Thai Thrills

With four days and the fantastic Tiger Airways offer of S$9.98 air tickets, we flew to Bangkok for a low-budget shopping getaway, and had a fantastic time. A few highlights here:

Pratunam

Pratunam is near practically everything in central Bangkok, and its location makes it a good place to book your hotel room if you’re on a shopping trip like us. Home to the tallest hotel in Bangkok, the 88-storey Baiyoke Sky Hotel, Pratunam’s mess of street hawkers and stalls hawking everything from pirated CDs to “I Love the King” tees to cheap watches and socks will take some getting used to if you’re on your first visit to the Thai capital. The line of street hawkers is amazing – expect deliciously oily chicken wings, colourful trays of meat and vegetable dishes, ice-cold cut fruits, and steamed corn lined with coconut shreds… Kev fed me grilled cuttlefish balls drenched in super-spicy chillies and I was rapturous with delight. Bite down on the cuttlefish and have the chillies burst in full flavour in your mouth. You’d be crying out for a small Thai coconut to soothe your fiery tongue! Navigate through the Pratunam Market and you’ll reach a whole horde of shopping centres – The Platinum, Pantip Plaza… and further down in the classier center of Bangkok shopping activity, CentralWorld, MBK, Siam Square and Siam Paragon. There won’t be enough time to go through everything, so have a rough plan of your budget and what you want to buy before heading out.

Wat Pho & Chao Phraya

We took the Chao Phraya River Express up north to Wat Pho, the largest temple in Thailand, admiring floating water hyacinths and riverside views of the city en-route. The River Express is a breezy but rather touristy way to travel. Throngs of farangs clog up both piers and boats, but there are Thais students and monks who use the transport regularly. Do ask for the rates and where to get your tickets from as there are different types of boats and paying methods. We stopped at Tha Thien Pier, where the majority of tourists would alight, for the famous Wat Pho, home to the largest reclining Buddha in South East Asia. Entry cost us 50 baht each, but the whole temple was so overrun by tourists that there’s not much of that mystical charm left. Even the Thai massage prices are all jacked up and the tacky souvenir shop was a disgrace to the holy grounds. We got out after a while, and wasn’t in the mood for Buddha-sighting anymore, which was a shame because a kind Buddhist Studies university lecturer recommended three more temples to visit for “standing Buddha, sitting Buddha and high stupa to see whole of Bangkok!” He even got us a tuktuk charging only 40 baht for three sites, which we refused politely, to the indignation of the tuktuk driver, who asked us puzzledly, “40 baht you don’t want? Where you from?!”

Reflections Hotel
81 Soi Ari, Phaholyothin 7 Rd., Samsennai, Phayathai, Bangkok

Filled with 28 rooms designed by various Thai and international designers, the distinctive Reflections Hotel on Soi Ari is definitely worth a visit. Take the train towards the north of Bangkok and stop at Ari Station. Ari is an ageing neighbourhood slated to be the next creative epicenter with the bright pink entrance of the art hotel. But first explore the noisier area to the left of the station instead of the side with iBerry and Starbucks (there’s not much save for a large supermarket). You’d see a slice of suburban Bangkok, with old hair salons and frame shops, as well as small dingy eateries with the Thai version of chap chye peng and kway chap. Stroll down Soi 2 towards Reflections, and you’d start passing comfy cafes filled with quiet youths and an occasional fashion boutique.

We actually chanced upon the quiet entrance to Reflections, and was lured in by the quirky shop filled with fashionable odds and ends, from weaved baskets to flowery bags to home décor pieces. Go further in and you’ll be met with the quiet chatter of the young and hip lounging in its boldly coloured lobby-cum-bar – with numerous mismatched couches, a shelf full of books and magazines, as well as quaint little loos for the Boyz and Girlz. Couldn’t resist having the friendly Thai staff pull out their only piece of blue cheongsam top off the mannequin for me to try on, and bought it in the end! Only 700 baht, and it fits me perfectly!

Suan Lum Night Bazaar
Near Lumphini Park

Alight at Lumphini Station for a spot of night shopping at Suan Lum Night Bazaar if you can. A great alternative to the weekend-only Chatuchak Market, with prettier and more up-market stuff at slightly costlier prices. Stalls start opening in the evening, and there’s plenty of things to look at. Absolutely classy and locally designed clothes furniture, paintings and sculptures, as well as cd-shops filled with “cost-friendly” versions of renowned bands…even a Rastafari-inspired shop manned by men in dreadlocks. Stalls in Suan Lum, unlike the messier Chatuchak, are organised, distinctive squares of culture and fashion (hence the costlier prices). If you’re interested in a piece, ask if they have a branch in Chatuchak. If so, chances are that you’ll be able to get them at slightly cheaper prices at the weekend market (if you’re able to find the stall, that is). We went absolutely Thai for dinner and picked up Thai spicy fishcakes and a generous portion of pad thai at the nearby pasar-malam style dining area (near the Ferris Wheel). With average prices ranging from about 20 baht for 50 baht, it is probably the cheapest place to have a relaxing dinner before you explore the bazaar. The rest of the chill-out pubs and restaurants cost much more, so if you want to have more money for shopping, eat cheap!

I’ll keep Chatuchak Market and Khao San, both wonderful, both amazing, for another entry. I’m beat.

Filed under: humdrum