It's All About the Shopping

This weekend I had a chance to take in one of the largest flea markets in Thailand right here in Bangkok called Chatuchak or Jatujak (JJ) Market. This excerpt from Bangkok.com describes it best:

"Chatuchak Market has reached a landmark status as a must-visit place for tourists. Its sheer size and diverse collections of merchandise will bring any seasoned shoppers to their knees – this is where you can literally 'shop till you drop'. The 35-acre (14 hectares) area of Chatuchak is home to more than 8,000 market stalls. On a typical weekend, more than 200,000 visitors come here to sift through the goods on offer. Veteran shoppers would agree that just about everything is on sale here" …and most at bargain bartering prices.

I ventured to the market with some friends who work at ICS and met the Leaman family who are friends from my Denver days (some 15 years ago) who now live in Bangkok. How fortunate to have a Thai native help us navigate the market!

The amount of merchandise available is truly astounding. Seemingly every square inch of space is packed with items for sale – from food to animals to household to whatever you’re looking for – across acres of displays.

In many ways it reminded me of the much smaller but similar markets I experienced in Malaysia. You can see just about everything at these outdoor flea markets, including some critters you would rather NOT see! For instance while in Malaysia, I saw a rat go from one stall to another. Here I encountered an employee who had captured a Python and he sure was in a hurry to get rid of it somewhere. I'm not sure what he eventually did with it, but I did see how large the snake was when he passed by. Needless to say this was the closest I've come to a snake of this size and the closest I ever want to come to one!

I’ve never encountered a snake this large – the guy holding it both at the head and tail with the length of snake dipping almost to the ground. I didn’t have my camera ready to take a picture but I did find a picture on the internet that shows roughly the size and girth of what we saw.

Apparently it is common to see snakes of this size here in Bangkok. Great, huh? In fact, one was found at my school a number of years back hanging from a tree near the playground area. Good thing the maintenance and security guards are used to dealing with reptiles like this and it isn't part of my job description because I wouldn't even know how to approach it =)

After an afternoon of sweating it out in the 90 degree F (32 C) outdoor market we decided to also take in some of the more modern malls closer to our school and neighborhood. Quite the contrast between retail environments! I’m sure most people don’t think of modern malls when they think of Bangkok, but this city certainly has its share. We decided to stop at Terminal 21 which is a mall with some 7 stories of shops, each floor representing a different country. Lunch consisted of a Japanese version of the hamburger at Mos Burger, a recommendation for westerners who want a varied taste of home.

We eventually landed at Mega Bangna Mall after about an hour ride on the light rail and shuttle across town that cost only a couple dollars. It’s one of my favorite malls with anchor stores like IKEA and just about every type of coffee shop and restaurant to suit any mood. Turns out we met other friends from ICS at the mall for a curry dinner.

Today I found out what it was like to be a shopper in the truest sense of the word.

Night Tour of Bangkok

A small group of us from school decided to get to know our resident city by taking a night tour of Bangkok via an open-air tram. I wasn’t sure that I would be able to "see much" on this night tour but I was proven wrong. Most of the important monuments we visited were well lit, displaying them in perhaps a more spectacular way than could be viewed during the day.

The evening started with dinner at the Sidewalk Café, one of the original restaurants in the heart of Bangkok beautifully situated with a view of the Democracy Monument. This monument is at the figurative center of Bangkok and represents the Siamese Revolution of 1932 which led to the establishment of a constitutional monarchy, then known as the Kingdom of Siam.

One of the first stops was at the impressive Ananta Samkhom Throne Hall, a former reception hall ordered by King Rama V. The domes and walls are adorned with paintings outlining the history of the Chakri Dynasty (reign of Kings I-VI).

The Wat Ratchanaddaram temple was built to the order of King Rama III to depict the 37 virtues required toward enlightenment in the Buddhist faith.

Our tour continued to the Grand Palace built in 1782 and residence of the Thai Kings for 150 years. Within the palace grounds are numerous buildings including a 14th century temple.

One of my favorite sites is the impressive Wat Phra Chetuphon Vimolmangklararm Rajwaramahaviharn (or Wat Pho for short =) These pain-stakingly built ceramic tile monuments are known to exist at the birthplace of traditional Thai massage. Historic drawings aligned along on a stone wall portray basic theory of the massage technique. I was told King Rama the First is buried under this structure... quite the headstone!

These monuments on our tour, among others, certainly gave us an appreciation of the history and importance of this city in the Kingdom of Siam, now called Thailand. I would certainly recommend this tour even for those who have seen the monuments by day.