Day 1 – Super Sweet Deal

For the record, I had always been checking weekend flights out of Singapore since our last trip in June.

Every long weekend or time off opportunity would see me browsing through airline sites and looking for the best deals. I am on the look out for flights to Bangkok, Bali, Phuket, Delhi or Beijing. Often I would suddenly call habs on the phone and plead with him to take a time off so we could go somewhere. You could say that I’m bored with staying at home at doing nothing out of ordinary during the weekends.

So on Oct 18, i was caught off guard by a series of events that would lead me to book a flight for a 4-day weekend in Bangkok. First, we decided to take a trip since I am on time off from work for a week and habs managed to have a leave approve for 2 days. Where… We were not sure. So armed with a mission and ample time on my hand I began searching for flights and created my power excel trip planner. Bangkok turned out to be a nice option flying on Jetstar or Tiger but it was nOt on top of my list. It was second only to Phuket for having the cheapest fare at that time (around 50 sgd difference from BkK).And then I checked Singapore Airlines…. I found out that they had a sale going on for round trip tickets to bangkok for the same weekend that we were aiming for. And the flights are even cheaper compared to the budget options(Jetstar and Tiger)! I had a panic attack and called habs immediately if i could book. In fairness to him he called out NO immediately and asked me to read the news about bangkok flodding. Being the makulit and determined person that I am, i reasoned out with him until later into the night showing him how good the deal is. And i told him that the floods happened last week anyway. So to make the long story short, he eventually agreed and I booked the flight that night. It was a Super Sweet Deal… Who could say no to that?

Day 2 – The Nerve

Next morning I woke up happily excited about the trip ahead. Planning for a a destination always makes my day. I started doing my usual research and itenerary and lists (i have a template, yes!) and the day went on… Until I sent an sms to my friend asking her about how to activate global data roaming service. I told her that we’re going to bangkok on the weekend and that we got a promo fare thru sq. she told me “wow, alam mo bang bumabaha dun ngayon? Magbasa ka ng news.” that was my first queue to be nervous. After dinner, i googled every news about bangkok floods that I could get my hands to. The pictures of flood and the news that I got was not encouraging… It seemed that the city was hit really bad by the monsoon rains. I suddenly remembered that I know a friend from high school who works in Bangkok… I sent her an fb message and asked how she’s doing and about the current situation there. She told me that their area had been hit really bad by the flooding and the plant she’s working at had temporarily stopped operation because of the water that got through their building. They are 30 mins away from the city. She advised me to cancel the trip when I told her we are going there for the weekend… At this time i was at the edge of my seat with panic. The seat sale was not sweet at all! I thought hard for a moment… With habs at my side with an annoyed i told you so look in him. I decided to try and see if we could cancel the flight. I called the airline and talked to a customer support rep. The guy on the other end told me that NO i could not rebook my ticket because it was on sale and NO I could not cancel because if I do, it is non-refundible. Oh no! Now I am in big trouble. Habs was starting to be furious with me as well and I dont blame him. I was disappointed with myself too. I then called my credit card company and ask them to not approve the purchase since when I checked Online I saw that the statement did not contain the ticket price yet. The nice lady I talked to told me that NO once the tickets are issued, the transaction immediately gets sent to the airline for approval. I asked her if i could ask the billing dept of the airline or if it’s too late for that as well. She said i could try but there’s a small chance that they would cancel. I thought that she’s probaly right … So i hang up dumb founded. That night, i was so worried about our flight and how dangerous it was… I hardly slept at all. I also began praying for the people in bangkok now submerged in flood waters and for God to send me a sign whether to cancel our trip…

Day 3 – Decisions, Fears and Factors

I was monitoring the news early in the morning. I consulted travel forums and found out that a lot of travellers inbound for bangkok this week have the same dilemma that i have… What is the current situation of the floods and is it safe to continue with the trip? The replies and advise that I got was on the positive. Bangkok being a tropical island is experiencing it’s monsoon season at this time of the year. It was hit by the biggest flood and rain water fall over the last 50 yrs and there were bad flood situations in the area. The good news is all flights in and out of the airport are operating as normal. Some tourist attractions are affected such as ayuthaya and the future park but most of the city area are Dry and safe. The government are optimistic that they could control the city from being submerged in water and the people there are moving to control the flood gates by building flood walls. The bad news is that the city continue to be on alert for possible flooding and folks are continously evacuating from the impacted areas. A lot of countries such as the UK and Singapore had issued travel warnings to their citizens planning to go there. I checked the rain graphs which confirmed that most of the city area are not impacted. I also found a really helpful site (http://www.thaitravelblogs.com/) where writer Richard Barrow, a journalist and british expat provides up to date news and situation from Bangkok. On Oct 16, he took a bike tour of the city and took photos of the situation. From his account and description, it seemed safe to proceed. He also wrote some very useful tips on what to remember during emergencies and useful contact info. I resolved to myself that should something alarming break out during the day, we will cancel. Thankfully, nothing of that sort happened and according to Mr. Barrow’s twitter acct, the skies were clear during most of the day though it rained for an hour or so in the afternoon.

This was quiet an experience for me… I have not planned for a trip before this with so much apprehensions and nervousness! I swear if nerves could kill, i’d be long gone by now. But along with it came some important point of realizations that no other travels from the past brought. I learned so many things and to think we have not arrived to Bangkok yet:

1. Plan… Plan and plan! Be it a short notice trip or one that involves months of preparations… You should plan accordingly and don’t jump into seat sales without knowing the basics first (even if it’s Sing Air who’s offerering the cheap flights). It is very important to consider the basic things before booking a ticket: the situation in your destination is on top of the list especially now a days when political rallies, natural disasters and other distabilities abound. Check for airport and transportation strikes, the local weather and forecast, protests and rallies going on specially in the area that you would likely be staying at. Be aware that these things would impact your trip and it is better to be prepared than to be caught off guard and sorry.

2. Listen to your husband or your friends if they warn you about something! I take all the blame for this flight and habs has every right to be mad at me. In the end It is amazing how understanding and supportive he is.

3. Read the terms of the tickets before clicking the confirm button. I know that our nature tells us that anything with the words “terms and conditions” is boring but this could make a lot of difference. Understand if the flight could be cancelled and rebooked. If the airfare is cheap it usually comes with a price which played a huge role on why we could not cancel the trip. Book only if you are absolutely sure of going and if all things from #1 checked out.

4. Do not panic. Instead be prepared. Watch the news before your flight and don’t hesitate to cancel despite the monetary loss should the situation worsen. Safety should always a top priority. Proceed only if you feel secured that the area you will be going to is okay.

5. If this is the case, don’t ponder on far off tourist destinations. We are planning to use this time to relax and unwind and we are not aiming to hit every tourist landmark in bangkok. We decided to go only to use the time off to de stress at the hotel, have a massage, eat at authentic thai restaurants near our hotel and possibly go to a mall or 2. And we would make absolutely sure that we are together at all times. We bought extra clothes should we get wet, umbrellas, flashlights and we changed our itenerary to ignore the usual destination but instead to stay indoors and near our accomodation.

6. Pray! I had always believed that disaster could strike anywhere, without warning but this did not make me feel better knowing that our destination is under flood threat. Praying for it did. I trust Him to keep us safe in this journey and I know that with God with us… We will be alright.