SINGAPORE TO BANGKOK

 Our M Club dinner with drinks last night.

Went to bed early.  Note that we essentially did nothing in Singapore.

We catch Thai Air from Singapore to Subarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok.  Started in some strange sounding and dingy looking lounge.  No tomato juice for a Bloody Mary.  Had Asahi Beer and a glass of Chardonnay with curry rice, which was lukewarm, but okay.  Huge chunks of good-tasting beef.

Thailand is, geographically, 700 times larger than Singapore, with 13 times more people.  

• However, the annual GDP are very similar, $495 million for Thailand and $467 million for Singapore.
• Thus, the GDP per capita of Singapore is $82,808 and $7,082 for Thailand.

• 
  Singapore is #1 in world competitiveness, Thailand #40.
• Global Peace Ranking:  Singapore #6, Thailand #92.
• Almost everyone in Singapore was fully vaccinated against Covid-19  by September of 2022.  Thailand is now up to 77%.
• Thai people are friendly.  While not unfriendly, Singaporeans are not particularly friendly. 
• Singaporeans are highly regulated in most aspects of everyday life.  In Thailand, you muddle your way through each day.

• 
  It remains illegal to chew gum in Singapore, but there are a lot of ramifications as to what this really means.
• Here is a shocker.  While you can chew gum all you want in Thailand, there are strict rules of disposal.  YOU CAN BE FINED 20000 BAHT ($550) FOR TOSSING YOUR GUM ON A STREET
• 90% of Thai are Buddhist, while the no religion rate is close to zero.  There is a spread of religions in Singapore, with 22% claiming no religion.

Here are strange laws in Thailand.

• The wearing of no underwear in public, called going commando, is prohibited.  How this is controlled is unknown.
• Don't drink alcohol in temples, government buildings, gas stations, PUBLIC PARKS, schools and hospitals, Can carry a six-month sentence.

• 
  As a tourist you are expected to follow this tradition. Thailand is a Monarchy, you will here and there come upon portraits of the King and Queen.  Twice a day at 8 am and 6pm, the national anthem is played, and you, too, are expected to come to a halt, if others are doing so.
• There is a 1950 law that says in Thailand you must speak Thai in public.  Except it is not enforced.
• You cannot show your national flag in Thailand.

• 
  Don't, don't step on money, for the King is printed on it.  
• Going to a fancy party?  Don't go as a nurse, for you can be fined $550 dollars or get two years in jail for pretending be a nurse in public.
• You can find a smelly Durian fruit in markets.  Hotels prohibit them.

How to get from Suvarnabhumi International Airport to your hotel?  

• Train can cost around $1.50, but you still need a cab or tuk-tuk, the latter costing only from $1 to $5, and more, which is negotiable.

• 
  Bus is cheaper, maybe even less than a dollar, but depends where you're going.  Then cab or tuk-tuk.
• Taxi when you leave the airport building, but the system has changed with use of machines and QR Code, and scares me.  Should be not much more than $10, plus toll charges, around $3.  Tips not necessary, but leave change.  Tipping also not necessary in Singapore.
• 
  I have tended to catch AOT Limousine, which has booths inside the building so I'm interacting with live humans.  Prices range from $20 to $50 depending on type of vehicle.  The cheapest is fine.  Toll charges are included.

Well, see you in Bangkok.

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