Six Nights in Bangkok

Bangkok is wonderful. We arrived at 7 AM, and were picked up by the owner of the guesthouse where we were staying. The place was quiet, had large rooms, wifi, and HBO (yeah!!). It also had a semi-affordable restaurant, and there was no charge for room service. We ordered up some room service, plopped down on the sawdust mattress (actually quite comfortable) and crashed. It was definitely nice to be in SE Asia, and we spent the next two days laying low and exploring the neighborhood our guesthouse was in.

Making use of the sky train, subway, and a few tuk-tuks, we explored all parts of the city, and almost every market. Another way of getting around was to use a “motorcycle taxi,” meaning to hop onto the back of a moped and get taken to your destination. Quick, but with no helmet and Bangkok traffic, it was a bit too dangerous for us.

Our first night out was to Chinatown, a very interesting part of Bangkok. With neon signs, shark fin soup vendors, and unique food shops abound, we walked in amazement, and then feasted on some roasted duck with rice. The other markets we hit up included a huge night market, the massive Chatuchak weekend market (5000 stalls over 35 acres!!!), and a small one over by our hotel. There, we could get a meal for both of us for about $3, and find tons of fun T-shirts, trinkets, perfumes, and beauty salons. Besides mani-pedis, hair-care, make-up, and perfume, they also offered a “fish massage,” which basically consists of dipping your feet and hands into a pool of tiny fish, and letting them eat the dead skin off of you. Its pretty crazy looking! We also made a stop at a huge Tesco-Lotus shopping market, which is like a two storey Superwalmart. Although small by US standards, for southeast asia, it is massive. It had a food court, including everything from mom and pop owned foor stalls to Dairy Queen, KFC, and McDonald’s, and also had its own exit from our sky train station stop, so it was very convenient.

We finally felt safe again to eat food from street vendors. Like the market, there are throngs of street vendors selling all sorts of food, including all types from meat on skewers, to hot noodles, to small pancake pastry things filled with coconut (cooked fresh!). Our favorite restaurant was across the street from our hotel, and was actually a garage with a few folding tables. You sit and eat next to the cars, while watching the cook or TV with the family. We got some of the best tasting, and cheapest Thai food in that place. Over at the night market, we ate dinner while watching an Asian band play, which was also very interesting.

We also happened to stumble upon a small massage parlor (totally legit!) which charged only $4 for a one hour thai massage. We visited about four times in the 6 days we spent in Bangkok, and each time, we got a cup of herbal tea after the massage.

We spent the entirety of another day roaming around the various Buddhist temples of Bangkok. We went to four or five different wats (wat=temple in Thai), each spectacular in their own way. The pictures do them the most justice, but each was decorated inside and out, with the edges of the roof detailed with thousands of tiny mirrors, and the insides filled with statues of the Buddha and majestic paintings.

One of the most fun things to do in Bangkok is get a custom tailored suit for a rock bottom price. You can get a custom suit in Bangkok for less than you can get an off the shelf one for at JC Penny. So we found a nice package at a quality tailor, and had a couple of suits made. We had measurments, fittings, and the final try-on, which went well. The suits fit great and we are dressed for success. Now Laura is ready for work, and Eric is ready for business school!

The Thais are very nice and polite people. We found Thailand to be a very developed place, easy to get around, and tourist friendly, with no one staring at us or taking pictures of us. The marketplaces and roadside stalls were much nicer too, and their selling methods were much less assertive, which is much more pleasant. A lot wear facemasks out in the crowded public areas, to avoid getting sick, and their temperament is very relaxed. This fit right in with our sleeping in and getting massages routine, ha-ha!

We also took care of some things while in Bangkok, including setting up our apartment up in Chicago, and ordering our new cell phones and laptop, so they will be ready when we return!

Enjoy the pics of Bangkok!