My greatest observation about Bangkok – Watching Bangkok traffic is like watching the organized chaos of individually-contrasting instruments come together to play as an orchestra. Since we went to Japan last September, we have been putting the idea of going to Bangkok into each others’ heads. When 2017 came to be, the Tiger came to us with news that he needed to clear leave by March. With Lyn going every year, we booked tickets in January and got her to help plan our trip. Sarah joined in later, only that she was heading to Bangkok on a cheaper flight (day before ours) and taking a train back. So we flew off on Thai Airways for a #longbkkend. Many things have happened during our trip, but there were three aspects of the trip that stuck with me: Talad Rodfai / Rot Fai Market Talad means Market in Thai. Rodfai means Railway in Thai. True to its name, the Rot Fai Market in Bangkok is the night market which initially took over an old railway but moved to a different location. I had an initial fascination when Lyn suggested this place, and going to the place myself was like stepping into an explosion of nostalgia and night market goodness. Apart from the great photo opportunities, Talad Rodfai had a great variety of street food. We had one of the best beef beehoon soup in a while (and squid eggs, grilled cheese sandwich, octopus hot dogs, and copious amounts of Cha Yen). Talad Rodfai is a night market at Soi Srinagarindra 51, Nong Bon, Prawet, Bangkok 10250, Thailand. To find out more about them, click here. Chatuchak Weekend Market No excuses – this place is the place to go for any shopper in Bangkok. My first encounter with Chatuchak, or Jatujak (JJ) Market, was when I went to Bangkok at 14. We took the skytrain to Mo Chit station, where upon leaving the station right before Mo Chit, I lookout out the train window and asked, “So where is this market?” My mother pointed to the array of zinc roofs and said, “This is the market.” Fast forward a good 15 years later, it’s back to JJ Market – and it’s Sarah’s and the Tiger’s first time ever. JJ Market is only held on the weekends, which is why many people in the know make sure that there’s at least a full weekend within their travel plans to the capital. This market of all the markets spans 27 acres and features stalls for clothes, antiques, furniture, books, food, the lot. Chatuchak / JJ Market is located at 587/10 Kamphaeng Phet 2 Rd, Khwaeng Chatuchak, Khet Chatuchak, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10900. To find out more about them, click here. River Taxis There are two main kinds – the green and the orange-lined river taxis. The green river taxis are usually meant for tourists, with tickets going at 40 Baht each. We took the orange river taxi, which operated like our buses, tickets go for 15 Baht each instead. (Note: If you’ve decided to take the orange river taxi, know the names of the stops you’re getting off at – you won’t get the luxury of people telling you the names of stops repeatedly or assigned seats.) And if you only had a single, full day in Bangkok, the suggestion is to take a river taxi up and down the Chao Phraya – just to take in the sights and all things Thai. We had a good lot of fun for this trip – loads of walking, food, and heat. LOLOL. And what warmed me (in a good way) was how welcoming the people were despite the crowd and the heat.
So apart from the accessible shopping and the amazing food, Bangkok will be a place we’ll be coming back to for sure. We were staying at GLOW Pratunam (Book them early!) and took Thai Airways for this trip. Click on their names to find out more about them.
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December 2018
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