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- Oct 25, 2022
- ☁️ 31 °C
- Altitude: 13 m
ThailandSamut SongkhramSathani Maeklong13°24’27” N 99°59’56” E
Markets Markets Markets
October 25, 2022 in Thailand ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C
Today started pretty early as we had to be at the meeting point in Bangkok’s river city (right at the Chao Phraya) for our 8:30 am tour. This meant waking up at 6:45 and commuting with both the sky train and a taxi during rush hour. We arrived just in time and hopped into the small tour bus with 7 other guests. After approximately 1,5h drive we got to Ban Kalong train station to get onto one of the oldest operating trains I’ve ever seen and we absolutely loved it!! You could literally feel the history of the (once) majestic machine and I wondered how many times it must have rounded the globe already in its lifetime. Sandy told us the other day that many of the old trains used to be operated in China or Japan until they’ve been taken out of service to be shipped to Thailand afterwards where they continue to run - well, until they don’t.
At around 10:40 the train started rolling towards Mae Klong station through Talad Rom Hup “Railway Market” which is quite literally ON the railway track. This means it needs to be cleared every single time a train goes through which happens about 8 times per day. Why would anyone plan a market like this?? As we learned from our tour guide Mindy, the Market itself wasn’t originally on the tracks but grew over them eventually as there simply wasn’t enough space. In doing so it became an attraction for tourists. Luckily, souvenir shops still remain exceptions on the market which is nice as this doesn’t change the authenticity and purpose: To be a source of fresh food for the locals.
As our train came close to Talad Rom Hup the speed was reduced to walking pace to make sure no one would accidentally get under the wheels. People were standing next to the track with barely 40cm between them and the train. Once we got to the train station we had the chance to explore the market on our own. It was simply stunning to walk on the tracks through the market which had been unfolded to “open” within 2 minutes.
The name of the market in Thai language literally means “Market of Closing Umbrellas”. “Talad” literally means “Market”, “Rom” means “Umbrella” and “Hub” means "to Close or Pull Down".
Semmy and I found it absolutely fascinating and we loved the coolness with which the people accepted this laborious way of going about their business.
After roughly 45 minutes it was time to get back to our tour bus which had been parked close by the station to get us to the floating market Damnoen Saduak next. Here the situation was quite the opposite: The original market with local specialties had almost entirely vanished and been replaced by souvenir and food shops that sold their goods at high prices exclusively to tourists (who else?). We didn’t enjoy it too much as we were driven in our boat from stand to stand where unmotivated merchants advertise their goods - quite frankly demanding you to buy something. In fact, some of them had hooks with which they pulled the wooden boats towards them. The boat drivers allowed this as they are also dependent on the functioning of the market. The problem was that most of the shops sold the same stuff like Buddha statues which almost all looked the same. Also, some of the boats had petrol engines with smelly exhaust fumes that where blown into everyone’s faces while others (like our boat) was manually operated with an oar. Sure, a motor helps to navigate through the canals much quicker - but we thought it completely killed the vibe.
On top of that, there was a man with a python and a frightened slow loris. Both animals obviously had given up trying to escape long ago. The owner was offering tourists to hold them and take pictures. It was absolutely bizarre and also quite sad to watch. Semmy and I decided to support the local community by ordering some food instead.
After we had some delicious Pad Thai, Morning Glory and Green Curry with Chicken for lunch we returned to the tour bus to drive back to Bangkok for 2h through congested traffic. In the city Center we decided to pause for a moment to let today’s impressions sink in over some refreshing iced cappuccino before driving back to our hotel with the sky train.
After a refreshing shower we got dressed and had dinner at an all-you-can-eat (and drink!!) Grill restaurant which was next door to our hotel. The place was huge - we estimated far over 400 seats - and you where able to cook your own meal right at the table. We really enjoyed the experience and the food was extraordinary. In the end we ate so much we didn’t even have room for the complementary ice cream desert. What is wrong with us??Read more
