Backdated post. Actual event took place on 19 August 2006.
Yeay… I woke up pretty much energized. Kinda have an early sleep yesterday. We sorta plan to have a great shopping day today since it’s the weekend and the first thing we would ever want to do is go to Chatuchak Market (pronounced as Jatujak, more widely known as JJ by the locals). We wake up rather early and have breakfast at the hotel. Er.. okay… it still have the same variety of food we had yesterday except they change the Thai food menu.
After breakfast, we head to the nearest Subway Line and jumps on the train eagerly to go to Chatuchak. Okay… Chatuchak is the largest weekend market in Thailand… and apparently they are the largest in the world as well. I heard lots about it before I even step foot there. Everyone who has been to Bangkok is talking about it.
Here is a helpful tip. When going to the Chatuchak Market, don’t be too excited and just jump off the train when you see the Chatuchak Park station. If you do somehow stop at this station… be prepare to walk a long way before you could even see the market. And that is not a smart thing to do since you will have lots of walking to do when you reach the market.
So where exactly should you stop? The trick is… stop at Kamphaengphet station. Chatuchak Market is right adjacent to the station. Just walk out of the station… and ola… shopping paradise.
This weekend market has lots of stuff… which I think girls would just go crazy over. The key ingredient here is MONEY! It’s really a huge market and if you do go in groups… I would advice everyone to stick together as it’s really hard to find one another there.
No… getting lost in there is a norm thing according to some people I know. The best part, sometimes, even the local themselves got lost in the market. The market has lots of variety which includes household items, cloths, pets, craftwork, food… and many more.
No worries, they do break up the variety to sections. So yeah… you might find one street selling the same thing… and when you take a corner… probably the whole street is selling some other things.
I bought lots of local designer tees and shirts and dolls. Ah… they are just so beautiful and cute! Yeap… there was this one shop me and Jimbo particularly love! It’s the shop which they sell lovely character stuff. I guess that’s the shop we both spend the most money.
Apparently they were 5 designers brand under one label called DIO (short for Do It Our self). Yeap, Byb was kind enough to explain stuffs that he sells. Apparently he, his girlfriend and friends set this thing up. Yeah… it’s just fun to get to know other designers out there. 🙂
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We walk until we are pretty much tired where we decided to leave and go somewhere else for lunch. We then took the train and stop at Shukumvit station. We walk around for food. We pass by this huge garden with beautiful small lakes.
After a tiring walk, we finally decided to just grab something from any shop inside Emporium. I was forced to make a pick. So Chicurry was the lucky pick. Haha… why? I love the patterns they have displayed at their walls. Don’t blame me… I am a designer and deco’s do attract me!
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We ordered a plate of rice for ourselves and something to share. We ordered Fresh Prawn Spring Roll (100 Baht) and Deep Fried Spinach Wanton (90 Baht) to share. I had the Grilled Beef with Lemongrass Herbs and Fried Rice (140 Baht) while Jimbo ordered Grilled Salmon with Green Curry served with rice (220 Baht).
Besides the nice deco that brings out the modern look, the dishes were promising. To start things off… the Fresh Prawn Spring Roll is totally different from the spring roll I eaten yesterday. Yes, a whole new texture and taste to it. Not to mention, it’s not like what that is being served in Malaysia.
This has a more smooth texture. The spring roll skin was rather smooth. Felt like it was being wrapped with Kuey Teow or something like that. Now.. the red colour from the cooked prawn was visibly seen. Ah… I love the colours the bright red from the cooked prawn and the green sprouts. Yummy!!!
The Deep Fried Spinach Wanton is something different. Let’s just say this is the first time I tried something like this. Hemm…. I tried pasta with spinach fillings inside but I never tried anything like this before. It’s like eastern meet western style. The crispy wanton skin and the soft and rich blended spinach filling. Woo… heavenly. I think it would be better if it was less oily tho.
Ah… my love for lemongrass just leaves me no choice but to pick the Grilled Beef with Lemongrass Herbs and Fried Rice. Haha… when I saw the word lemongrass… my eyes just rolled as big as possible. No matter how many times I flip the menu… others just doesn’t interest me anymore. The beef was superb. The lemongrass taste was strong. Wooo… perfecto… now… if the fried rice was a little warmer… I would say.. it’s a SUPER COMBO!
Now… what Jimbo had again? I don’t know how it tasted like.. since I was too busy with my own dish. Well.. the only thing Jimbo ever say was “I was never disappointed with any of the dishes.â€
After lots and lots of shopping… we all decided to go a little sightseeing. After all, a trip should have a mixture of both. Both shopping and sightseeing pleasures. We hop on one of those pink cab and landed ourselves at the King Chulalongkorn Statue.
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King Chulalongkorn Statue is located at the edge of Lumpimi Park. There were a few nice places to visit close by, such as the Anantasamakhom Palace and the Vimanmek Palace.
Yes, the King Chulalongkorn Statue is a must visit place (IMHO) because he is regarded as one of the greatest kings in Siam. The locals called him “The Great Beloved Kingâ€. He is the one man who elevated Thailand’s status in the world by abolishing slavery and forming strong allegiances with the world’s then ‘superpowers’ – Britain, France, America and Russia.
Standing right in front of the statue, one could already see the Anantasamakhom Palace. I would say the best time to visit this place was during the evenings… when the sun is about to set. Wow… brilliant bronze statue with a palace background. What more can you want.
Address: King Chulalongkorn Statue
The plaza in front of Anantasamakom Throne Hall Dusit District
Bangkok 10300
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We then walk around a little where we ended up at a temple. Ah.. finally, I get to go in to a temple! Quite a big temple I would say. Okay… obviously not as big as Wat Phra Kaew. But Wat Benchamabophit Marble Temple is big enough compared to any temple found here.
Not as fancy and not as much golden designs and so, the simple temple is enough to amaze me with their Thai roof design. They have so many sections to go to… they have the lakes, nice bridges, bells and obviously Buddhist statues. Too bad we can’t actually take pictures inside. But it was really beautiful.
It was drizzling when we are about to leave the temple. So we hop on to another cab that brings us to the Golden Mountain. Now incase you are confused and couldn’t locate this place in the map (which is impossible), you can actually look for indication like Wat Saket.
Now, let me explain, Golden Mountain is part of Wat Saket. So yes they are related and interlinked. Apparently, Golden Mountain is one of the most popular tourist area leaving the other part of Wat Saket less visited.
Why so? Golden Mountain is practically a hill in the middle of Bangkok city that gives you this nice beautiful scenery. One could actually have a good view of the whole Bangkok city. Now, initially, King Rama I decided to build a place to mark the entrance in to the city. However the land structure does not permit so. This dream was carried on to King Rama III. However, the Golden Mountain was finished under King Rama V.
Yes, I see steps. Lots of them. Everyone knows I am not a exercise person. So if I can do it, so can you! The steps weren’t that steep. And the journey uphill was amazing. There were so many things to see. I think one would forget they were actually climbing a hill.
The best things was the lines of bells. Awww… they look just so beautiful. Yeah, you are supposed to ring each bell for good luck :). At the top of the hill, you can see a large golden chedi.
Being not so lucky, the place was about to close when we were just a few steps there. I know… sad right? Sigh… so yes… take my advice carefully. Most places there close like around 4 – 5 pm. So… please do shoppings at night if you plan to go sightseeing.
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We then decided to get back to the hotel and have some rest before proceeding to our nightlife activity. We have been through a long walking day and so we thought… how can we not be in a tuk tuk before.
Yeah, a Thai trip is incomplete without sitting a tuk tuk. So, we decided to jump on a tuk tuk and get back to our hotel since it was quite a close distance. Now… if USA have “Too fast too furiousâ€, Thai just have their own version called “Tuk fast Tuk furiousâ€.
No kidding… they were practically faster than some of the cabs around. Going left and right… squeezing through tight roads. Woohoo… just like what we call “Mat Rempit†over here in Malaysia. I wonder what will happen if Malaysia have tuk tuk.
We rested, Jimbo took a short nap while I was watching tv in room. After the short rest, we decided to walk around Khao San road. Yes, I saw a few catchy shirts the other day. Yeah, something different from those typical “thai†shirts found everywhere. I just walk in and bought like 6 – 7 shirts and just left. When I asked how much… the girl actually talked to me in Thai. Then I was puzzled and shocked.
Looking at my shocked face… she asked “Are you thai?â€. Now that trigger the laughing button for me and Jimbo. After we left, we started back on the “Are you thai? You speak thai? Tuk tuk bring you here… wait for you.†joke.
We walk along the street to notice more and more funny signs used. Right, we never actually walk towards this side of Khao San before. Apparently this side of the road has more pubs and drinking area than the ones opposite our hotel.
We have dinner at the Sawasdee House. This place actually rooms above the eating area… but I wouldn’t really recommend it.. cause the eating area is open 24/7 and the music is quite loud. Yeah, similar to some pubs… so yes, if you want a good rest after a whole day of walking, this is not really the place you would wanna stay in.
Okay, let’s talk about the eating area. I really love the lighting and the decos at the place. Lots and lots of mixed style but I think it was comfortable. The best part, they have house resident deejay! Did I mention.. they thought I am Japanese? LOL!
We get to know a few backpackers that sits next to our table. They are all cool people. Cool enough to help me and Jimbo take picture. Haha… I guess this is our first and last together gather picture in Bangkok.
Yumm yummm… eating time. We ordered Green Curry with Chicken Soup (60 Baht), Charcoal Grilled Fish (150 Baht), Fried Soya Bean with Tofu (50 Baht). Yes… lovely eh. Our last dinner at Bangkok!
The Green Curry with Chicken Soup was good. Not something very thick… it’s quite nice but it comes with this green pea like thing. I don’t know… it wasn’t really happening for me. It was crunchy but have this bitter-ish after taste. I wonder what it was.
The Fried Soya Bean with Tofu is just right for the occasion. We tried so many flavourful dish. Now something more clear feels just so good. Everything seems just fine… till the Charcoal Grilled Fish came. Yes, we were being noted before hand that it might take a while since they need to grill it.
For 150 Baht, the fish size is just amazing. It’s so huge… I think it could feed 4 people! I am not kidding. It’s large and woo… the aroma was amazing. Even better when dipped with the special thai sauce. Woooo…
After dinner, we went back to the hotel and leave our shopping bags at the hotel. That is when we decided that we should go out and party a little. Yes… party! Er… since those red light stuff ain’t really something I am interested in.
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I love this place. It’s really nice clubbing place. Yes, it’s really a great place to hang out at… but if you are above 30… probably you won’t like this place. After walking down the whole street, we picked and just go in to Club Astra. Woo.. they surely have great music.. yes.. even Jimbo was impressed. Â
They have lots of world renowned deejay’s performing in the club. Yes, it reminded me a lot about Zouk! I guess there was a theme for the day as the deejay dress like a surgeon while the waitress dress in nurse suits. Ah… kinky eh!
Now… they even have dancers that dance on the podium. Woohoo.. I can tell you they are sexy-li-cious! They can really dance. No… no hanky panky stuff. I was simply amazed and can’t set my eyes of them. The best part.. they wear nurse outfits too. *drool*
Like every other clubbing places, they all have curfew. When the places ended, the amount of people leaving the area is like when a concert ended. Everyone rushing to go home, everyone wants to get a cab… so it’s total madness.
At that point of time, the cabs won’t usually follow the meter. They would just tell you an amount. You either agree and hop in or close the door and wait for the next one. Me and Jimbo was too tired to bargain and just agreed to the amount requested. I forgot how much it was. I only remember Jimbo saying “I can’t even get lunch with that amount.â€
Now… the feeling hungry after clubbing mood kicks in. Everywhere else was closed so we decided to head back to Sawasdee House since they are open 24/7. There, me and Jimbo each ordered Pancake with Ice Cream (70 Baht). Oh yeah… maybe I was too hungry. Everything tasted just so nice… even when the pancake was thick.
Yawn… I am too tired to move a muscle… I need to sl…eee…e…e……e……e………p
