Chatuchak Weekend Market
Trip Start
Nov 17, 2009
1
5
11
Trip End
Jan 29, 2010
Bangkok, Thailand
Saturday, November 21, 2009
I got up about six and found a meter taxi. I got the taxi to drop me at Siam Square so I could catch the Skytrain to the actual market. The taxi driver agreed to take me only after trying to explain several times that none of the shopping malls in Siam Square where open. I hopped in the taxi finally off we went and due to the earlier hour traffic was light for Bangkok we were there in no time.
Once I arrived in Siam Square I climbed the huge stair case up to the Sky Train Terminal. From there it was simpily a matter of purchasing a ticket. The lady in the booth after I attempted to give her money several times gave me the "stupid farang" look (farang means foreign) and told me sternly "you must use machine to buy ticket". Once I had done this I was off, the Sky Train runs about once every ten minutes and it glided along serenely above the city majestically.
It deposited me at Chatuchak Park which reminded me of Lumphini Park but was a little more up market, but still had many Thai persons exercising. The market is along side the Park.
The market does not really get going till eight so in the meanwhile I focused on trying to find some breakfast. There were a number of noodle soup stalls along the entry to the market (Thais like to have hot spicy noodle soup for breakfast). I chose one with and order a fish ball noodle soup. The mother running the stall plated up my noodle soup why her daughter(who was about four I think) sat across from me dunking Chinese fried bread in milk. She looked bemused by my presence. Once my soup was ready I began to eat but then the noodle lady husband appeared and instructed me on the correct use condiments, insisting I put these in the raw eggplant looking things in to my soup which actually turned to be tasty mini cucumber. Thais are big into cucumber.
Once I was done with breakfast I entered the market. I proceeded to spend four hours roaming around the various stalls. They have different sections throughout the market; the flower section, the furniture section, the amulet section, the silk section and the pets section which I found a bit disturbing (that section is a bit controversial now I think because there were signs up every where saying no photos). After about four hours of wondering my feet had had enough and I stopped grabbed a bit to eat and found my way to a taxi.
From there I went to the Ekamai (Bangkok's eastern bus terminal) to purchase a bus ticket to Trat for the next day. There was a traffic jam so I sat in the taxi in traffic for about 45 minutes before buying the ticket and sat in traffic in another taxi for about 45 minutes after buying the ticket.
I the day concluded with me grabbing a curry on the street and getting an early night before catching the bus that morning.
