Ohai, Bangkok! (Thailand 1)

Sawadee Kha, Bangkok!


After nearly 22 hours of travel, including a movie marathon and 2 flights, we finally arrived in Bangkok! Finally, our trip had come, after 3 months of anticipation. So far its been a whirlwind of crowded street markets, colorful taxis and vibrant, smiling people.


In our first full day in Bangkok, we decided to venture out to the much-lauded Chatuchak Market, supposedly the largest open-air market in the world. To get there, we tried out the Thai public transit system and rode the SkyTrain. The skytrain is very reminiscent of BART, save that trip is much more scenic as the rails travel along the Bangkok skyline. Fare was very reasonable -- about 25 baht a person (less than $1USD) to travel from Wongwian Yai station to Mo Chit station, literally as far as you could go on public transit, and all the way across the city. The SkyTrain traveled pretty quickly (about a 20-25 minute ride) and clean and COOL (very important when it's 90F and incredibly humid outside).


The market itself is truly remarkable. Sure, it's one thing to read the brochure, but when you actually see the market, with all of its tents stretching out as far as the eye can see, you are in for a shock! Because we're still a little jetlagged, we arrived to the market around 8:30am, which was a little early we discovered later. Walking through the labyrinth of alleyways and shops, you can truly find almost anything, from pets (miniature dogs, cats and guineas) to knock off purses. There was a so much variety and interesting little booths that you could literally spend an entire day there, if you can stand the heat. The tented shops did a good job blocking out the sun, but trapped the hot, humid and dusty air so after a couple hours, it gets kind of stuffy and tough to breathe. The vendors are nice, but it's really important to bargain. I'm not naturally the most aggressive or pushy person so H had to coach me in the art of negotiation. I ended up bargaining for a few things and got better as the morning went on - great success!! I still have a ways to go, but the trip has just started :)

Chatuchak Market

Canvas Totes

Yarn Lanterns

Buddha and elephant statues everywhere!

My loot (grand total of $32USD!)

In the afternoon, we explored some of the "Old City" and visited Wat Pho, the reclining Buddha. The Buddha here was HUGE, stretching from wall to wall of the temple and towering above the temple go-ers. It was really tricky to get all of him in a picture but it was truly a beautiful thing to see and experience.

Gate to the Wat

Trying out the new camera lens!

Wat Pho (reclining Buddha)

For a late lunch, we went to Chote Chitr for some of their famous red curry. Recommended by both friends and our trusty Lonely Planet guide, we were excited to get in on the action. The restaurant itself was a little tricky to get to, but luckily H has a wonderful internal compass as we were able to find it on first try (which is great because I was getting hungry/grumpy....)

Red curry with prawns

Banana leaf salad

Mee krab

At night, we went out to Patpong Night Market to check out the markets and nightlife. The vendors here were super pushy (much more than the market in the morning) and sold lots of the same, lots of trinkets and souvenirs. A lot of the bars and clubs featured go-go dancers, but by far, the nightlife scene here was male-dominated. Guys were everywhere and outnumber women by a long shot. The few women that I did see looked like escorts. Overall, a fun area but it wasn't really our scene (... "pingpong shows"?? - yikes!!).

Clubs/bars at Patpong Night Market

Tomorrow looks to be an exciting day, with more sightseeing, more shopping and ... most important, more good food!!


Till next time, xoxo