Thailand Day 10 - Bangkok

I have never shopped so much in my life. The plan for today was to visit Bangkok's famous Chatuchak weekend market (JJ) in the AM, and then go see a floating market in the afternoon. We'd heard all sorts of tales of this market, and all our books said to get there early as it gets too hot and crowded later. So we set the alarm, and once we'd had breakfast, paid for the next night in the hotel, walked the 1/2 mile to the skytrain, gone to the end of the line and walked to the market, it was 8:45. We arrived and went in one entrance and we weren't really sure of what kind of strategy we should use to get through. After all, JJ is the largest market in the world. At first we wanted to do a quick walk-through of it all, but we quickly realized that a) we would never see the whole thing, and b) we should probably buy what we want when we see it since we may not find our way back to that booth again. It started out hot outside, even early, so we opted for the interior stalls covered with makeshift roofs. Some stalls were still setting up when we arrived. We started buying. We searched probably 5 stalls minimum before purchasing any item, and then bargained our way down for less (read that linked article. It is EXACTLY on the money hehe). We visited hundreds upon hundreds of stalls, and walked by many more. At 12:30 we realized there was no chance we were getting out of there any time soon, so we stopped to eat some lunch.

At the table next to us sat some Australians, and next to them, 3 middle aged southern American men who fit all American stereotypes to a T. We all had fun talking and swapping travel stories, and when I got up to go pay, one of them paid for our lunch! (granted, it was only like $5, but it was sweet)

Once we'd regained some energy, we went back for more. I think even David was having a good time, even though all the guys at lunch kept telling him he was an angel for putting up with us shopping! Early afternoon brought more heat and more people, and we eventually felt smothered by the quantity of people and the thick air in the stalls, but that didn't stop us! I really wanted to find where the fruit and flower stalls were since I'd seen and heard it was great for photo ops, but we never did find it. By the time we left the JJ market, we had each purchased a backpack full of stuff, and were holding a couple shopping bags too. Our legs were weak, and our bodies were ready to collapse. Leah and DZ may have bought about $10-$15 less than me, but we certainly all did our fair share of shopping. Here's even a list of a bunch of the stuff and their costs:

A Thai Silk Robe - 400 B
Some souvenir gifts - 200 B
4 Skirts - 600 B
Rose string lights - 300 B
Lamp - 130 B
Wall Decoration - 150 B
A couple hair clips - 80 B
2 Pillow covers - 250B
Total purchased - about 2100 baht = $70.

We came home and showered off the days work and refreshed before dinner. We went to a restaurant called "Cabbages and Condoms" for dinner. The Profits from C&C are all used towards promoting Aids/HIV awareness, and educate about family planning. The person who created it has been a huge proponent of education in Thailand, and has apparently made significant strides. The restaurant was really nice, and the food was surprisingly reasonable. They even had free internet afterwards, so I spent a few minutes to write my day 8 blog.

After dinner, we went to the subway station, and took the subway to one of Bangkok's famous rooftop bars. We went to one called the Moon Bar at Vertigo, and it was on top of the 60th floor of a fancy hotel. The bar was so nice that they had a dress code! Leah and I were wearing skirts, but they made DZ change into loaner pants since he was wearing shorts. The bar was really cool, but the prices were ~$10 for a drink. That is WAY more than one would ever expect to pay here, but it was awesome ambiance. DZ got a beer, and Leah and I just enjoyed the view. I was still stuffed from dinner.

Once we went home, we all crashed pretty fast. We were exhausted. But we had a great day.