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Bangkok Part 1: Faraway Places
May 13, 2018
Hello hello Bangkok! It's always exciting to travel to the land of smiles, especially to the heart of this beautiful country, Bangkok. It's my third consecutive year to this city and the funny thing was, Vietnam was the initial destination but it was slightly over my budget hence settling down for Thailand. There must be some mystical reason I keep coming back to Bangkok hahahahaha must be the food and shopping deity or something!!
This first part of my Bangkok trip talks about visiting slightly further places that cannot be accessed through the trains from the city centre on the first and second day. Chocolate Ville is actually 30 minutes away but it can get super jam and ends up as a 1 hour plus trip. Maeklong Railway Market and Amphawa on the other hand, are also located away from the city centre which needed at least 2 hours to reach.
Upon arriving at Don Mueang Airport, Dexter and I headed straight to our Airbnb located right beside the Phra Khanong BTS. The room is simple and clean and most importantly our host, Jubjib, was a really sweet lady who helped us whenever we had any questions about going around Bangkok. Aside from the BTS station a few steps away from the premise, there was also a 7-11, Aeon Mini Mart, and a international food market and beer garden known as W District just right outside the lobby.
Day 1
After settling down at our stay, we took a 1-hour Grab over to the first stop, Chocolate Ville. The traffic is super bad in Bangkok and it's not even an understatement. However, if the place you are planning to visit is out of the city centre with no other means of public transport, I guess Grab is the only choice.
Chocolate Ville is a haven for those who loves a good photogenic background for their photos. These life-size structures were all lit up by 5:00PM so it's best to go there early and take one hundred and one photos before settling for dinner at their restaurant, like we did!
We ordered the creamy Seafood Tomyam, Pork Neck with Mushroom Sauce and Fries, and a plate of Tomyam Meehoon with Tiger Prawns. To be honest, I was not expecting the food to be good since it's a very commercial place but holy, our first dinner in Bangkok at Chocolate Ville was the bomb! Though the total bill for 3 dishes and 2 drinks costed 1140 Baht, I felt it was still okay given the free admission to the park and the endless photographs taken at this lovely location, it was worth it.
After a super fulfilling dinner at Chocolate Ville, we decided to go for a drink at W District which was just right below our AirBnb. There were a lot of farangs (foreigners) there which explains the pricey street food. Dexter and I settled for the craft beer (2 for 590 Baht) and it was so, so good. I highly recommend this place to anyone visiting Bangkok. Plus, it's super convenient to go to since the Phra Khanong BTS is just right outside of this location. The bartender was super friendly and the ambiance was really nice too. Unfortunately, it rained halfway when we were enjoying our beers but other than that, this is definitely a cool place to hangout.
Day 2
What a bummer! Today's plan to travel to Maeklong Railway Market through train was completely ruined. My initial plan was that we wake up super early, Grab to Ban Leam Railway Station and hop on the 10.10AM train to Maeklong. Many take the taxi straight to Maeklong Railway Station to catch a glimpse of the markets making way when the train passes by. The point was that I wanted to arrive on that arriving train which would give me a different perspective. Also, I read reviews about the beautiful scenery of the countryside along the way which I wanted to experience.
Anyway, we had a frustrating time getting a Grab (which kept cancelling us every 10 minutes) hence, missing the timing altogether. By then we already settled for Grabbing straight to Maeklong but that itself was also a difficult feat as we had at least 5 drivers cancelling us continuously after trying to book a Grab for almost an hour!
Anyway, the journey to Maeklong was approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes and luckily we were in time for the arrival of the 11.10AM train to capture it on camera. After an hour or so, we hopped back into our Grab car which by now became our personal driver for the rest of the day. I personally felt that if we were to arrive on the train, it would be much more fun because other than that, there wasn't anything to do besides waiting and taking photos of the arrival and departure of the train.
Lucky enough our Grabcar driver offered to stay back and wait for us as we booked him to go to Amphawa Floating Market next. Looking back, missing the train to Maeklong was a blessing in disguise because there were no Grabcars around that area and we were so fortunate to have met a kind driver who also waited for us while we were in Amphawa Floating Market.
Anyway, we had a frustrating time getting a Grab (which kept cancelling us every 10 minutes) hence, missing the timing altogether. By then we already settled for Grabbing straight to Maeklong but that itself was also a difficult feat as we had at least 5 drivers cancelling us continuously after trying to book a Grab for almost an hour!
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| For your reference on the arrival and departure of the trains (for your videos and photos) and also if you ever plan to take the train from Ban Leam, here are the timings. |
Anyway, the journey to Maeklong was approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes and luckily we were in time for the arrival of the 11.10AM train to capture it on camera. After an hour or so, we hopped back into our Grab car which by now became our personal driver for the rest of the day. I personally felt that if we were to arrive on the train, it would be much more fun because other than that, there wasn't anything to do besides waiting and taking photos of the arrival and departure of the train.
Lucky enough our Grabcar driver offered to stay back and wait for us as we booked him to go to Amphawa Floating Market next. Looking back, missing the train to Maeklong was a blessing in disguise because there were no Grabcars around that area and we were so fortunate to have met a kind driver who also waited for us while we were in Amphawa Floating Market.
We offered the driver 1000 Baht to drive us from Maeklong to Amphawa and back to Bangkok and he gladly accepted it. We were soooo lucky! (Grab fare from Bangkok to Maeklong was 900 Baht).
Much to our dismay, the floating market was not opened that day so we just stopped by the only opened floating food stall for lunch.
Much to our dismay, the floating market was not opened that day so we just stopped by the only opened floating food stall for lunch.
The quietness at Amphawa Floating Market was actually really nice after a noisy and crowded time at Maeklong Railway Market. Food was also good (almost everything and anything is good in Bangkok) and the kid that helps the family to take orders is a little gem. He does his job with energy and has an infectious smile!
Dexter and I ordered the Noodles Pad Thai, Jinga Shrimp, and Mussels Fried in Egg Batter plus an Iced Milk Tea and Iced Black Tea for only 130 Baht, WOWZ!! The food was very delicious and I wished I ordered another plate of the Noodles Pad Thai but you know, it's not wise to eat till the brim at Bangkok because you need to leave some space for other food!
Dexter and I ordered the Noodles Pad Thai, Jinga Shrimp, and Mussels Fried in Egg Batter plus an Iced Milk Tea and Iced Black Tea for only 130 Baht, WOWZ!! The food was very delicious and I wished I ordered another plate of the Noodles Pad Thai but you know, it's not wise to eat till the brim at Bangkok because you need to leave some space for other food!
After being outdoors for almost half a day, we were driven back to Bangkok and alighted at Terminal 21 (2 hours drive) to get a taste of the currently most talked about dessert, After You. It was actually quite yummy after a long day of walking outside. Before that, we had Hawker Chan's signature soya sauce chicken rice to fill up our tummies for our next destination.
We were quick to leave Terminal 21 to move on to our dinner spot, Jay Fai, known for its notorious 3-5 hours wait for a seat and an extra waiting hour for the food to be served. This time we were smart enough to take the train to the nearest station before alighting and Grab over to the restaurant. This was the best way to avoid time wasting in the Bangkok jam and definitely faster compared to a journey relying on car only.
Upon arriving, we learnt that they only take reservations and walk-ins are not entertained. I was okay about it and thought we could just settle for the Pad Thai place next door (which has a super long queue but service was fast). However, Dexter was looking forward to having Jay Fai and I think that disappointment was quite apparent on his face that the waitress actually allowed us to queue up with the others in the end.
The verdict? Food is very good, big portion, and generous, so giving the price stated on the menu, I would say it's not too bad. Plus, one dish can be shared among 2 person. The waiting part was quite tiring but I guess that it's something that we all should try once. After all, this is one of the Michelin Star street food in the world! However, Dexter and I were super lucky because there were a few groups that were ahead of us that gave up after waiting for such a long time which allowed us to get our seats within 3 hours instead of 4 hours. We ordered their signature dish, the Crab Meat Omelette (the crab meat melts in your mouth and the portion is super generous) and Drunken Noodle (the seafood in this dish were super fresh and big!) with 2 drinks, costed us 1140 Baht.
Dexter and I ended the night at Ratchada Night Market where we started shopping as the night was still young at 9PM (go to Jay Fai early, wait early, end early). We were also super full to began with so the walking and shopping helped us to digest our food along the way). The place was crowded as usual and if I had an extra stomach, I would have gotten a seat and chomp down the seafood served there! Food aside, shopping was fun too but I stopped myself many times from buying too much, especially clothes because I believed Chatuchak would have cheaper and better options.
That's all for Part 1 of Bangkok! Stay tune for my second part in this wonderful city 💕
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