Bangkok - Macao - Hong Kong - Xiamen

From Pai back to Bangkok was straightforward: first by minibus and 762 turns back to Chiang Mai, then by night bus straight to Bangkok, where we arrived at 7 in the morning. We had not booked a guesthouse this time, but just went to Udee House again, hoping they would have a room, and they had. A very nice one, actually. We stayed two nights this time, so we had some time for shopping in Bangkok. It was very hot in Bangkok now, 37 degrees Celsius, so we didn't feel like sightseeing. Instead we explored our neighbourhood a bit further, which includes a village with a dense network of extremely narrow alleys, tucked away between the city streets and a river. It took a few tries into dead-ends to find a route between our guesthouse and the Saphan Khwai BTS station, often ending up in somebody's back or front yard.

The 'official' route is a bit of a detour along Pradiphat Road, and finding the shortcut was a nice exercise in navigation, rewarding us with a lot of couleur locale, plenty of smiles from kids and grannies, and some curious looks from motorcycle taxi drivers.
We visited the rather old J.J. Mall, just to get out of the heat, and the nearby Chatuchak weekend market, which was only partly open, since it was not on a weekend. Pradiphat Road, the main road close to Udee House, has lots of street food and sit-in restaurants, so we didn't have to walk far to satisfy our appetite. We bought sweet&salty desserts and fresh fruits from road-side stalls to take up to the peaceful roof terrace of Udee House, away from the noisy street.

Our flight back to Macao left early, at 7:00, but we were not very far from Don Meuang Airport, so we checked out at 5:30 and just got on a city bus (they already start their service at 5 am), which brought us to the airport in 20 minutes for 17 Baht a head. No need to waste money on airport taxis.
We did not have to wait long at the airport either, since by the time we got there, the check-in counter for our flight was almost closing, and we were directed to a special counter with no line. Excellent! Through security and a short wait at the gate before boarding, and we were on our way to Macao.
I spent less than an hour in Macao, because I had to get on the ferry to Hong Kong immediately, in order to arrive on time at the office of Forever Bright Trading, who would sell me a new 6-month visa for China. They close the counter at 1 pm for same day visa applications, so I had to hurry a bit. I said goodbye to Ling Ling in Macao, as she would cross the border to mainland China at Zhuhai, before heading back to Xiamen. She can not travel to Hong Kong without a special permit, so we decided to travel the last part separately.
I just made it in time for my visa application, because I made the mistake to take a taxi from the Hong Kong ferry terminal to the office in Kowloon. In my ignorance I figured a taxi would be the quickest way. Not so in Hong Kong at lunchtime! Moreover, taxi drivers on Hong Kong island (where I landed) don't like to go to Kowloon on the mainland (and vice versa), so it took me a while until I found one who was willing to go through the congested tunnel. The ride cost me 90 HK$, including the 20 HK$ tunnel fee. Next time I will take the MTR.

I arrived just after 1 pm at the New Mandarin Plaza office tower, rushed to the 9th floor and entered the office of Forever Bright Trading. The always calm staff just informed me matter-of-factly that I was late, so "we have to hurry". Already very happy they allowed me, they helped me filling out the form, and minutes later I was out on the streets again. My passport with brand new visa would be ready for pickup at 6 pm.
Before I left Bangkok, I had made arrangements with kYra to meet in Hong Kong, because she would be there for a few days. Since I had no means of communication while in Hong Kong (my Chinese mainland phone does not work there), I had to hurry back to Hong Kong Central, where we agreed to meet at 13:30 at exit A2 of the metro station, which is under the International Finance Center. To my relief, she was just there when I walked up the stairs after navigating through a maze of interconnecting tunnels and exits, and an enormous lunchtime crowd.
We had a simple take-out lunch in the open air, which was considerably cooler than in Bangkok. After that I spent some time window shopping and leisurely found my way back to FBT, this time using the Star Ferry to cross the channel, and picked up my passport. It was busy at pick-up time, so it took a while until I was out again, and then I walked straight to Hung Hom station to take the train to the border, where I arrived at 7 pm. I had done the same half a year ago, so I knew exactly where to go. The border crossing into Shenzhen was quick and easy, and at the bus terminal I bought a ticket for the 20:00 sleeper bus to Xiamen. I had crossed three international borders in one day.