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CANADIAN AIRLINES —.
Flight 7 from Hong Kong tc
-Bangkok is just over two
hours, time to reflect on the
-horror stories of the
Bangkok traffic,
One woman had said the drive
‘in from the airport could take one
hous, or two hours, or all day. The’,
cabin crew being an amiable group:
-from Vancouver, we had no trouble
acquiring water bottles and food
rations for the anticipated long
: night on the road. As it turned out
our experience could not have been
better. We were whisked through
the busy Bangkok airport by the:
Thais, whose immigration and cus-
_toms people are typically friendly
and welcoming. The taxi drivers
are’a different story. {t is 200 baht,
about $13, just to leave the airport,
even if you want to go the Rama
Gardens airport hotel, a 60-baht
"ride from the other direction.
But we had other plans: the call”
inf duty required us to check out the
‘mythical Oriental, reputedly the
best hotel in the world, and natural-
“ly, we-were going in its car which
. ‘zipped through the late evening
; traffic i in Jess than half an hour.
. It seems as if the whole world -
comes to the Oriental, which sits
‘stately on the river dispensing hos-

*pitality and collecting awards from .

‘magazines. It doesn't take long to

“see why, for it runs like a Swiss’ *.: ;

_ watch but with that Thai serenity
‘that-suggests that all the employ- ;
-- ees, the men at least, have done: :
‘stints as Buddhist monks.

‘Bach floor has a butler, for

-- 21 Aug -7 Sep 1995 |
‘Turkey, Greece, lialy
-'* Guest lecturers -

. “Professor Colm Luibheld - Professor DM Nicol
; Dr. Graham Speake - - The Right Reverend Barry Rogerson

From $391 Bo et per silsea

(based on double occupancy)

‘Exceptional Value :

° Complimentary pre & post
cruise wovernight in London

whom your wish is his command,
Does he have an iron? Of course
not: he will take away your travel-
weary clothes and return them in
moments, looking like new. Your
laundry comes back wrapped as if
from a Paris fashion house. -.
Breakfast on the patio overlook-
ing the river is one of the great ~
experiences in travel. The river is _

-wide and busy,‘ the commuter boats

swish by, and the long-tailed boat

operators have taken their positions

looking for tourists who want to

~ see the kiongs — the canals where

throngs live a life on the water.

'* Mystical temples and regal
palaces lie not far away, as does the
Jim Thompson house, home of the
‘man whe revived the Thai silk
‘industry. Later we will cross the

_fiver on the Oriental's own ferry,

see a Thai dance show, stroll by the
new spa, then have dinner by the
water’s edge in the warmth of a.
February night. Later there’s live

. jazz in one of the Oriental bars,

(based on

e- Main shore excursions ©
included
° Air: add on $209 Cdn.

" per person

EATON’ S

“Frain $3975 «. Cdn. per pe person

or  SEMariin Travel

The guests (at feast when we
were there) did not include groups,
no squads with name tags who can
be an annoying presence. Recalling
a renurkable number of people ("ve
met who saved for a second honey-
moon at magical places like this,
we saw quite a few couples.

For the return journey to the air-
port we took a fast river boat, joint-
ly operated by four hotels including,
the Oriental. It was a smooth ride
and a splendid sightseeing trip, and
features a seamless connection with
a mini-bus. From the Oriental to
airport check-in was one hour. The
cost is $45, Next stop was Koh

Samui, a tiny island in the Gulf of. 3

Thailand, some 70 minutes south
of here by Bangkok Airways.

This is the treat so few Asian
travellers allow themselves. While
others were dragging themselves
around monuments and jungles we

- were exploring beaches and goud
books. [tis a special place; one that

_ hippies came across 30 years ago

_but despite a fair amount of devel-
opment has not been spoiled.

One:veason is that the hotel pro-
jects have stayed small and often
stylish, such.as Poppies, sister to
the one on Kuta beach in Bali, and
Baan Taling Ngam, a luxurious
retreat operated by the same people’
as the Oriental.

On the other hand, you can stay
at simple bungalows for $10 a
night and ride the baht bus along
the dusty Chaweng beach strip in
search of fish restaurants and lively _
bars. But hurry, fora 230-room,
four-storey hotel is going up bang
in the middle of the beach..

:4 Sep --21 Sep
Ttaly, Slovenia, Greece, Turkey

; Guest lecturers, :
Mrs. Charlotte Roueche - Mr. Richard Wallace
The Right Reverend Richard Harries

Hay eiiss
ea SME xe

double occupancy)

ea Er ee a
SS

=

ember of The Thomas Cook Group

U

club pack™

extra lean
ground beef

090848 5.91 kg Ib.

roma tomatoes

4.50 kg Ib.

536391

Bakeshop

6 grain
br ead sliced or unsliced

434639 - 4549

Foremost™, 4 fitre jug

2h
§81983

6x 85ml

snackers
ice cream. bars”

"719559

Magic Moments, assorted, 4x142g

137562 «.,

Heinz, assorted, 398m.

beans
or pasta

125625

Kraft, assorted, 250g

CONVENIENTLY re 17” AND LONSDALE |

‘Thomas Cook Travel —

PARIS BOYAL S S.

(Insida Eaton's)

926-5555

ee tha ee

Sew a ey

Marlin Travel.

PARK ROYAL Ss.

~922- 9301-

oe eee ce ie

marshmallows _

napkins —

921999° “assorted colors