Well, it wasn't exactly a private audience. My friend Philipp (at left in the bottom photo - we met skiing) and I stood in the front row of thousands as the King and Queen of Siam sped by in their light yellow Rolls Royces. People told us we were lucky to get a glimpse of these reclusive, well-loved monarchs.

The prior night we were in the middle of substantially larger crowds watching the brilliant fireworks for the birthday of His Majesty, next to the Grand Palace:

Perhaps a million Thais were in the streets all over Bangkok, a colorful crush of humanity. One draw was free food, including ice cream in half a frankfurter bun - not bad tasting! Philipp and I escaped over the river to smaller crowds of celebrants and street vendors, finally reaching a quiet, fine restaurant. From our candlelit riverside table, we could see the spotlighted golden towers of the Grand Palace and hear distant sounds of the rock band where we had been. What a memorable evening!

And that was just one of many exciting evenings out. It was great to be staying with a "local" who had gotten to know many great spots in his ten months in town. Each evening (and many mornings) he led me to a different, excellent restaurant, followed by a nightcap at still other places. My taste buds tingled with a variety of Thai, Chinese, Indian, German, French, and Japanese cuisines. Then people watching at places like the luxury Oriental or Shangri-La hotels, a lively outdoor shopping complex, or an outdoor, landscaped terrace 60 stories high with a live band were wonderful ways to extend the evenings. Philipp seemed to enjoy being my guide, writing "Had a grand time together with you here and all the nice conversations we had. Always exciting to take my visitors to all these nice places that Bangkok has." Philipp is on the left below, showing me Bangkok's Jim Thompson house.