Coming from a calmer place like Chiang Mai and diving right into the bustling the city life can feel quite overwhelming, especially in a place like Bangkok. I am not a fan of cities. Coming to a place like Bangkok, where I am instantly faced with bad traffic, sensory overload and too many things going on at once, feels overwhelming. Chaotic even.
Unlike Chiang Mai, I was not able to get a cab from the airport. I mean, I could have. Except, it costs a lot more, takes longer and you have more than 80% chance of getting stuck in traffic. Instead, I opted in for the next best thing, though it takes time: public transportation.
The mistake I made was flying out to another city, on the same day that I had a meeting scheduled. With the time difference, the meeting would start at 9:30 pm Thailand time, and would be expected to finish around 12:30-1:00 am. I had to reschedule my flight to the early afternoon to not miss the meeting. Though I landed in Bangkok at 4:00 pm, I didn't get to my hotel until around 7:00 pm.
I was exhausted, despite the short flight from Chiang Mai. I freshened up and wandered around the area, trying to find a suitable restaurant, but I wanted Thai food. A combination of hungry and tired is not the greatest, because that's exactly where you can easily get scammed. A Tuk-tuk driver right outside of the hotel saw that I was looking for something. He approached and offered to take me to a "good restaurant"(at that point I was actually trying to book a cab to a restaurant I found), but I just wanted to leave as soon as possible, as time was running out.
I ended up at Jojo Seafood Riverside Restaurant. A typical tourist-centered restaurant, offering views of the harbor and the dinner cruises that pass by. It was clear to me that the Tuk-tuk drivers work directly with the restaurant to get their share of the cost. Prices were a lot more expensive, but at that point, I was hungry, in a rush and too tired to go elsewhere. The shrimp pad thai and fish I ordered took a long time to arrive, but was served fresh. It was delicious, but overpriced ($60 for a meal for 2). I would have preferred to find a local restaurant or go elsewhere, but better luck next time.
The next morning, I had arranged with a driver for a private tour of Bangkok and its surroundings. The main two spots on my list were the Maeklong Railway Market and the Damnoen Floating Market. The train passes by the market a few times in a day, but I specifically got there for the 11:10 am arrival, since you can see it leave at 11:30 am.
Expect big crowds. Expect lots of tourists. Expect to be pushed around as you walk past the narrow market. Expect to be yelled at by shopkeepers (for a good reason, your safety!). Expect to possibly not get a good shot, as everyone tries to do the same. Just enjoy the moment!
I personally enjoyed the Maeklong Railway Market train experience, and found it to be pretty cool, especially after seeing how quickly the vendors put stuff away and open up again, after the train has left.
When it came to the floating market, we were brought to this area for a "tour" which you are expected to pay $75 CAD for (approximately). It lasts 2 hours and apparently takes you on a boat to the floating market, to see the long neck tribe and to make your own sugar cane factory. I have heard of stories of people doing them and ending up at an empty/closed floating market. I decided not to do the tour. I was not intending on purchasing anything anyway, I just wanted to get an idea of what it looks and feels like. I visited another floating market instead, but it turned out to be closed at the time, as they are mostly open at night-time, since they offer firefly tours.
This was an experience that I was OK to opt out of, as it meant using that $75 for something else (when you travel for a long time, this becomes automatic and as mentioned, I typically don't even like/care to go to the top tourist places). Instead of heading to the next "tourist" stop, I asked the driver to take me somewhere nice, local and with less people.
I ended up at a place called "The Red Bridge" (Dolphin Watching Area), as it's known on Google Maps, not too far away from Bangkok. When it's the season, you can find many locals come here to dolphin watch. I especially liked the area, since it was peaceful and there was a nice breeze. There is also a restaurant on-site.
I had a late lunch, at Khrua Khun Orn Seafood. The place is right on the water, you can feed and see the fish down below and they have a Thai and English menu.
I noticed a bit of a difference between the prices on the Thai and English menus, thus I would recommend ordering straight from the Thai menu (by using Google Translate), if you want to avoid having to pay more for the same thing.
By the time lunch was over, it was getting quite late in the afternoon, thus instead of heading to some of the places I had in mind, I had a quick pit stop at two different custom tailors.
Getting a custom-made outfit in Thailand is very popular and a great souvenir to take back. However, remember to negotiate, go through the designs to see what you are looking for and compare (as in, don't say yes right away to the first shop you walk into). The outfits should typically be ready within two days, depending on what you are getting.
I originally planned to end the day with a dinner cruise on the harbor, starting from Asiatique or ICONSIAM, but changed my mind as soon as I got to the hotel and saw the weather. It poured. The perfect weather to go to sleep. Instead, I had mango sticky rice and Thai tea from 7-11 for dinner and called it a night early.
On my last day in Bangkok, I slept in for the first half of the day, as I knew that the following day waiting for me would be hectic, no hotels and the journey back home. After resting well, I headed to ICONSIAM, a mall that has been on my list since before coming to Bangkok. My only regret after getting there, was not having gotten there earlier!
The mall is huge, and among one of my favourite so far. I could easily spend a full day, especially since there are so many shops to explore, a huge and amazing food market, highlighting delights from all over Thailand and so much more.
The majority of my time was spent at the market. Ensure to stop by the tourist center to get your tourist card and to save money on your purchases.
At the food market, I got some mango sticky rice and durian, but was surprised to come across delicacies, such as crocodile!
I found travel by metro very easy and smooth in Bangkok, though it did take some time to get from place-to-place. The ride back to the airport was via metro. I could easily spend a few more days in-and-out of Bangkok, exploring its nearby landmarks and hidden gems, and wandering through other malls, its many night markets and do so much more. But, it was time to leave. I headed back to the hotel to get the luggage and then straight to the airport. Until next time, Bangkok, the land of smiles.
Have you been to Thailand? If so, where?
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