I have actually typed the same title for this post three times already. Today is our second day in Bangkok proper and we spent most of it in the ruins of Ayutthaya. Chun Wee will be writing about today while I will do a bit of reminiscing about the last two days.

Friday was our first day (more like night actually, since we arrived at the hotel in the evening) and things did not go as planned right from the moment we stepped out of the taxi at the Khao San Road area. The hotel that we had reserved was only able to release the room to us tomorrow (we have arrived in Bangkok earlier than planned) and hence we are once again caught stranded in an unfamiliar place without a place to stay. The crucial difference between that first night in Sukhothai and our first night in Bangkok was that we were at the place earlier in Bangkok, and hence finding another hotel was a relatively easy task. Upon checking in for the night, we decided to loiter around the neighbourhood in order to get acquainted with the area.

Khao San Road is, to put it mildly, a crazy place overflowing with glaring lights and gaudy colours, a kaleidoscopic, claustrophic mishmash of rows and rows of shops and street stalls hawking a whole array of merchandise and services from imitation shirts and Bob Marley paraphenalia to trips for “tiger shows” and used books. Surprisingly (at least to the uninitiated like us), this place is flooded with Caucasians, most of them probably traveling on a shoestring budget, and at night, many if not most of them flock to the watering holes along the road, lounging on seats drinking beer with Thai beer ladies tending to their needs in their short skirts and figure-hugging blouses. We walked along the narrow streets and alleys for quite some time, absorbing the sights and getting used to the spirit of the area.

The next day was our first full day in Bangkok. First thing in the morning we checked out of our hotel and walked down the street to the hotel that has our reservation. After that we took a cab to the Chatuchack Weekend Market.

As usual, things did not quite went as well as we might have expected it to go. As our taxi tried to manoveure its way to the kerb of the road, the taxi just beside us tried to go the opposite direction as it has just dropped off a passenger. Our taxi went left while the other taxi went right and the other taxi’s bumper kissed the front passenger seat door, where Chun Wee happened to be sitting at. In the end Chun Wee had to squeeze his way out of the taxi and we quickly paid our fare before the drivers met and confronted each other.

If Khao San Road was packed, the Chatuchack Weekend Market was much worst. Our first instinct was to locate a map, and when we did we tried to find where we were and even took pictures of the map with our cameras. That did not help much since the moment we starting exploring the market, we got lost almost immediately. We decided to just randomly walk around and find the stuff we wanted to buy.

The first impression I got of the market was the oppressive heat. The strong sunlight made browsing the countless stalls a thoroughly sweaty affair. The simmering heat and narrow, cramped walkways, coupled with the throngs of people squeezing past each other combined to create an extremely claustrophic environment. Not that we cared, because once we got our momentum going, we were focused on finding the bargains and stuff we wanted and soon got used to the heat. We broke for lunch at a shop serving rice with braised pork trotters and noodle soup where the boss actually speaks Hokkien. We returned to our hotel at early evening with our wallets much lightened and our backpacks filled with purchases.

Tomorrow we will be going to the historical area of Bangkok, namely the wats in the Ko Rattanakosin area. It will probably be another great day for phototaking but I think the underlying consensus is that we have gotten a bit sick of taking photos of wats, after visiting Sukhothai and Ayutthaya. Speaking of which, I have to charge my camera batteries. Hopefully we will post again tomorrow.