Finally I managed to squeeze in some time to write about my Bangkok trip :)
I flew AA on the $0 promo but wasn’t really happy because they cancelled my morning flight! It was postponed to late afternoon, wasting almost one precious day! (this is the second time, they did exactly the same thing last year, grrr) Yet they sent me a survey on customer satisfaction.. shame on you Air Asia!
Day 1.
On the arrival of the much wasted first day, I waited and waited for an eternity to get my almost empty luggage. Hee never pack heavy when going to Bkk *grins* While waiting, I managed to grab a couple of free maps – for the tourist discount cards.
You know you’re definitely in Bkk by the amount of cars stuck side by side.. like what the cab driver said:- “No jam, no Bangkok” haha. This particular cab driver stuck all the different currency notes on his cab... for good luck.
Stayed at the All Seasons Bangkok Siam hotel, at the Pratunam area. Quite satisfied – clean and spacious. We promptly dropped our bags and headed to Suan Lum Night Market.. we were starving!
Dinner was tom yum, fried baby crabs and some fried rice. I can’t really recall coz I was super hungry; last meal was early lunch.. I remember the tom yum as it was super sour – tasty!! Almost finish eating when I remembered I hadn’t took pics lol.
And then shopping started .. I “officiated” my money spending activity on a pair of cute purple elephant designed house slipper lol. The Bf said – “Gone case…”
Last year I shopped till about midnite when they started closing.. this year was no different.. damage includes a few dresses, lots of Little Miss tee shirts (I love love these tee shirts!) I recognized the guy who sold those tees last year.. his shop has expanded to 2 shops! Yippeee.. more selections.
Day 2.
After breakfast I wanted to go to the Erawan Shrine to pray. Went out to hail a taxi which was outside the hotel. I noticed the hotel had a sign outside advising guests not to hail taxis outside of the hotel. The Bf thought it was faster, not having to wait.. but guess what?
The same common scam was happening again.. the cab driver told us that day was Buddha’s Day… and the place is closed. He offered to take us to another temple.. I was laughing when he told me that. How can Erawan Shrine close? Lol I said no thanks and asked the hotel staff to get me a cab. Waiting time? About a min or two.. Marvelous. :)
The shrine was already crowded with people at about 9am. Beautiful sight, though the incenses made my eyes water.
After praying was Malls-Visiting activity hehehe. Day 2 was spent at Central (this place is HUGE), Siam Paragon, Siam Square, and MBK. Last year I didn’t know Siam Square is a big open area.. I thought it was a mall or something so I didn’t get to go. I discovered a Daiso there hehe, all for 60 Baht, slightly more expensive than Malaysia. Here Daiso sells for RM5 each.
There was a Beauty Buffet outlet at Siam Square.. I walked out with 4 tubs of masks heee.. :D
Oh, McDonald’s in Thailand has Pork Burger and Ham Pie!! Nice and I love it! Yummmss.
Things at MBK are very affordable. I don’t think I covered the whole mall. I’d probably need more Bahts to do so :P I found Oriental Princess outlet. Honestly I wanted to buy everything but resisted like mad. Hehehe how many facial creams can I use at one time anyway :P I settled for a Pomegranate Lip Balm and a Frangipani hand cream. Yep, just because I saw “Frangipani” hahahha but also because it smells nicey.. Very affordable price too.
Also I discovered B2C (or was it B2S?) This place is heaven for me as I love crafts stuffs. Those cute papers and notebooks were asking me to take them home hehe. This is where the Tourist Discount Card came in handy.
Ok, I left out Boots. I made a huge damage @ Boots. They were having a Buy 1 Free 1 for body lotions, and I couldn’t resist. Lemme show you the pics... Enuf said, eh? :P
Sale!!
Buy 1 Free 1 whopeee!
All from Boots except the Pomegranate Lip Balm :)
Day 3.
Weekend Chatuchak / JJ Market! Whoa it was packed as usual, but this time not as hot as last March. Last year was roasting! I spent about 3-4 hours here (not enough to cover all the 5000 stalls, but heck I don’t have 1 million Baht to spend and a mansion to store either).
One thing that surprised me about JJ Market.. I’ve heard from reviews that the place is dirty and the toilets too. I was worried sick coz I cannot stand dirty toilets. How wrong were the reviews! The toilets were clean! Well maintained… I’m so impressed! :)
Headed next to Platinum mall and then Pratunam Center. I think you already know how much Platinum will attract me and for what purpose hee hee.. I love how 100 Baht can give me a pair of really nice shoes.. (I didn’t manage to take pics of the clothes yet.. they are still chucked in a big container at home).
There is one massage shop in Pratunam Center – I think on the 2nd floor, the staffs wear purple shirts. This place is awesome.. They lulled me to sleep… the best of all the massage I had in Bkk so far (I went everyday hehe) and very affordable too. I’m wishing I can move to Bkk lol.
At night the area below Pratunam Center has stalls selling clothes and knick knacks.. After an hour of recharging massage, time for more browsing. Had instant noodles for dinner – one thing I like about 7-11 in Thailand – their stuffs are not expensive, and I get to try all sorts of new / different products.
Tom Yum Pork instant noodles, Collagen drinks.. tasty! Not healthy but once a year.... why not? ;)
Day 4 – My Bday! :D
We decided to skip the Floating Market – I did a last min research and the Talingchan one only opens on weekend. The hotel staff recommended a boat trip to Wat Arun then off to Wat Pho. We paid 800 Baht for the boat trip and then I found out the public one costs just 3 Baht! Omg.. rip off! But I didn’t know how to go to the pier anyway, and as consolation, we did have the boat all to ourselves hehe.
Wat Arun is simply amazing, I think the view is better in the late evening at sunset. I didn’t climb up the super steep steps (I need the energy for Chinatown lol). Bah excuses.. I simply wasn’t fit enough to climb all the way up hehe.
It was my mom’s first time in Bkk so I took her to Wat Pho and Grand Palace too.
At Wat Pho, I saw something bizzare. Two ladies and an elderly guy in front of one of the inner temples – they just stood there burping very loud.. (They looked like Chinese / Koreans?? I don’t know) Then the ladies started to move a la martial arts stances, all the while making really loud noise and burping. It was as if they were possessed by animal spirits. An elderly Thai lady next to me promptly told me that it wasn’t Thai / Buddhist culture and it was some Chinese thingy going on. Hmmm I’m Chinese, I don’t think it is but I smiled and left coz the two ladies were sort of charging out and suddenly fainted. Whoa...
Grand Palace never failed to wow me. It was hot, but enjoyed exploring the palace. Mom was amazed, The Bf couldn’t stop taking pics lol.. and after that we had a good meal at Au Bon Pain, just opposite the Grand Palace – I love the sandwiches, they come in big servings..
We had some time left so we headed to Chinatown. My God.. this place is BUSY! Mom and The Bf bought some cashew nuts and dried longan fruits. We just went with the flow, not knowing where was where.. as long as there are stalls to browse we will walk hahhaha (it was as if the money bites). I found some treasures here… a few tools for arts and crafts at a very reasonable price. And some pretty hair clips and hair bands… Most stalls there sell wholesale.. so there wasn’t much I can buy :P
I like these PVC sandals.. I don’t remember the name, but looks similar to Crocs?
They don’t sell per pair.. sigh.. and when I found one that does, the size wasn’t right… arghhh.
Next, dinner at Cabbages & Condom! What a name eh? The taxi driver didn’t really know the place.. I guess not famous among locals? I told him to go Sukh Soi 12 hahahhah (as if I am pro). The restaurant from outside looks normal.. but the moment I walked in.. wow! Brightly lit garden and decorations.. I call them Condom-Men and Women heheheh very creative indeed. Everything was made of condoms. The food was ok, tasty but nothing spectacular.. abit on the expensive side. Nevertheless, enjoyed my dinner :)
Day 5.
Sobs… time to go back.. But we made a brief visit to Pratunam Market.
I bought shawls for 50 Baht! Another funny story here. While I was choosing the shawls.. Two transvestites came along. I took a color that I like and halfway thru I felt someone tugging at the shawl I was holding! I looked up to find one of the trans trying to pull it from me.
I was annoyed and I said “it’s mine” and I yanked it. Haha he/she probably don’t know what I said but I wasn’t gonna give in to this lousy attitude. :P The other trans looked irritated and then pointed to another color and they quickly paid and went off. Whoaaa….. I was amazed. My mom was surprised to see I was quite fierce. But really... there are so many on display you just need to take it from my hand?
Not on the day I was supposed to fly back girls!
My luggage was overloaded.. hee hee. I had to pay extra to fly them home.. *that’s so damaging*
All in all I am really happy with this trip, discovered new things abt Bkk.. I will be back next year rofl... and I’m also targeting Chiang Mai muahaha.
For now, I should be hibernating my itchy hands from shopping yeh? I try..... *grins*
