^TM

A Spicy Lesson in Bangkok

The Peninsula’s Academy in Bangkok

By Sandra Scott

My husband and I decided to spice up our trip to Bangkok, Thailand. We have been to Bangkok many times where there is a plethora of things to see and do. We have done most of the touristy things so we decided to indulge ourselves at one of Asia’s top hotels and rationalize it by calling it a learning experience.  Going to school on vacation may not seem like the usual thing to do but when the Academy is at the Peninsula Hotel in Bangkok it is the intelligent thing to do. We enrolled in the Peninsula Academy’s to learn how to make one of Thailand’s signature dishes, Phad Thai.

The three-hour lesson started with a trip to the wet market to buy the necessary ingredients. Wet markets are always an adventure, but this time it was a learning experience. Our Peninsula guide taught us about fruits and vegetables that are not common in the U.S. We returned to one of the hotel’s kitchens where Ms. Sumalee Boonek, Chef de Cuisine, led us through the step-by-step preparation of a typical Thai lunch that included Phad Thai.

We took special pleasure in the ease of creating egg net that was used to over the Phad Thai creating a unique presentation. Egg net can also be used to create appetizers and even desserts. The lesson ended with a lunch we helped to prepare. It was served with lemon grass tea, another one of those very easy things to make that has become a back-home favorite.

Thai cooking is only one of the Academy’s options in Bangkok. Other classes include “Thai Flower Arranging & Flower Market Visit” that starts with a visit to Bangkok’s colorful wholesale flower night market.  On our next visit to Bangkok we want to enroll in “Introduction to Buddhism and Thai Temple Visit” to learn more of Thailand’s history. Thailand’s artistic impulse was largely religious and the greatest achievements can be seen in the kingdom’s countless Buddhist temples and their adornments. Buddhism is the religion of 94% of Thailand’s population. Included is a visit to Wat Suwannara, an exquisite, well-proportioned temple built on the foundations of an Ayuthaya-period. Other classes include “Yoga Consultation and Thai Massage” and “Thai Architecture & Traditional Thai Houses.”

Actually, while attending the Academy is a good rationale for staying at a Peninsula hotel, no excuse is needed.  Peninsula hotels are a destination unto themselves.  The Bangkok Peninsula is so hi-tech that we thought we were going to have to call our nine-year-old grandson to figure out how to work the electronics.

The Peninsula has developed its own keypad control system. We should have been able to control the temperature and lighting, open and close the curtains, make a phone call, call for a valet, control the audio-visual system, turn on the 'do not disturb' sign and see if we had any message, all from the comfort of our bed. Actually there are keypad controls in all the rooms. Guess we will just have to stay there again to master the master controls.

The television in the bathtub was a no-brainer because the volume goes down automatically when talking on the phone which digitally filters the sounds of running water and bathroom echo. How cool is that?  Every home should be so equipped!

My favorite spot was sitting on the toilet, seat down, watching the Chao Phraya River through the floor to ceiling window. The river is a working river so when I saw something really interesting I alerted my husband in another part of the room on the handy phone.

With the hotel’s great restaurants and pool, both with views of the city and river, it is hard to leave the property. But the hotel’s fleet of traditional looking boats used to ferry guests across the river made it easy to go shopping and sightseeing.

The Peninsula Hotels offer the Academy at all its properties in Asia – Hong Kong, Beijing, Bangkok and Manila. The classes provide unique and unforgettable ways to experience first-hand each city’s culture, lifestyle, cuisine, arts and history through individualized tours, classes and activities.

Heading to Hong Kong? Enroll in one of these classes at the Hong Kong Academy that includes Tai Chi, Foot Reflexology, Chinese Herbal Medicine, Destiny, Feng Shui, Chinese Brush Writing, Dim Sum Making, and Chinese Tea making.

While at the Peninsula in Beijing, the capital of the People’s Republic of China, unravel the mysteries of the Orient with the Academy’s “Hutong Tour” to learn about Chinese architectural styles while riding in a two-passenger, bicycle-driven rickshaw through the city’s historic Hutong district. Or, ventured off the beaten track to visit the “wild” side of the Great Wall. Or, get a behind the scenes of a day in the life of a Chinese acrobatic troupe shows how members train for their breathtaking performances on stage at the National Acrobatic Academy. Other classes deal with Chinese Medicine, Massage, Qigong, Chinese Antiques, plus several classes about Chinese foods and teas.

In Manila the Peninsula Academy offers “If These Walls Could Speak,” a walking Tour of Intramuros and Cocina Filipina Feast, and “A Countryside Idyll,” a tour of Pagsanjan Town, Gorge and Falls with a drive through rice fields and coconut plantations for a glimpse of Philippine country living.

So much to see, so much to do, so little time to learn everything.  But, the Peninsula makes learning fun, easy and, oh, so, exquisite. For more information check: www.bangkok.peninsula.com or www.peninsula.com.

Images by Sandra Scott and Peninsula Hotels.

Back to TravelLady Magazine