I found myself wandering around my neighboring countries again, savoring its magic&charm. W/ MJ, we strolled the streets of Singapore, KL, Penang, Bangkok, Lopburi and Ayutthaya, while I’ve gone solo in Vientiane. At the end of it all, I got sensory overload w/ new&exotic flavors, old&distinct scents, stunning architecture&historical landmarks, loud&quiet sounds, busy&serene air – but still I want MORE. I simply can’t get enough of Asia.
MJ wasn’t able to extend her vacation, so by 12 noon, she packed up her bags & took off.I had 5 more days of vacation and I don’t know where to go or what to do!
I don’t want to just stay in Aying and Elexis’ pad, so I asked them that we go out.
bells for goodluck
“Go where,” asked Aying.“Anywhere,” I told her.
Aying and Elexis moved to Bangkok in July of 2008.However, upon arrival, they immediately started working so they haven’t really toured the city.In fact, they haven’t been to the temples!
It’s time to get lost in BKK.
We agreed to explore BKK’s Chinatown.Before going there, we stopped by first at The Mall Bangkapi where Aying showed off where she and Elexis usually hang out.On top of the floor of the mall, there’s a large waterpark where the couple were members.Yes, a waterpark on the mall!We have lots of huge malls in the Philippines, but we definitely don’t have pools on top of malls.
To get to Chinatown, we hopped on the khlong river taxi.The couple hasn’t tried this yet so they were pretty much excited about it.
Chinatown at Night
It was a long ride, about an hour, I think.We stopped at the last station, which, according to our map, was just a few blocks away from Chinatown.
We passed by the Golden Mount and since both of them haven’t been there, we climbed up 320 steps to reach the top.Reaching the top, it gave us a 360-degree view of Bangkok.
Then it was time to discover Chinatown.Actually, we don’t know where the ‘main” Chinatown is.Referring to our maps, Chinatown is huge that we don’t know where to start! So from Wat Saket, about three blocks from there, we reached the Charoen Krung Road, our starting point to wander around.The place was crowded, lots of vendors along the street selling inexpensive items, some new but mostly used things.All I can say is everything’s here.One will find all sorts of things for sale around here, from clothes, shoes, household items, toys, electronic gadgets and even used refrigerator, washing machines and those kinds of stuffs.
And if you’re looking for Rolex, Rado and other high-end watches or jewelry, try the narrow alleys of Thieves Market for great bargains.
There’s an abundance of street food too.Carts of grilled skewers of meat and fish were around the corner.We tried the grilled dried squid.Yummy.
We weren’t able to cover all of Chinatown.I don’t think we were able to see even half of it.But we were full with just a stroll along the few narrow alleys.
