5 things Singaporeans will enjoy about Bangkok
1.Cheap
& good Japanese food, EVERYWHERE
2. Gold class movie tickets @ SFCity cinemas are only $10 SGD! (These are the tickets that come with extra large plush seats & a nice warm blanket to warm up in!) Regular movie tickets are $5 SGD.
3.
High-quality tailoring of 3 long-sleeve cotton shirts for $100 SGD. Can
be done in less than 24 hours. Husband tailored his shirts at the Novotel
Siam Square Hotel tailor, on the ground floor. They had a range of
traditional & hip designs of cloth & the service was professional.
Happy husband recommends the shop highly!
4. The popular Jap food snack - POCKY - comes in chocolate banana flavour & get this, CORN! And they're really really yums! Plus, they're only $0.35 and $0.43 for small & large packs respectively. Read more here.
5. Thai massage in Banyan Tree-type setting for $15 SGD per hour! Read more.
Bangkok markets - Chatuchak vs Suam Lum Night Bazaar
Just
in case you haven't heard, Chatuchak Weekend Market is this amazingly
huuge market that sells everything, and I mean, EVERYTHING. No really,
EVERYTHING. Clothes, accessories, bags, furniture, food (dry & wet),
books,.... we even saw pets, like dogs, birds, cats & very very cute
rabbits!
Pic on the left shows the crowds that throng Chatuchak every weekend. (It's only open on Saturdays and Sundays). To get there is such a breeze - just take the BTS Skytrain northwards. Even if you forget the name of the stop, simply follow the crowd. Everybody gets off at the Chatuchak stop. The train is left virtually empty. So it'll be very obvious if you've missed the stop. ^__^
I didn't take any pictures inside the market. That's because the lanes between stalls are very narrow & it's so crowded you feel like you're being pushed along all the time. Whenever you reach a cross-junction of lanes, you really do get a sense of being in a chaotic traffic jam, only you don't have the safety or air-conditioning of a vehicle. It's human traffic and be warned, it can get quite frustrating and even, annoying, what with everybody pushing and shoving here and there.
What makes it worse is that the market area is covered. This means ventilation is limited and it does get quite hot, especially in the afternoons.
Prices are definitely worth it, but personally, I did find myself uninspired to shop because of the unbelievable throngs of people everywhere. PLUS, it is soooo huuge that you kind of get a bit overwhelmed. Still, Chatuchak is an experience that locals & tourists continue to flock to. If you're like some of the Singapore girls I know, very focused and tenacious about shopping & getting good deals, you'll do well here. This is not a stroll in the park, by any means. So, if you must, arm yourself with a Chatuchak map, provided free of charge, by ME! Download it here. And use it well. :)
Instead of Chatuchak though, I would highly recommend paying Suan Lum Night Bazaar a visit. What a breath of fresh air (literally), compared to the hot & stuffy Chatuchak, where even breathing was a problem at times! Located at the southeast corner of Lumphini Park, Suan Lum is Bangkok's, and possibly Thailand's, first government-developed Night Market. (Read: it's not seedy, smelly, murky, muddy etc.) In fact, it's a really neat romp, with wider covered markets, cleaner lanes, and a huge beer garden & hawker centre in the middle to boot!
Pic
on the left shows the hawker centre in Suam Lum. It's the size (and shape)
of a football stadium, I kid you not. Food served is very 'locally-priced'
- 25 baht ($1.10 SGD) for noodles & rice dishes. And as entertainment,
local rock bands, that seem to all stem from the Def Leppard variety,
perform on a huge stage up front.
The prices of goods in Suan Lum is very comparable to Chatuchak, so you don't lose out on value-for-money. You can also bargain to the teeth here. Husband bargained price of T-shirt down from 350 baht to 120 baht. He's my hero. :) And, the size of Suam Lum is also comparable to Chatuchak. It's just a nicer place to be - you feel you can stroll without being run over by crowds and that inspires you to shop even more.
All in all, you'll get the variety and prices you need, without the sweat, pain & tears. Suan Lum is the way to go for me - whoo hoo!
Here's a lovely map of Suan Lum that I found - enjoy!
Our
trip to Thailand, Dec 04:
main page
5 things Singaporeans will like about
Bangkok, Chatuchak vs. Suan Lum,
Thai massage in Bangkok, Cabbages
& Condoms restaurant
Train travel to Chiangmai, Chiangdao
Mini-Nest Resort
5 things Singaporeans will like about Chiangmai,
Chiangmai
Thai Cookery School