Bangkok Yai

Ok - no more alcohol. Ever again. It’s 12:30 and we’re still in bed. 2 Aspirin and a shower later we manage to clear our heads and make plans for today and tomorrow. Still slightly hung over I CALL the same agency that we booked our first tour with (BigCity Experiences) - assuming the price would be much cheaper when booking directly instead of the easy to navigate online platform GetYourGuide (I was wrong). 5 Minutes into the call and three people later that I tried to spell our names to I hand the phone over to Semmy. Within what felt like 30 seconds she manages to clear the confusion I created and book a tour to the famous Railway Market Rom Hup and the Floating Market Damnoen Saduak (both approx. 1,5h southwest of Bangkok). *Mic drop*

With Semmy’s newly gained energy and my deepest appreciation for her we follow the recommendation from our friends (Sebastian & Denise) to get some amazing food at a place called Prachak Roasted Duck which won the trip advisor award in 2015.

While having a restaurant-like place in our minds we miss the entrance twice as the location turned out to be much more of a street-kitchen without a (recognisable) sign outside. However, as soon as we opened the manually operated sliding doors we were greeted and asked to sit down at the nearest free table - which was literally situated IN the kitchen. Dozens of people were busy preparing and serving food. We really enjoyed the roasted Duck and the dishes were quite cheap and definitely helped us to shake off the hangover remnants.

Afterwards we jumped on a Tuk Tuk to get to a Hindu Temple called Mama Uma Devi. Our ride took an unwanted detour because the driver unfortunately didn’t know where he was supposed to be going and wanted us to visit a fashion shop instead. After we clarified that we absolutely have no interest in the shop, he finally did drop us at the Temple. The place looked stunning with beautiful colored flowers, garlands and statues and had a ceremony going on. Unfortunately, we didn’t have much time to stay and grabbed another Taxi shortly after to get to the famous Buddhist Temple Wat Paknam Phasi Charoen.

There, we had a date with our former colleague Sandy from the SAP Academy who was born and raised in Bangkok. The three of us had a lot of fun and Semmy and I got so many new insights into Bangkok city life. Sandy showed us around the stunningly beautiful temple which has the biggest Buddha statue I have ever witnessed. It was a super cool experience and we felt very welcome while catching up on the last 5 years after we all left San Francisco to return to our local market units.

After the tour through the temple we took a Taxi to nearby Talat Phlu Market where we had some Thai food specialties such as fried grasshoppers, chicken legs and coconut ice cream (yum!!). Just as we sat down a train drove by the market very slowly but so close we could’ve easily touched it from our seats. This was such an unbelievable experience which gave us a taste of what to expect at the actual railway market. After we’d finished our ice cream Sandy brought us back to The BTS train station where we said goodbye. On our way back we decided to jump off at Siam Center to check out the BIG shopping Malls where we ended up buying some perfume.

Filled with so many new impressions we made our way back to Ramada Plaza and went to bed with a mind at peace.Read more