“You don’t marry someone you can live with – you marry the person who you cannot live without.”
Unknown

A kiss is a lovely trick designed by nature to stop speech when words become superfluous.”
Ingrid Bergman

Sympathy constitutes friendship; but in love there is a sort of antipathy, or opposing passion. Each strives to be the other, and both together make up one whole.”
Samuel Taylor Coleridge

“Love is like playing the piano. First you must learn to play by the rules, then you must forget the rules and play from your heart.”
Unknown

On the 19th of September, a Sunday, Radjaprasong turned red again in remembrance of the ousting of Taksin Sinawatra, the Prime Minister four years ago. Just in May we witnessed ugly unrests where 91 people including foreign journalists where killed by sniper bullets. Following Twitter that morning and looking out of the window confirmed the return of the red shirts, a day to remember!

At 3pm

One of those many red shirt supporters

Police

Female suporter

Taksin?

Young & Old

What will the future bring us?

Following Twitter?

Does she know about democracy

Chinatown is a colourful, exotic and busy area, packed with market stalls and probably the greatest concentration of gold shops in the city. The Chinese community, relocated here from Rattanakosin (Old City) in the 1700′s, still continue their own traditions and religious practices, and the area is quite unlike the rest of Bangkok.
Relatively untouched by modern development – and despite being always crowded, hot and exhausting – it’s an experience not to miss. The main road, Yaowarat Road, (appropriately) follows the curve of a dragon’s body, making it an ideal location for business. Visiting this exiting area, discovering its foods and markets one can never get enough of it.

Talat Kao is one of the oldest markets in Bangkok and has acted as the central market and trading place in Chinatown for over a century. Famous for its Chinese delicacies including sharks fins, dried abalone, fried puffed up fish stomachs and steamed bird’s nests, this is not a place for the faint hearted. An insightful opportunity into the culinary culture of the Chinese, for those who prefer more simplicity to your meals dumplings, noodles and freshly squeezed orange juice are all readily available. 

Pak Klong Market is a night market best visited between 02:00 and 04:00 when it has fresh deliveries of flowers, fruit, vegetables and spices. From 20:00 onwards the area emerges as a kaleidoscope of bright, blooming colour as vendors and consumers take to the floor to trade in Jasmine, lotus and roses – amongst other things.

It’s situated where Klong Lord meets the Chao Phraya River near the Memorial Bridge and is the primary flower market in Bangkok. The trade that occurs around you will be supplying most business and hotels with their freshly scented petals. Expect to see few foreign tourists here, it’s mainly frequented by street vendors and wholesale buyers, but it’s nonetheless a vibrant and fragrant experience. 

The Chinese community in Bangkok, descendants of early traders, have been living in Thailand for generations, and generally consider themselves very much as Thais; most can no longer speak any Chinese. The area has a somewhat seedy historical reputation for large numbers of opium dens, brothels, pawnshops and a fondness for gambling that used to prevail.

Today, gold shops and pawnshops are still very popular in Chinatown, and can be found almost anywhere and everywhere. Drug dealing, prostitution and gambling (all now illegal in Thailand) are also still thought to be widespread in this area – although they are not likely to be very noticeable to the average visitor. So don’t expect to see any go-go bars in Chinatown!

Chinatown is one of a few touristy areas in Bangkok that has not succumbed to a degree of urbanisation, retaining an undeveloped but nonetheless endearing format. Running along Yaowarat Road from Odeon Circle, the huge unmistakable and striking ceremonial Chinese gate marks the entrance.

Dispersing off the main roads is a series of smaller roads, narrow alleys and backstreets. Each of these offer great insight into how the Chinese community have preserved their cultural traditions, celebrations and identities for over two centuries.

The area was once renowned for being home to a dense warren of opium dens, gambling joints, brothels and pawnshops. Today it is the great food, fabric and gold that lure the tourists to this area.

Similar to the visually conventional idea of Bangkok, it largely consists of well-weathered shop houses and market stalls that sit below illuminated and painted signs – promoting food, pawnshops and in particular, gold.

Expect to see some farang (foreign) faces around Chinatown but nothing compared to that of Siam or Silom. To some it might be perceived as being off the beaten path, with a notable lack of air conditioned spaces and English speaking people. For others this simply heightens the appeal of Chinatown.

Yaowarat, Bangkok’s Chinatown, is a good place to head to for a wonderful dining experience. The area houses some of the best and most expensive Chinese restaurants in the city, along with many of the best and cheapest food stalls, especially at night.

The restaurants mostly specialise in Southern Chinese (Cantonese) cooking, with noodles, seafood and, at lunchtime, dim sum dominating the menus. Large (and pricey!) restaurants line the bustling Yaowarat Road, but venturing into the little ‘sois’ (streets) or lanes will lead you to much cheaper yet equally enjoyable establishments.

At night, the streets light up with blaring neon signs. Ad hoc seafood stalls line the sidewalks, drawing such crowds that late-comers have to wait for seats. Look out for Chinese delicacies like bird’s nest and shark fin soup.

Close by is also Pahurat, if you’re in the mood for Indian food. But, if the array of sights and smells is a bit too overwhelming for you, head over to the Old Siam Shopping Centre, where you will find more tourist-friendly, Western and Thai restaurants, along with the odd fast food outlet.

There are many things to see in Chinatown and the whole experience is impressive. The best way to explore the area is to pick a starting point and stick to a plan. Thanong Yaowarat and Thanong Charoen Krung are the main arteries of Chinatown, offering the biggest variety of eateries and shopping choices.
With about 14% of the buildings in the district designated as historical landmarks, Chinatown is home to many fine examples of the architecture of Bangkok’s early years. A good example is the Tang To Gung gold shop on Sampeng Lane, around Mangkon Road.

We recommend that you wander on down the claustrophobic soi’s where the smell of fried food and leather reveal a distinct scent, before trailing across a temple or market. The area is as such, that it will leave you feeling like you have been transported back in time

Durian is a fruit unique to Southeast Asia. This is sort-of strange, as almost any fruit or vegetable with a somewhat appealing taste has long become a universally cultivated crop. And not that the durian would be lacking in taste appeal. Those who like durian typically regard it as the king of fruit. And even in countries where, during the harvest season, there is a real flood of durians, prices never drop to dirt-cheap levels, as they do for pineapples and bananas.

Well, durians have a strong smell and a unique taste. Could be that those who haven’t seen others indulging in durians have doubts as to the fruit’s fitness for human consumption. Judging by the fruit’s smell, its flesh moves straight from unripe to rotten.