There is a particular kind of scene, like from a movie, that happens inside luxury hotel restaurants at lunchtime: interiors lifted from the pages of an architecture magazine, and chairs and tables carefully matched to the design theme. The small crowd I observed upon entering La Petite Maison’s pop-up at Anantara Siam Bangkok included beautifully dressed women whom I found myself wondering might be a group of Influencers or part of Thai show business, businessmen ordering wine before noon because why not?, and guests whose watches likely cost more than my airfare to Bangkok. I, meanwhile, had arrived at LPM (on a complimentary invitation, lest anyone mistake me for a trust-fund world traveler), armed with little more than curiosity and an embarrassingly limited vocabulary of French-Mediterranean cuisine.

After our friends from Philippine Airlines, the Tourism Authority of Thailand, and fellow travel bloggers/vloggers departed for Manila, the three of us—myself, Karla, and Coleen—extended our stay for a few more days. Doing so, we got to experience more of the city, including seeing it above the roof of a thirty-five-story building. How did we do it without breaking and entering? Let me take you back to a little flashback.

Taking over the place of an abandoned railway station in the Chatuchak district of Bangkok, the Ratchada Train Market spread out on an open-air field dotted with colorful tents selling the top of the pops of Thailand's street food culture, along with clothing items and an endless array of fascinating trinkets to fill up your suitcase—or if you were like me, your backpack.

Philippine Airlines is continuing to step up the quality of service and comfort level of its short-haul international flights with the introduction of the Airbus A330. Today, PAL passengers can now safely enjoy a very convenient 4-hour journey to Bangkok with the helpful addition of the cool, modern features of the A330.

This specific Airbus model is normally used by most commercial airlines on long-haul flights that span at least eight hours of travel time. By actively opting to fly this dandy of a state-of-the-art plane on a brief hop to a busy city like Bangkok, it only heavily shows how serious Philippine Airlines is when it comes to providing more value for airfare to its passengers.

Bangkok had been synonymous with shopping, food tripping, temples, and wild night parties—especially at the infamous Khao San Road. More often than not, parents would leave their kids at home when visiting Bangkok because of the fear they would get bored, as opposed to traveling to Hong Kong and Tokyo, where the worlds of Disneyland abounded.

French philosopher Voltaire once said that “illusion is the first of all pleasures”—and one of its finest forms was the trickery of our visual sense. Bangkok’s 3D Art in Paradise did just that through its artworks daubed vividly on the walls and other installations conveying images of a different realm.

As our van slowly inched through the infamous Bangkok rush hour traffic, I could already clearly see the towering Lebua at State Tower in the distance, rocking the city skyline with its bright and imposing presence. The thought of staying there genuinely excited me. As my travel companions and I were enthusiastically discussing earlier, "We must definitely re-enact the scene in Hangover 2 at the Sky Bar rooftop of Lebua!" There was absolutely no doubt that I would eagerly play the part of Bradley Cooper. Having a quick photoshoot at one of the highest rooftop bars in the world became our secret side mission of the trip—our main business, of course, was to officially cover the 2017 World Travel and Tourism Council Global Summit.

Travel industry leaders, tourism ministers from other countries and conservation groups, journalists and representatives from the World Economic Forum, as well as former UK Prime Minister David Cameron, gathered together at the 17th World Travel and Tourism Council’s (WTTC) Global Summit held in Bangkok, Thailand, on April 26 and 27, 2017. Far-ranging issues that touched upon the area of sustainability, freedom to travel, the future of the industry, and ASEAN tourism, among others, were thoroughly conversed through discussion panels and intimate “meet the experts” sessions.

Most travelers saw Thailand as a nation teeming with culture and historical relics that extended to its numerous ancient cities—where iconic temples and reclining Buddha statues abounded. To some, it was a shopping haven; to the younger generation, it was a multitude of islands ripe for an abundance of revelry—especially come full moon nights and during the renowned cultural festivals of Songkran and Loy Krathong.

"The first I heard of the beach was in Bangkok, on the Kao-San Road..." read the opening page of Alex Garland's "The Beach". I first read the book about five years prior, and I saw the movie immediately following it. Since then, I had always been fascinated with Khao San Road. A few people I knew had been there, reporting back how it had lost its charm, while some still perceived it as a place to really kick-start one's backpacking trip across Asia. Romanticism aside, Khao San was nothing but a stretch of short road circling toward another street that housed hostels, hotels, restaurants, souvenir and tattoo shops, food carts, and almost everything that catered to a backpacker's needs.

We arrived on foot at the banks of the Chao Phraya River early in the morning, and on the west bank, opposite the small dock where we were standing, the tall, imposing prang of Wat Arun (Temple of the Dawn) stood proud and mightily against the blue skies. We had to cross the river in small passenger boats to get there. We paid the three-baht fare to an elderly woman working at the seemingly inconspicuous ticket booth. We arrived on the other side a few minutes later, and the temple was just beginning to open; we watched as the guards lined up and prepared to listen to their commander's instructions for the day.