel not far from the airport and near to the metro ( wasn't going to be wasting what time we had there by sitting by a beach or pool, not with all them shopping centres ). Even so as we was only there for 2 nights i feel like I've ticked that box no need to go back, its impressive and like MD said very clean and organized, but i felt it was just sea- beach- tall/taller buildings - shopping malls and expensive.
Now to contradict myself,but for what we payed for the 2 nights in Dubai, i would do it again while on route to the far east ( sure broke the flight up ), sorry about the quality of the pictures, always seemed to be shooting through glass and not the cleanest, plus it was hazy all the time we was there.
Taken from the Monorail station at the Hotel Atlantis on the Palm, looking towards the main land.
Grandad, hard to tell but looking at google maps Oasis Beach Hotel is just by the side of The Palm, if so this could be it circled in black ( taken while on the monorail)
looking the other way out of the monorail was the Burj Al Arab
Looking that way from up the Burj Khalifa you can just make out the Burj Al Arab through the lovely haze
We was told to hang around for the sunset ( thats why with my old mate google i booked 17.00) as it will be spectacular and one of the best you'll ever see, on a clear day it might have been.
Not sure if its just me but a sunset Luxor Style will take some beating..................Saying that what is YOUR best location you've seen for a Sunset
Sorry Jayway i cant answer your question as to where the working people live, i'd imagine out of sight.
Now to contradict myself,but for what we payed for the 2 nights in Dubai, i would do it again while on route to the far east ( sure broke the flight up ), sorry about the quality of the pictures, always seemed to be shooting through glass and not the cleanest, plus it was hazy all the time we was there.
Taken from the Monorail station at the Hotel Atlantis on the Palm, looking towards the main land.
Grandad, hard to tell but looking at google maps Oasis Beach Hotel is just by the side of The Palm, if so this could be it circled in black ( taken while on the monorail)
looking the other way out of the monorail was the Burj Al Arab
Looking that way from up the Burj Khalifa you can just make out the Burj Al Arab through the lovely haze
We was told to hang around for the sunset ( thats why with my old mate google i booked 17.00) as it will be spectacular and one of the best you'll ever see, on a clear day it might have been.
Not sure if its just me but a sunset Luxor Style will take some beating..................Saying that what is YOUR best location you've seen for a Sunset
Sorry Jayway i cant answer your question as to where the working people live, i'd imagine out of sight.
- Grandad
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Re: Holiday Over
That is probably right BK. When we were there they were just beginning to drop the boulders into the sea to start to create the first palm. Then there was The World and now a second palm. With money everything is possible.
Love the sunset pictures through the haze. I think we will have to go back to the Emirates one more time. We have been to Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Al Ain, Sharjar, and RaK. Would probably go to Ajman so that we have a full hand except for Fujairah. Mrs G has found nice 'trinkets' in A D, Dubai and Bahrain so I am a little hesitant that she will find some more.
Love the sunset pictures through the haze. I think we will have to go back to the Emirates one more time. We have been to Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Al Ain, Sharjar, and RaK. Would probably go to Ajman so that we have a full hand except for Fujairah. Mrs G has found nice 'trinkets' in A D, Dubai and Bahrain so I am a little hesitant that she will find some more.
- LovelyLadyLux
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Re: Holiday Over
Beautiful photos BK. I would love to see the Palms but but but am not sure I'm going the distance to view them right now.
Definitely a good stopping off spot for you en route to the final destination and would be nice to break up the trips with other stops.
Definitely a good stopping off spot for you en route to the final destination and would be nice to break up the trips with other stops.
- Kiya
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- LovelyLadyLux
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Re: Holiday Over
Talking about sunsets - while yours of Luxor is lovely I think the most beautiful I saw were in El Salvador. When that sun went down every night over the water it was gorgeous
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