TukTuk (Go-Kart Racing, Bangkok Style)
After shopping at MBK, i just couldn't resist having a ride on a tuktuk to bring us back to our hotel.
I had the ride of my life! The driver must be some Formula One wannabe and it was amazing how he could race between gaps tighter than a fly's arse! Zipping here and there, once or twice i thought we were going to flip over! Never a dull moment as we shot down main roads, through tight single lane "One Way" roads that had, through the discretion of locals, become two way streets, and two way streets that had become "One Way" cos our wonderful race car driver decided to zip around a whole line of fellow tuktuk drivers. Kinda like when u play Daytona and see a whole big pile up and u swerve around and between them them. The next day, we actually saw a tuktuk rear up ala the Mastercard ad with Pierce Brosnan! Incredible. The plumpish Ang Moh lady in the thing must have gotten the shock of her life!
"We're here Mr Borsnaan"
As exciting as the ride was, there was also an irritating side to it. We were taken for a total ride as in we circled our hotel in a route much like how a spider web is spun. Round and round we went, even though we could already see our hotel no more than 3 blocks away.
Soon, i wasn't making fun remarks in the ride anymore but instead looking out and up to try and find our hotel. That was when the driver decided that he was pushing his luck already and delivered us back to the hotel. It was telling that he didn't want to drop us right at the door, prolly cos he wanted to rip us off and didn't want the concierge to overhear the exchange and rescue us! Anyway, it cost us B$51 to get to the shopping centre from our hotel but this tuktuk fellow wanted to charge us B$100! At first we started bargaining and i told him i was giving him B$40, which he assumed was my starting position to bargain. Well, how wrong he was, "here is 40, take it or leave it."
I'm sure i've alreayd paid over the odds for the ride, but that's what the ride was worth that to me i reckon. Great excitement but with lots of carbon monoxide fumes followed by a bit of haggling. Ok lah!
I had the ride of my life! The driver must be some Formula One wannabe and it was amazing how he could race between gaps tighter than a fly's arse! Zipping here and there, once or twice i thought we were going to flip over! Never a dull moment as we shot down main roads, through tight single lane "One Way" roads that had, through the discretion of locals, become two way streets, and two way streets that had become "One Way" cos our wonderful race car driver decided to zip around a whole line of fellow tuktuk drivers. Kinda like when u play Daytona and see a whole big pile up and u swerve around and between them them. The next day, we actually saw a tuktuk rear up ala the Mastercard ad with Pierce Brosnan! Incredible. The plumpish Ang Moh lady in the thing must have gotten the shock of her life!
"We're here Mr Borsnaan"
As exciting as the ride was, there was also an irritating side to it. We were taken for a total ride as in we circled our hotel in a route much like how a spider web is spun. Round and round we went, even though we could already see our hotel no more than 3 blocks away.
Soon, i wasn't making fun remarks in the ride anymore but instead looking out and up to try and find our hotel. That was when the driver decided that he was pushing his luck already and delivered us back to the hotel. It was telling that he didn't want to drop us right at the door, prolly cos he wanted to rip us off and didn't want the concierge to overhear the exchange and rescue us! Anyway, it cost us B$51 to get to the shopping centre from our hotel but this tuktuk fellow wanted to charge us B$100! At first we started bargaining and i told him i was giving him B$40, which he assumed was my starting position to bargain. Well, how wrong he was, "here is 40, take it or leave it."
I'm sure i've alreayd paid over the odds for the ride, but that's what the ride was worth that to me i reckon. Great excitement but with lots of carbon monoxide fumes followed by a bit of haggling. Ok lah!
posted by cokecat at 10:03 am
2 Comments:
I missed out on a tuk-tuk ride when I was in Bangkok. And where on earth did you find internet access there?
oh, i'm back in singapre already :)
you MUST try it next time u go!
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