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Cruising Asia

in the Wake of Covid

by Lisa Spiller
ith Asia now open to U.S. travelers, we Elaborate brightly painted Buddhist temples were the star attraction
W at every market, neighborhood, palace and family home. We boarded
spontaneously booked one of the first
motorized tuk tuks for a whirl around the city and visited the Emerald
cruises to sail Southeast Asia since the
Covid pandemic. With visions of a Singapore Sling Buddha at the Royal Palace, the Golden Buddha, and the most sacred of
in mind as we touched down in Singapore Christmas all, Wat Pho, the 150 ft long Reclining Buddha. Buddha is omnipresent
week, we checked into the iconic Raffles Hotel for in Thailand, as are the monks, who are considered the messengers to
two nights. Our private guide Gee Soo from Hello Singapore tours Buddha. Monks draped in orange occupied temples and wandered
greeted us in our lobby and escorted us on a jaw-dropping exploration streets accepting donations of flowers and food in exchange for blessings.
of award-winning architecture, multi-cultural neighborhoods and The Thai love beauty and believe that if you are surrounded by beauty,
street food. With Gee Soo’s guidance, we biked, walked, took busses, you have a beautiful life. Flower markets and stalls line city streets
subways, canal boat and gondolas to Gardens by the Bay, Marina selling flower garlands of marigolds and jasmine for the monks and for
Bay, Boat Key, Clarke Quay, Sentonsa Island, and we indulged in the wearable beauty.
Hawker Markets which have been named a UNESCO Intangible Staples in every Thai diet are banana, coconut, dragon fruit, mango,
Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Hawker Markets are street food and rice. We enjoyed traditional multi-course Thai meals featuring spicy
markets featuring local favorites like Hainanese chicken rice, chili crab, shrimp and noodles, chicken satay, rice, curried vegetables, and during
fish head curry, wok fried noodles and oyster cakes. dinner on the river, were mesmerized by elaborately costumed Thai
To punctuate our visit, we slid into the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel dancers showcasing the art that every Thai toddler learns as a matter of
and indulged in Singapore Slings. The city nation of Singapore is tradition.
as cosmopolitan as it is exotic. Everyone speaks English, public Daily market visits are as much a part of Thai lifestyle, as is Buddha.
transportation is easy, the city is immaculate, and streets are safe. The markets in Bangkok were EPIC.
We boarded the Seabourn Ovation for their first cruise out of The Damnoen Saduak Floating Market is among the best-preserved
Singapore in years, and within this context, we devoured each exotic authentic attractions of Thailand and an unforgettable experience. We
port of call like starved wanderlusts and gave thanks as each new boarded a canopied wooden longboat and motored through canals
bucket list adventure unfolded brimming with hawkers floating in canoes piled with fruits, vegetables,
Seabourn’s first stop was Koh Kood, Thailand, a barefoot beach carved wooden utensils, silk saris, cashmere scarves, coolie hats, sweets,
island escape. Languid blue waters lapped at palm-laced shores while dried fish, and orchid plants. We haggled for teak inlaid chopsticks,
we swung from branches sipping Malibu Rum & coconut water out wooden bowls, silk boxer shorts, cashmere scarves, woven purses, cotton
of fresh green coconuts. Officers dressed in epaulets and dazzling shirts and coconut candy and came home with bags of memories.
whites waded into the Sea of Thailand with bottomless bottles of The Maeklong Railway market is a traditional Thai market with
French champagne, ceremoniously crowned a surfboard with a bucket smelly fish and exotic fruits and vegetables, but what makes it so unique
of caviar and doled out lavish portions to my fellow cruisers and I as is that the market stalls are built right on top of the train tracks. When
we swarmed the bay. Locals provided Thai massages under the shady we heard the whistle of the oncoming train blow, all hawkers pulled their
palms at the water’s edge to the sound of symphonic surf. baskets, buckets and tables off the tracks, dismantled their tents and
Relaxed and restored, we arrived in Bangkok, Thailand the next squabbled with oblivious tourists before the train snaked its way through
day. The port is actually 90 minutes from the city of Bangkok, so we the market. It was organized chaos with a lot of disputation, and the
maximized our overnight visit by booking a two-day private guided speed and proximity of the train as it shimmied by only inches from my
tour, packed overnight bags and stayed in a luxury hotel on the Chao nose was moderately alarming. Almost like a boomerang effect, when
Praya river in the heart of the city. the train stopped, the market stalls were then quickly and methodically
erected again within 60 seconds.
Check out our next issue in April for part two of Lisa’s travel stories!

Life in Naples | March 2023 61