Intimate Intermission
Every moments a day
Every day seems a lifetime
Let me show you the way
To a joy beyond compare
I can't wait a moment more
Tell me quando quando quando
Say its me that you adore
And then darling tell me when
- Michael Buble's (feat. Nelly Furtado) "Quando, Quando, Quando" -
E.E. Cummings - I Carry Your Heart With Me
i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)
i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing,my darling)
i fear no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)
i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you
here is the deepest secret nobody knows(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart
i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)
Saturday, April 29, 2006 / 5:31 PM
|
Thursday, April 27, 2006 / 2:16 PM
Haha to you too
It'll be you and me
Up in the trees
And the forest will give us the answer
It'll be you and I
Up in the sky
It'll be you and me
Up in the trees
And the forest will give us the answer
It'll be you and I
Up in the sky
It's a combination for disaster
- Marty Casey & Lovehammers’s “Trees” –
I suppose when the muse strikes, you just have to start writing. About what? Well, anything goes, I suppose. In my particular case, I have nada to report, cept that I think I made a huge blunder at the office yesterday, so now I’m paying the penalty by trying to double up my work. *sigh* The fact that I’ve been chosen to assist in 2 different committees does not help la kan. Nevertheless, guess its time to prove my stripes, and show them I’ve got what it takes. (If I’ve got what it takes that is)
Ok, I’m going to ramble in a meaningless manner now. Here goes.
- I find it cute that my support staff, when reprimanding someone, would call them Chee Cheong Fun. For example:
“Haa? Nak file tu? Ee, orang dah masukkan, dia nak bawak keluar…chee cheong fun betul la budak nie!”
or
“Hei, kenapa company nie hantar benda nie? Chee Cheong Fun betul la….”
I think it’s a much more polite word than my often-used-but-not-particularly-pleasant “bengong”. I wonder what they’ll think if I start reprimanding using the name of a certain food. I’m thinking “Kari Ayam”. I could go:
“Ish, Kari Ayam betul la budak nie!”
or
“Macam Kari Ayam tak?!” *dengan nada yang marah*
hehe.
- I’ve officially imposed a self-ban on the local Harper’s Bazaar. I used to think that its such a great magazine, and would buy them religiously every month, but now I think the novelty of those RM 5,000 Coach handbags, or RM 3,000 Charles Jourdan heels or that RM 90,000 Chanel skirt has worn off. I’m going to invest in something less sillier. Hmm, maybe, Vogue UK Edition? :p Ooh, ooh, plus, I HATE that Mi-Ki Choong *who’s frequently featured on their society pages* and her stupid show “Life in Style” on 8TV every Tuesday night. She is as disconnected as her questions to her guests on the show. You can almost see each and every one of them flinch slightly every time she asks the “cepu emas” “So, how can you describe your life in style?” *bat bat eyelash, toss her impossibly long and straight hair back with a flick of her neck (which by the way looks disjointed from her head and body)* Can I just say, bimbo? I love 8TV, but Malaysia’s Most Beautiful and Life in Style? Is soo not on, baybee.Nuff said.
- I loveeeeee my Jazzercise classes *and no, i'm not being paid to put this up*. I have a great Instructor *here’s looking at you Intan!* and a great crowd over there, who seem to just gel pre and post sweat. I love the routines, although they’re a killer, I love the extremely clean toilet, that whenever I’m in PJ I would consider driving over just to use their toilet. I love the weights and their routines. I love hanging around with the girls, chatting before and after class, and I absolutely love how I feel after each class. Once I used to feel so tired after those sessions that I felt as if I could fall asleep at the wheel on the way back home. Now I understand when Jessie, the other instructor, meant when she said she couldn’t go to sleep after Jazzercise, cuz she’d feel so energized. Well, can I say I actually felt that last night??!! Woo, yay me! But of course, after dinner, then pengsan jugak la kan. But I love it, and nothing can take away my Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings anymore! Can I just say I’m a Jazzercise bunny now? *grins*
(p/s: it has to be noted that I have not lost much weight ever since I started, but I can actually do and complete those complicated abs routine now..hah! take that, you wretched lumps of tummy fat!)
|
Wednesday, April 26, 2006 / 12:21 PM
Khi Baht? - Final round, ding, ding ding!
When you come back down
If you land on your feet
I hope you find a way to make it back to me
When you come around
I'll be there for you
Don't have to be alone with what you're going through
- Lifehouse’s "Come Back Down" -
Initially Muay Thai or Thai Kick Boxing was included in our itinerary. So was the famous Calypso Cabaret Show, which was recommended by both Nancy and Peter, who dubbed them the "Lady Boys Show" - Lady Boys meaning transvestites, hence the Calypso Cabaret is Bangkok’s equivalent to a transvestite Parisien Moulin Rouge. However, as our reserve of moolah has severely depleted due to sessions of shoppings, and premonitions of MORE shopping, we decided to forgo it. FYI, the Cabaret show costs approximately about 1,000 bahts per person, which includes pick-ups from the hotel, a drink or even dinner depending on your tour package. FYI lagi, the Moulin Rouge tickets cost about 45/90 Euros each, and consist of a champagne or a non-alcoholic beverage, hehe, of which I was able to enjoy, thanks to my lovely dentist, Aunty Aimi.
Bangkok is notorious for its heat and pollution. It didn’t seem as bad from the inside of a building, but whenever you step out, the heat just engulfs you, and exhaust fumes is permeated in the air. Some of us actually went back with breakouts, me included. :(
Btw, Bangkok has great food *well, at least interesting looking ones*. Almost anywhere you go, there’ll be street vendors selling all kinds of food. There’s the guy selling fruits *really fresh looking ones too and cheap!*, there’s the lady whom I bought bananas grilled on hot coals and thick break slathered with margarine, also grilled on hot coals *pisang and roti bakar je wey, kat Malaysia pun ade* but they looked soooo good! and tasted really yummy too! plus I was hungry *shrugs*. Then there’s the guy who sold jagung bakar, and sliced corn, mixed with sugar and coconut. Then there’s the lady selling fresh mandarin orange juice, her muscular arms working the juicer, yielding the freshest orange juice i’ve ever tasted. Then there’s this baked rice thingy *also on hot coals*, with a coating of egg yolk that I shared with Pui Yee *who didn’t like it, but I bedal je*. Those were among the very few of the street vendor food that we had. There’s tons others! At night, they would just set up stall by the roadside, and the Chinese girls had a great time choosing what to eat.
Anyhoo, by the 4th day, i’ve already spent about ¾ of my budget on shopping, food, and sightseeing *p/s: the trip to Damnern Saduak itself costs about 1,500 bahts*..and i’ve not even bought souvenirs for the family yet! Btw, I strongly advice that if you’re planning to do some sight-seeings, to scour the Interner for ground arrangements. That’s most prolly cheaper than searching for the tours when you’ve already reached Bangkok. Oh btw, boleh tak? Miss Scrambled Mind here, actually left for Bangkok sans toothbrush!! arrgh! so I hopped into the nearest 7-11 to buy the cheapest one I could, which cost about 29 Bahts *roughly RM2.90 hehe*..Gee, that made me appreciate my Oral-B Contura, that el-cheapo toothbrush was as straight as a pencil! Btw, i’ve never seen so many 7-11’s before as in Bangkok...they’re prolly all located within 100 metres of each other!
After breakfast on the 3rd day, we ventured of to Pratunam market. I seriously needed to get souvenirs for the family, namely my bro and my dad, whom are very tough to shop for. I had already bought an embroidered handbag for my mom, and a cute sequinned t-shirt for my sister, i’m thinking funky t-shirt for my brother and a sober one for my dad. Pusing-pusing Pratunam, and I finally managed to get my brother a Beatles t-shirt and for my dad, a denim short-sleeved shirt..woohoo! Both were bargains at 170 Bahts, ngeh ngeh ngeh. In Pratunam, there’s a few men selling this contraption which looked like a very colourful butterfly, that, when released into the air, will fly out and fly back to us. Sort of like a boomerang. So, I enquired the price: at first it was 120 Bahts *what??? 12 bucks for a toy?? forget it!* So, we walked off, and when we did, he subsequently started to lower down the price. We managed to ran away, giggling, but unfortunately bumped into him twice after that! Pusing-pusing, jumpa dia balik, and he’ll lower the price even more! The last price quoted was actually 40 Bahts, and if he actually went down to 20 Bahts, I would have bought it! Hehe..but he didn’t..ah well..
After Pratunam, we went to Platinum, to look for the girls, but they’re nowhere to be found, so we decided to go further up the road to this small mall, opposite an Isetan to look for a Boots Pharmacy. We did walk into Isetan to look at the designer goods at actual market price hehe, but of course they were too expensive for our severly damaged purses. Altho, actually, the prices, when compared were actually lower than those in KL..hmm. Got my haircare stuff and other stuff at Boots, and went back to the hotel on the Tuk Tuk. This time around, we were taken through back alleyways, which was pretty interesting, and less pollution this way. Plus, no traffic jams! We had to stop for a while tho, as there’s this van blocking our way, when it tried to get out of a longkang that it accidentally reversed into.
That afternoon, we decided to take in the 250 bahts Thai Massage down the road. The place is pleasantly scented, with a peaceful ambience, and soothing music. There were 2 masseuse attending to the 4 of us, and with Elly and Huei Wen gossipping in the background, I had my feet bathed, then my exhausted-due-to-excessive-walking self kneaded for about an hour..nicee. I didn’t know what to expect really, and I was told that those massages weren’t that good *well, what do u expect for 25 bucks kan?*, and that if we wanted authentic Thai massages, we should have gone to a proper spa. Oh well. Guess i’ll try out the massages back in KL *checks wallet* err, maybe next month :p Btw, there’s a saloon, reflexology parlor, a massage parlor, and a tailor located on the ground floor of our hotel, and I was told that this is common. So, there’s also the option of those, plus, I think u can get them to come to your room for their service.
That night, we headed out to Suan Rum Night Baazar, reputed to be the night version of Chatuchak. We took the girls to our halal restaurant for dinner first, and pretty much had the same yummy dishes. To get to Suan Rum, you’d prolly have to take a cab, so we found 2 by the roadside. Again, it wasn’t that easy, due to adhering to the meter. When Rebecca managed to get one, and while she conferred outside it on how to get there, the cab just zoomed off! The cabbie prolly thought we’re not interested..cheh. Our cabbie pulak, was this old man, who couldn’t hear very well. We spent a few minutes yelling, "Suan LUM, Suan LUM!!", (Sue even spoke Hokkien! haha!) to him, when he suddenly boomed out "ooh, Suan ROOM!!!" "Haaa!!!! Correct, correct!!!"
Suan Rum, let it be told, is a chic night market. Nay, uber chic. These ppl prolly have their own namecards to the creations they sold there. Think an upper class Camden Market. Very, very cool. Lots of artsy-fartsy collection, furnitures, paintings, and souvenirs. Twas a good thing I didn’t save up for this market, they’re quite pricey!! But a great place to hang out la. There’s cafes and night spots as well. Lotsa gwailos. Well, actually Bangkok is filled with gwailos. I see them everywhere, during the buffet breakfast at the hotel, on Tuk Tuks, shopping at Chatuchak, at Pat Phong *mm-hmm*, trading notes across the table with a Thai native who prolly can’t speak English properly at Hard Rock, tugging pan-Asian-faced children around the malls...everywhere la. Didn’t get anything there, but the girls did bargain for handbags with a squeaky-voiced girl.
Final day! Final briyani rice *which was really good, actually* for breakfast. Packed up and hung around. Wanted to go for final walkies down to Pratunam, but Elly didn’t want to as what’s the fun in walking around, with no more money to shop? Hehe..Luckily, we’ve put aside 500 Bahts for the airport tax, as seriously, I was all drained out *where did all that money go to??*. Around noon, we took the hotel’s 7-seater, and set off for the airport. What’s nice is that Bangkok doesn’t have a separate terminal for lcc hehe, so there were duty-free shops abound! chocolates! perfumes! more souvenirs!! I actually spent my last 20 Bahts on a lipstick holder my mom wanted. *sempat lagi tu*. The waiting area was quite nice, not too many passengers on our plane, and hey looky-looky, isn’t that @mir Yu$$of over there?? Waa, naik @ir @$ia jugak ke..hehehe....
The trip back home was spent dozing off. I was pretty hungry, and I didn’t have any more money to spend...not even on a rinky dinky muffin or Maggi Cup Noodle on board! haha! That bad! At least Elly managed to buy herself a cup of noodle hehe. I actually went back to Malaysia with 60 cents. 60 Malaysian cents. Dang.
All in all, it was a grand vacation. Not only it was spent recklessly while colleagues in the office were busy with their work, but the grandest part was? Every tiny bit of it was paid by moi. My very, very own vacation. That is something i’ll be very proud off, and whenever I see my dad wearing the shirt I got or my mom carrying the handbag I got her, I couldn’t help smiling. Itulah hasil titik peluh *yang tak seberapa mana pun, Bangkok je* selama ini, hehehe. After this, kena save up for bigger, further trip pulak! Chaiyyok, Chaiyyok!
Ooh, the girls are already suggesting Phillipines next year...can’t wait!
When you come back down
If you land on your feet
I hope you find a way to make it back to me
When you come around
I'll be there for you
Don't have to be alone with what you're going through
- Lifehouse’s "Come Back Down" -
Initially Muay Thai or Thai Kick Boxing was included in our itinerary. So was the famous Calypso Cabaret Show, which was recommended by both Nancy and Peter, who dubbed them the "Lady Boys Show" - Lady Boys meaning transvestites, hence the Calypso Cabaret is Bangkok’s equivalent to a transvestite Parisien Moulin Rouge. However, as our reserve of moolah has severely depleted due to sessions of shoppings, and premonitions of MORE shopping, we decided to forgo it. FYI, the Cabaret show costs approximately about 1,000 bahts per person, which includes pick-ups from the hotel, a drink or even dinner depending on your tour package. FYI lagi, the Moulin Rouge tickets cost about 45/90 Euros each, and consist of a champagne or a non-alcoholic beverage, hehe, of which I was able to enjoy, thanks to my lovely dentist, Aunty Aimi.
Bangkok is notorious for its heat and pollution. It didn’t seem as bad from the inside of a building, but whenever you step out, the heat just engulfs you, and exhaust fumes is permeated in the air. Some of us actually went back with breakouts, me included. :(
Btw, Bangkok has great food *well, at least interesting looking ones*. Almost anywhere you go, there’ll be street vendors selling all kinds of food. There’s the guy selling fruits *really fresh looking ones too and cheap!*, there’s the lady whom I bought bananas grilled on hot coals and thick break slathered with margarine, also grilled on hot coals *pisang and roti bakar je wey, kat Malaysia pun ade* but they looked soooo good! and tasted really yummy too! plus I was hungry *shrugs*. Then there’s the guy who sold jagung bakar, and sliced corn, mixed with sugar and coconut. Then there’s the lady selling fresh mandarin orange juice, her muscular arms working the juicer, yielding the freshest orange juice i’ve ever tasted. Then there’s this baked rice thingy *also on hot coals*, with a coating of egg yolk that I shared with Pui Yee *who didn’t like it, but I bedal je*. Those were among the very few of the street vendor food that we had. There’s tons others! At night, they would just set up stall by the roadside, and the Chinese girls had a great time choosing what to eat.
Anyhoo, by the 4th day, i’ve already spent about ¾ of my budget on shopping, food, and sightseeing *p/s: the trip to Damnern Saduak itself costs about 1,500 bahts*..and i’ve not even bought souvenirs for the family yet! Btw, I strongly advice that if you’re planning to do some sight-seeings, to scour the Interner for ground arrangements. That’s most prolly cheaper than searching for the tours when you’ve already reached Bangkok. Oh btw, boleh tak? Miss Scrambled Mind here, actually left for Bangkok sans toothbrush!! arrgh! so I hopped into the nearest 7-11 to buy the cheapest one I could, which cost about 29 Bahts *roughly RM2.90 hehe*..Gee, that made me appreciate my Oral-B Contura, that el-cheapo toothbrush was as straight as a pencil! Btw, i’ve never seen so many 7-11’s before as in Bangkok...they’re prolly all located within 100 metres of each other!
After breakfast on the 3rd day, we ventured of to Pratunam market. I seriously needed to get souvenirs for the family, namely my bro and my dad, whom are very tough to shop for. I had already bought an embroidered handbag for my mom, and a cute sequinned t-shirt for my sister, i’m thinking funky t-shirt for my brother and a sober one for my dad. Pusing-pusing Pratunam, and I finally managed to get my brother a Beatles t-shirt and for my dad, a denim short-sleeved shirt..woohoo! Both were bargains at 170 Bahts, ngeh ngeh ngeh. In Pratunam, there’s a few men selling this contraption which looked like a very colourful butterfly, that, when released into the air, will fly out and fly back to us. Sort of like a boomerang. So, I enquired the price: at first it was 120 Bahts *what??? 12 bucks for a toy?? forget it!* So, we walked off, and when we did, he subsequently started to lower down the price. We managed to ran away, giggling, but unfortunately bumped into him twice after that! Pusing-pusing, jumpa dia balik, and he’ll lower the price even more! The last price quoted was actually 40 Bahts, and if he actually went down to 20 Bahts, I would have bought it! Hehe..but he didn’t..ah well..
After Pratunam, we went to Platinum, to look for the girls, but they’re nowhere to be found, so we decided to go further up the road to this small mall, opposite an Isetan to look for a Boots Pharmacy. We did walk into Isetan to look at the designer goods at actual market price hehe, but of course they were too expensive for our severly damaged purses. Altho, actually, the prices, when compared were actually lower than those in KL..hmm. Got my haircare stuff and other stuff at Boots, and went back to the hotel on the Tuk Tuk. This time around, we were taken through back alleyways, which was pretty interesting, and less pollution this way. Plus, no traffic jams! We had to stop for a while tho, as there’s this van blocking our way, when it tried to get out of a longkang that it accidentally reversed into.
That afternoon, we decided to take in the 250 bahts Thai Massage down the road. The place is pleasantly scented, with a peaceful ambience, and soothing music. There were 2 masseuse attending to the 4 of us, and with Elly and Huei Wen gossipping in the background, I had my feet bathed, then my exhausted-due-to-excessive-walking self kneaded for about an hour..nicee. I didn’t know what to expect really, and I was told that those massages weren’t that good *well, what do u expect for 25 bucks kan?*, and that if we wanted authentic Thai massages, we should have gone to a proper spa. Oh well. Guess i’ll try out the massages back in KL *checks wallet* err, maybe next month :p Btw, there’s a saloon, reflexology parlor, a massage parlor, and a tailor located on the ground floor of our hotel, and I was told that this is common. So, there’s also the option of those, plus, I think u can get them to come to your room for their service.
That night, we headed out to Suan Rum Night Baazar, reputed to be the night version of Chatuchak. We took the girls to our halal restaurant for dinner first, and pretty much had the same yummy dishes. To get to Suan Rum, you’d prolly have to take a cab, so we found 2 by the roadside. Again, it wasn’t that easy, due to adhering to the meter. When Rebecca managed to get one, and while she conferred outside it on how to get there, the cab just zoomed off! The cabbie prolly thought we’re not interested..cheh. Our cabbie pulak, was this old man, who couldn’t hear very well. We spent a few minutes yelling, "Suan LUM, Suan LUM!!", (Sue even spoke Hokkien! haha!) to him, when he suddenly boomed out "ooh, Suan ROOM!!!" "Haaa!!!! Correct, correct!!!"
Suan Rum, let it be told, is a chic night market. Nay, uber chic. These ppl prolly have their own namecards to the creations they sold there. Think an upper class Camden Market. Very, very cool. Lots of artsy-fartsy collection, furnitures, paintings, and souvenirs. Twas a good thing I didn’t save up for this market, they’re quite pricey!! But a great place to hang out la. There’s cafes and night spots as well. Lotsa gwailos. Well, actually Bangkok is filled with gwailos. I see them everywhere, during the buffet breakfast at the hotel, on Tuk Tuks, shopping at Chatuchak, at Pat Phong *mm-hmm*, trading notes across the table with a Thai native who prolly can’t speak English properly at Hard Rock, tugging pan-Asian-faced children around the malls...everywhere la. Didn’t get anything there, but the girls did bargain for handbags with a squeaky-voiced girl.
Final day! Final briyani rice *which was really good, actually* for breakfast. Packed up and hung around. Wanted to go for final walkies down to Pratunam, but Elly didn’t want to as what’s the fun in walking around, with no more money to shop? Hehe..Luckily, we’ve put aside 500 Bahts for the airport tax, as seriously, I was all drained out *where did all that money go to??*. Around noon, we took the hotel’s 7-seater, and set off for the airport. What’s nice is that Bangkok doesn’t have a separate terminal for lcc hehe, so there were duty-free shops abound! chocolates! perfumes! more souvenirs!! I actually spent my last 20 Bahts on a lipstick holder my mom wanted. *sempat lagi tu*. The waiting area was quite nice, not too many passengers on our plane, and hey looky-looky, isn’t that @mir Yu$$of over there?? Waa, naik @ir @$ia jugak ke..hehehe....
The trip back home was spent dozing off. I was pretty hungry, and I didn’t have any more money to spend...not even on a rinky dinky muffin or Maggi Cup Noodle on board! haha! That bad! At least Elly managed to buy herself a cup of noodle hehe. I actually went back to Malaysia with 60 cents. 60 Malaysian cents. Dang.
All in all, it was a grand vacation. Not only it was spent recklessly while colleagues in the office were busy with their work, but the grandest part was? Every tiny bit of it was paid by moi. My very, very own vacation. That is something i’ll be very proud off, and whenever I see my dad wearing the shirt I got or my mom carrying the handbag I got her, I couldn’t help smiling. Itulah hasil titik peluh *yang tak seberapa mana pun, Bangkok je* selama ini, hehehe. After this, kena save up for bigger, further trip pulak! Chaiyyok, Chaiyyok!
Ooh, the girls are already suggesting Phillipines next year...can’t wait!
|
Monday, April 24, 2006 / 10:41 AM
Khi Baht? - Round 2.
Sesungguhnya kamu terang bagaikan cahaya
Yang menyinari hidupku dikala ku kelam.. kelam
Terciptalah aku tuk kali pertama
Dan akan ku buktikan kesungguhan dari hati ini
Hati ini…
- Nitrus’s "Kamu" -.
Heeeee, i’m glad I’ve put up a haloscan comment box, its like having a guestbook all over again! gratifying siut hehehe *sigh* Thanks you beautiful ppl, all 3 of you, farenster, iRRa and Nerrs! Anyhoots, some shoutouts:
Faren: I can’t believe you went to the Dewa showcase and tak ajak I !!!!!!!! u owe me a pasta dinner! hehehe...hope everything’s fine in Farenland!
iRRa: Heee, ada orang tu dah ade blog! ;) happy writing dear :)
Nerrs: Nerrs, put la some feedback thingy to urs, penat tau I gelak tapi tak boleh nak respond hehe...
And now, back to my Bangkok stories. Oh, btw, Khi Baht means How many Bahts? or How much? in Thai. That’s basically all I properly learnt of the language. Even Sawaddekaap and Kap Khun pun I got mixed up :p *ini yang nak gi belajar Mandarin, Japanese or French nie*
So, third day was Monday, and we’ve made plans the day before to go to the floating market. I’m not sure if there’s other floating markets in Bangkok, but I suppose the one we went to, Damnern Saduak, is the biggest? It’s located some 2 hours journey away from Bangkok, so as to avoid the morning traffic jams, our guide told us to be ready by 6.45 am. So that means, waking up at about 5.30 am. Nasib baik the buffet breakfast starts at 5 a.m, or else, makan Maggi lagi la that morning. But the nice thing was that the sun rises pretty early in Bangkok. By 6.00, its already light. But that means, prayers are earlier la.
Anyway, our tour guide’s name is Peter, and he’s this really funny guy, who errm, sprays when he talks. So, beware. But very, very entertaining. He told us stories about Bangkok, which I can’t quite remember as I was pretty drowsy. He recited Bangkok city’s full name which is actually in the Guinness Book of World Record for the city with the longest name. He sang a few children rhymes in Thai, and cracked us up silly. Whenever he wants to start singing or reciting something, he’ll go "One, Terr, Free" (One, Two, Three la tu), pointing his fingers and rocking from side to side. He’ll translate a few songs for us and sang and dance along with it, the famous one among us is the "Chang, Chang, Chang" (Elephant, Elephant, Elephant) song which Elly got stuck on and sang for the rest of the day. We arrive about 1 ½ hour later at acoconut sugar making factory along the way to Damnern Saduak, where Peter explained how sugar is derived from coconut. Pretty interesting, and very much like the short documentaries that FINAS used to serve us on RTM back in those days. Sue, of course, couldn’t resist posing with the traditional coconut shell scraper, which if I recall correctly, my mom once have and used, but ours was a miniature version. Half an hour later, we arrived the Floating Market village.
All of us board the long, covered sampan with motor which was made for 8 ppl *Sue had to sit with Peter, hehe*, and there we went, rumbling along the motorway. We were advised to keep our hands inside the boat, for fear of knocking into other boats *ouch*. The waterway is a sungai, but pardon me, with the dirty looking water, it kinda looked like a big longkang to me. But twas very interesting. Along the waterway, you could see wooden houses, with its inhabitants in their sarongs *or as how Peter refers to it; Thai’s national bathing suit* washing up dishes, clothes, and even bathing *pardon me again, but eww!*. We were given young coconuts to sip from as we made our way, down a few kilometres of the waterway to the market. Very serene surroundings, traditional and rustic.
Inevitably, we bumped into a few sampans displaying their wares. Majority of them were selling souvenirs, vegetables and fruits, and food. Oh my. If only I could eat those food, I would have prolly sunk the front portion of the sampan, hehe. We stopped by this lady selling some noodle soup, and everyone (cept me and Elles) shared a bowl of yummy looking, steaming hot bowl of noodle, with of course, the customary fish sauce. Then we passed this lady selling a Thai dessert, sweet mango with sticky rice. Then it was the lady that sold the small crispy pancakes, with creamy santan filling..*drools*. Pity Elles and I couldn’t taste those desserts as we were flat broke :( Whenever we passed by other sampans, the passengers would almost always wave to us, and Sue even tried to pick up this Mat Salleh riding alone.. "Waah, you look soo lonely!" haha..hilarious!
When we finally got to the market, it was just an amazing sight. It’s exactly as how they pictured it on those postcards, and Discovery Travel shows. Many, many sampans floating along, bumping into each other, each of those, laden with all kinds of vegetables and fruits *i can’t recall any fish, poultry or beef tho* and along the banks, stationary stalls displaying more souvenirs. We drifted along *as we’re not allowed to power up the motor*, while the Thai merchants called out their merchandises. The hustle and bustle of it all is reminiscent of a typical market place, only on water! There were of course, loads of other tourists as well on other sampans. The ladies of our sampan bought some fruits as souvenirs, as nobody really shops at the floating market due to its unattractive prices and out of the way location.
We drifted along until we reach the end of the market, and then the guide powered up the sampan to take us to this sacred place along the waterway, where there’s a temple and where we were going to feed the fish that breeds near the temple. It is said that the fish are sacred and that no one’s allowed to catch them or, God forbid, have them for dinner. Tho these fishes are sacred, but man, are they hungry! Each of us were given a bag of fish feed to throw into the water, and when we did, we could see like 10 to 20 fishes, coming up to the surface, gobling up the food. Think piranhas. If they were any bigger than the normal fish size, they’d prolly have rocked the boat side to side. There must have been hundreds of fish down there, as wherever we threw the food, you could see the black shapes of the fishes coming up in large groups to feed.
We were given some time to hang around the banks of the Floating Market, but by then, the Elles have realised that she left her purse back at the hotel. So, it wasn’t a very pleasant outing for her(read: can’t shop, hehe). Earlier, we had asked Peter to drop us off at Chinatown as soon as we arrived Bangkok, but Elly decided to go back to the hotel, with me to accompany her, so that she can pick up her wallet *she managed to call Housekeeping, who found her wallet, and was keeping it for her*. On the way back, we stopped by this furniture factory to see wooden furniture, carved out by talented Thai craftsmen.
All of us slept on the way back to Bangkok, and upon arrival, were greeted by a massive traffic jam. We were all hungry, and as the girls were leaving for Chinatown, me and Elles decided to look for some halal food. We asked Peter who told the driver to drop us off at the nearest halal food restaurant, nearest to our hotel. He dropped us at this alley, with a small mosque at the head of it, lined up with halal restaurant and warongs..yayy! Elly was craving for some tomyam, and I just wanted to fill up my growling tummy. We found a nice small place, with airconditioning to boot, and ordered a sumptous lunch. Telur bungkus, tomyam campur, some mixed vegetables, and upon looking at our neighbour’s fish dish, decided to order the Kerapu fried with chilli. Heavenly meal! We actually polished up the giant fish, and sipped the tomyam to its last drop! The food was perfecto, making us drowsy, as we dragged our feet back to the hotel *which was about 10-15 minutes walk away*. We passed by a Thai massage parlour along the way, and its 250 baht Thai massages intrigued us to go back for some needed kneading of the muscles *what muscles?*.
After a short nap and rest, we walked down to our friendly money changer hehe, and changed some more moolah. Then we decided to take the Tuk Tuk to Chinatown area. FYI, ppl say the Tuk Tuks are a rip off, as you are better off riding in a metered cab, but sometimes, it works out cheaper considering the distance and the condition of the traffic. A metered cab is a cheaper ride, provided that there’s no traffic jamsla. The Tuk Tuk guy would usually charge about 100 bahts per ride, and the more ppl ride with you, the cheaper it is. Go for longer rides, then its kinda worth it la. Plus, its such an experience riding the Tuk Tuk; it ‘s not half as dangerous as riding the Jakarta Bajais *or so, i’ve been told* but the wind rushing in your hair, plus fumes in your face, and giggling at the absurdity of weaving through the cars during heavy traffic, was just exhilirating. Hehe, plus photo opportunity y’all. :) We passed an area lined with designer stores along the way too.
We arrived at the Chinatown/ Pat Phong area near dusk, and walked around for a bit, as we were quite early *we were supposed to meet the girls at 7pm*. The area is bustling with loads of shops * I counted 3 Watsons within walking distances of each other!*, malls, fast food places, and people. We walked down this alley where there’s lotsa Japanese bars, found a Starbucks and sat down for a drink. Near 7 pm, we walked towards the skytrain station where we’re supposed to meet the other girls. Along the way we saw some S&M looking bars which was an indication of what we were going to see that night hehe. The girls were having some McDonalds for dinner, and after that, we crossed the road to the Pat Phong market.
Well, what I didn’t know about the Pat Phong area, is that its famous for its Thai Girl Shows *which everyone refers to as the Tiger Show*. As we walked down the alley with the stalls displaying Petaling Street merchandises on one side, the other side was lined with bars. And upon peeking into those bars, we’d see a barcounter inside, with long poles attached on top of it. And dancing on those bars and gyrating up and down the poles, were scantily-clad Thai women *men?*. Hmm, veerrrrry interesting *winks*. We were thrusted menus of what these Thai Girls could do, and I caught "Ping-pong show" on one of the menus. What? So, Elles was quite excited, as she wanted to go watch one of the shows *we couldn’t really decide as there were so many bars!*, so when one guy claimed "Free show, free show!", all 7 of us, followed him up this neon-lit staircase to this darkly-lit bar, with topless girls dancing on the countertops.
Oh dear. *I now fully realised how the term "Free Show" came about*. We all sat down, quite hesitantly, and suddenly this group of barmaids charged at us, demanding that we order some drinks. And apparently, the cover charge was about 700 bahts * I think, I can’t remember la, I had topless Thai girls in front of me!!*. So, err, no thank you for me, as I politely decline, climbing down the stool, and running after Kai Yee, Rebecca, Sue and Huei Wen who also left. Elly and Pui Yee decided to stay and sat there for what must have been one unforgettable night of their lives. *we later found out that despite the unbelievable stunts those Thai Girls performed, Elles and Pui yee were also harrassed by some err, pimps? Pui Yee claimed that her heart didn’t stop beating the whole time she was there, as she was quite terrified, and that she felt dirty when she left the place..poor thing! Dahlaa Pui Yee nie soo small and cute, just like a little sister you want to take care off. She didn’t even know what Tiger Show meant..she actually thought there’ll be actual tigers!*
The others and I roamed the Pat Phong market for a bit, but found that the prices they charged are quite unreasonable, so one advice, you’re better off back in Uptown, bargaining for the same t-shirts hehe. Or Pratunam and Chatuchak. After about 45 minutes later, Elly and Pui Yee arrived, and we took 2 cabs back to the hotel. The thing is, its important to ask for a cab that follows the meter if you’re gonna go on a metered cab. Unfortunately, most cabs don’t, as it was quite late. We have all almost given up hope and it was already near midnight, but in the end found 2 that were willing to follow the meter. Then again, due to a late-night traffic jam, caused by an actual elephant crossing the busy roads of Bangkok, the fare weren’t that low either.
Hey, this is sooo taking up my office time!! Will come back with the 2 last days in Bangkok *where nothing much happened pun, but i’m still gonna post them up for remembrance*..Have a fuss-free day folks!
Sesungguhnya kamu terang bagaikan cahaya
Yang menyinari hidupku dikala ku kelam.. kelam
Terciptalah aku tuk kali pertama
Dan akan ku buktikan kesungguhan dari hati ini
Hati ini…
- Nitrus’s "Kamu" -.
Heeeee, i’m glad I’ve put up a haloscan comment box, its like having a guestbook all over again! gratifying siut hehehe *sigh* Thanks you beautiful ppl, all 3 of you, farenster, iRRa and Nerrs! Anyhoots, some shoutouts:
Faren: I can’t believe you went to the Dewa showcase and tak ajak I !!!!!!!! u owe me a pasta dinner! hehehe...hope everything’s fine in Farenland!
iRRa: Heee, ada orang tu dah ade blog! ;) happy writing dear :)
Nerrs: Nerrs, put la some feedback thingy to urs, penat tau I gelak tapi tak boleh nak respond hehe...
And now, back to my Bangkok stories. Oh, btw, Khi Baht means How many Bahts? or How much? in Thai. That’s basically all I properly learnt of the language. Even Sawaddekaap and Kap Khun pun I got mixed up :p *ini yang nak gi belajar Mandarin, Japanese or French nie*
So, third day was Monday, and we’ve made plans the day before to go to the floating market. I’m not sure if there’s other floating markets in Bangkok, but I suppose the one we went to, Damnern Saduak, is the biggest? It’s located some 2 hours journey away from Bangkok, so as to avoid the morning traffic jams, our guide told us to be ready by 6.45 am. So that means, waking up at about 5.30 am. Nasib baik the buffet breakfast starts at 5 a.m, or else, makan Maggi lagi la that morning. But the nice thing was that the sun rises pretty early in Bangkok. By 6.00, its already light. But that means, prayers are earlier la.
Anyway, our tour guide’s name is Peter, and he’s this really funny guy, who errm, sprays when he talks. So, beware. But very, very entertaining. He told us stories about Bangkok, which I can’t quite remember as I was pretty drowsy. He recited Bangkok city’s full name which is actually in the Guinness Book of World Record for the city with the longest name. He sang a few children rhymes in Thai, and cracked us up silly. Whenever he wants to start singing or reciting something, he’ll go "One, Terr, Free" (One, Two, Three la tu), pointing his fingers and rocking from side to side. He’ll translate a few songs for us and sang and dance along with it, the famous one among us is the "Chang, Chang, Chang" (Elephant, Elephant, Elephant) song which Elly got stuck on and sang for the rest of the day. We arrive about 1 ½ hour later at acoconut sugar making factory along the way to Damnern Saduak, where Peter explained how sugar is derived from coconut. Pretty interesting, and very much like the short documentaries that FINAS used to serve us on RTM back in those days. Sue, of course, couldn’t resist posing with the traditional coconut shell scraper, which if I recall correctly, my mom once have and used, but ours was a miniature version. Half an hour later, we arrived the Floating Market village.
All of us board the long, covered sampan with motor which was made for 8 ppl *Sue had to sit with Peter, hehe*, and there we went, rumbling along the motorway. We were advised to keep our hands inside the boat, for fear of knocking into other boats *ouch*. The waterway is a sungai, but pardon me, with the dirty looking water, it kinda looked like a big longkang to me. But twas very interesting. Along the waterway, you could see wooden houses, with its inhabitants in their sarongs *or as how Peter refers to it; Thai’s national bathing suit* washing up dishes, clothes, and even bathing *pardon me again, but eww!*. We were given young coconuts to sip from as we made our way, down a few kilometres of the waterway to the market. Very serene surroundings, traditional and rustic.
Inevitably, we bumped into a few sampans displaying their wares. Majority of them were selling souvenirs, vegetables and fruits, and food. Oh my. If only I could eat those food, I would have prolly sunk the front portion of the sampan, hehe. We stopped by this lady selling some noodle soup, and everyone (cept me and Elles) shared a bowl of yummy looking, steaming hot bowl of noodle, with of course, the customary fish sauce. Then we passed this lady selling a Thai dessert, sweet mango with sticky rice. Then it was the lady that sold the small crispy pancakes, with creamy santan filling..*drools*. Pity Elles and I couldn’t taste those desserts as we were flat broke :( Whenever we passed by other sampans, the passengers would almost always wave to us, and Sue even tried to pick up this Mat Salleh riding alone.. "Waah, you look soo lonely!" haha..hilarious!
When we finally got to the market, it was just an amazing sight. It’s exactly as how they pictured it on those postcards, and Discovery Travel shows. Many, many sampans floating along, bumping into each other, each of those, laden with all kinds of vegetables and fruits *i can’t recall any fish, poultry or beef tho* and along the banks, stationary stalls displaying more souvenirs. We drifted along *as we’re not allowed to power up the motor*, while the Thai merchants called out their merchandises. The hustle and bustle of it all is reminiscent of a typical market place, only on water! There were of course, loads of other tourists as well on other sampans. The ladies of our sampan bought some fruits as souvenirs, as nobody really shops at the floating market due to its unattractive prices and out of the way location.
We drifted along until we reach the end of the market, and then the guide powered up the sampan to take us to this sacred place along the waterway, where there’s a temple and where we were going to feed the fish that breeds near the temple. It is said that the fish are sacred and that no one’s allowed to catch them or, God forbid, have them for dinner. Tho these fishes are sacred, but man, are they hungry! Each of us were given a bag of fish feed to throw into the water, and when we did, we could see like 10 to 20 fishes, coming up to the surface, gobling up the food. Think piranhas. If they were any bigger than the normal fish size, they’d prolly have rocked the boat side to side. There must have been hundreds of fish down there, as wherever we threw the food, you could see the black shapes of the fishes coming up in large groups to feed.
We were given some time to hang around the banks of the Floating Market, but by then, the Elles have realised that she left her purse back at the hotel. So, it wasn’t a very pleasant outing for her(read: can’t shop, hehe). Earlier, we had asked Peter to drop us off at Chinatown as soon as we arrived Bangkok, but Elly decided to go back to the hotel, with me to accompany her, so that she can pick up her wallet *she managed to call Housekeeping, who found her wallet, and was keeping it for her*. On the way back, we stopped by this furniture factory to see wooden furniture, carved out by talented Thai craftsmen.
All of us slept on the way back to Bangkok, and upon arrival, were greeted by a massive traffic jam. We were all hungry, and as the girls were leaving for Chinatown, me and Elles decided to look for some halal food. We asked Peter who told the driver to drop us off at the nearest halal food restaurant, nearest to our hotel. He dropped us at this alley, with a small mosque at the head of it, lined up with halal restaurant and warongs..yayy! Elly was craving for some tomyam, and I just wanted to fill up my growling tummy. We found a nice small place, with airconditioning to boot, and ordered a sumptous lunch. Telur bungkus, tomyam campur, some mixed vegetables, and upon looking at our neighbour’s fish dish, decided to order the Kerapu fried with chilli. Heavenly meal! We actually polished up the giant fish, and sipped the tomyam to its last drop! The food was perfecto, making us drowsy, as we dragged our feet back to the hotel *which was about 10-15 minutes walk away*. We passed by a Thai massage parlour along the way, and its 250 baht Thai massages intrigued us to go back for some needed kneading of the muscles *what muscles?*.
After a short nap and rest, we walked down to our friendly money changer hehe, and changed some more moolah. Then we decided to take the Tuk Tuk to Chinatown area. FYI, ppl say the Tuk Tuks are a rip off, as you are better off riding in a metered cab, but sometimes, it works out cheaper considering the distance and the condition of the traffic. A metered cab is a cheaper ride, provided that there’s no traffic jamsla. The Tuk Tuk guy would usually charge about 100 bahts per ride, and the more ppl ride with you, the cheaper it is. Go for longer rides, then its kinda worth it la. Plus, its such an experience riding the Tuk Tuk; it ‘s not half as dangerous as riding the Jakarta Bajais *or so, i’ve been told* but the wind rushing in your hair, plus fumes in your face, and giggling at the absurdity of weaving through the cars during heavy traffic, was just exhilirating. Hehe, plus photo opportunity y’all. :) We passed an area lined with designer stores along the way too.
We arrived at the Chinatown/ Pat Phong area near dusk, and walked around for a bit, as we were quite early *we were supposed to meet the girls at 7pm*. The area is bustling with loads of shops * I counted 3 Watsons within walking distances of each other!*, malls, fast food places, and people. We walked down this alley where there’s lotsa Japanese bars, found a Starbucks and sat down for a drink. Near 7 pm, we walked towards the skytrain station where we’re supposed to meet the other girls. Along the way we saw some S&M looking bars which was an indication of what we were going to see that night hehe. The girls were having some McDonalds for dinner, and after that, we crossed the road to the Pat Phong market.
Well, what I didn’t know about the Pat Phong area, is that its famous for its Thai Girl Shows *which everyone refers to as the Tiger Show*. As we walked down the alley with the stalls displaying Petaling Street merchandises on one side, the other side was lined with bars. And upon peeking into those bars, we’d see a barcounter inside, with long poles attached on top of it. And dancing on those bars and gyrating up and down the poles, were scantily-clad Thai women *men?*. Hmm, veerrrrry interesting *winks*. We were thrusted menus of what these Thai Girls could do, and I caught "Ping-pong show" on one of the menus. What? So, Elles was quite excited, as she wanted to go watch one of the shows *we couldn’t really decide as there were so many bars!*, so when one guy claimed "Free show, free show!", all 7 of us, followed him up this neon-lit staircase to this darkly-lit bar, with topless girls dancing on the countertops.
Oh dear. *I now fully realised how the term "Free Show" came about*. We all sat down, quite hesitantly, and suddenly this group of barmaids charged at us, demanding that we order some drinks. And apparently, the cover charge was about 700 bahts * I think, I can’t remember la, I had topless Thai girls in front of me!!*. So, err, no thank you for me, as I politely decline, climbing down the stool, and running after Kai Yee, Rebecca, Sue and Huei Wen who also left. Elly and Pui Yee decided to stay and sat there for what must have been one unforgettable night of their lives. *we later found out that despite the unbelievable stunts those Thai Girls performed, Elles and Pui yee were also harrassed by some err, pimps? Pui Yee claimed that her heart didn’t stop beating the whole time she was there, as she was quite terrified, and that she felt dirty when she left the place..poor thing! Dahlaa Pui Yee nie soo small and cute, just like a little sister you want to take care off. She didn’t even know what Tiger Show meant..she actually thought there’ll be actual tigers!*
The others and I roamed the Pat Phong market for a bit, but found that the prices they charged are quite unreasonable, so one advice, you’re better off back in Uptown, bargaining for the same t-shirts hehe. Or Pratunam and Chatuchak. After about 45 minutes later, Elly and Pui Yee arrived, and we took 2 cabs back to the hotel. The thing is, its important to ask for a cab that follows the meter if you’re gonna go on a metered cab. Unfortunately, most cabs don’t, as it was quite late. We have all almost given up hope and it was already near midnight, but in the end found 2 that were willing to follow the meter. Then again, due to a late-night traffic jam, caused by an actual elephant crossing the busy roads of Bangkok, the fare weren’t that low either.
Hey, this is sooo taking up my office time!! Will come back with the 2 last days in Bangkok *where nothing much happened pun, but i’m still gonna post them up for remembrance*..Have a fuss-free day folks!
|
Wednesday, April 19, 2006 / 9:46 AM
Khi Baht? - Round 1.
Girl, put your records on,
tell me your favourite song
You go ahead, let your hair down
Sapphire and faded jeans,
I hope you get your dreams,
Just go ahead, let your hair down.
Corinne Bailey Rae’s "Put Your Records On"
*cracks fingers*
Well, I did promise a long update on Bangkok, and altho’ I cannot promise an entertaining one at that, I can assure you that it will be LOOOOONG...well, as long as I can get away from doing work this Wednesday morning hehe. Btw, I’ve organised my links and I think I have most of those that went missing, but if anyone sees their link not being linked up, then well, holler me at my newly-installed haloscan comment box :)
About 2 Saturdays ago, Elle Chico and I embarked on a journey up north to Bangkok, along with 5 of her officemates; Kai Yee and Rebecca are 2 young mommies, Sue, Pui Yee and Huei Wen *I hope I got the spelling of their names right, or else, sorry ladies!* We took off on the local no-frills carrier at its spanking new low cost terminal, which I must say, looks like a warehouse *The bunch of Indonesian travellers squatting by the sides of the check in counters didn’t help much*. But twas ok, decent praying room, romantic Coffee Bean, over-priced McDs, and the customary, albeit, tiny duty free shop. We arrived safely in Bangkok that morning, managed to get an airport taxi with a bargain local city tour thrown in, and checked in at what I considered the best hotel in terms of its location, First Hotel *or, as the Thai people pronounces it: Firt Hotel, hehe*. Ms Chico and I then went to look for halal lunch, and discovered that the hotel has a Halal Restaurant..wahey! but the food was quite pricey la, so we vowed to look for cheaper food. Ms Chico, bless her chic heart, has brought along some Maggi Cup Noodles and a few packets of biscuits, just in case, despite her fiancé complaining that the food took up space. Thank god, she did, cuz we survived on that on the days we couldn’t get any halal food, and the second last day when we’ve ran out of money due to shopping, hehe.
Bangkok, btw, is shopping haven, baybee! Now I understand how my cousin and her hubby could just leave their kids for the weekend, and went off to Bangkok to shop. You seriously only need your wallet, strength to carry all the shopping bags and water to stave your thirst. Oh yeah, major consideration: extremely comfortable walking shoes. And loose, berangin clothes for that matter, haha! The first day was spent roaming around the Grand Palace, a famous palace and temple in Bangkok, with our guide Nancy, who informed us that her real name isn’t Nancy, that’s just an English name the agency chosed so as to ease the foreigners. Apparently, there are over 20 Nancys in her agency alone! Oh, btw, first day, and we got royally screwed and conned. *sigh* We were promised a tour of the Grand Palace at no charge at the airport as we already paid about 70 baht each for the transportation, and a donation of any amount when we visit the Palace. When we board Nancy’s 7-seater, we were told to pay an additional 250 baht for entrance fee, which is considered as donation...wtf???? Donation is donation la kan, up to us la how much we want to give, but she insisted that the donation was actually a fixed entry price. The ladies argued with her for a while, cursed the stupid airport transport provider, and in the end, terpaksala fork out the extra money cuz we were already aboard, what to do? after all, its only about RM 25, but as the girls argued, its the principle of the matter. Why did that bastardo lied to us in the beginning? We wouldn’t have minded paying if he told us up front *altho’we might have changed our mindla looking at the price* Buat pendek my shopping budget je, cheh. Seriously, people, beware of these scams!
That kinda ruined everyone’s mood for a while, until we got to the Grand Palace and start snapping pictures. Loadsa tourists and unattractive exchange rates there, so one advise: do not change ur money there. After that we were whisked off to 3 different jewelry/gem factory to have short tours. I do not understand the intentions of these guides, taking us to these places. You’ll be ushered in through the main entrance, given some refreshments, left to gawk at the jewelry on display, and upon finding that none of us are interested *and don’t have enough moolah! Hello, I datang Bangkok bukan nak beli emas!*, ushered us out through the back door. That was a waste of time, really, for me *yawns*. But, an experience nevertheless.
We told the guide to drop us off near Pratunam Market, which is not very far from our hotel *which is why I recommend that hotel to anyone visiting Bangkok*. The other ladies decided to go into the wholesale mall, across the Platinum wholesale mall. Platinum, btw, has really, really funky stuff at wholesale prices, do check them out!And the food court also has a halal stall. Anyway, Ms Chico and I decided to explore Pratunam and Baiyoke, which my uncle and cousin told me is one of the places to go to shop. Cheap clothes, cheap accessories, cheap shoes..really good bargains. Ms Chico went on a shopping frenzy there, snapping up jackets and accessories, while yours truly got a ballroom skirt *don’t ask*. Oh, btw, there’s one money changer kiosk directly opposite Platinum, which offers really, really good rates, and another one on the next alley that compensates when this money changer’s rates went up. Met the other ladies after about 2 hours, then proceed to Platinum, not without buying cheap souvenirs by the roadside first. Unfortunately, the shops in Platinum closes early, so we trudged back to the hotel, stopping by Burger King for dinner. If you’re not very, very particular, they have Fish Burgers there. Balik hotel, pancit, then zzzzzzz.
The next day was an exciting one for us, Chatuchak Market!!!! The mother of all bazaars and flea markets! We got up early, had our buffet breakfast, oh and they have a separate side for muslim food, which consist of briyani rice and lauks, so we had briyani rice for breakfast for oh, 5 days! haha! But there’s also breads, cereals, salads and fruits, and occasional pancakes or french toast *which is why i’m soo recommending this hotel to fellow muslims :) * Then walk down to the nearest Skytrain station, which is also, not very far from the hotel *promo, promo!* and took a train down to the last station which is near the Chatuchak market, and the whole journey is about 5 stations away from our station. Even before we got down from the train we could see the the throngs of people near Chatuchak and rows upon rows of its stalls. *To die for!*
So, we planned to meet up at 2 pm, near the entrance, and split. Me with Elles, Kai Yee with Rebecca and Sue, and Pui Yee with Huei Wen. And oh my God, I can’t even begin to describe what Chatuchak can offer. Bak kata my mom, mak dengan ayah je takde. Everything else in between, ada. And the prices were very, very reasonable. I got away with handbags, cushion covers, like, 6 tops, and souvenirs. And, I was very lucky to have my very own Thai interpreter, hehe. Elle Chico’s parents apparently speaks Thai at home, so she can basically understand the language. So, happily we went, through tunnels and tunnels of shops displaying every imaginable thing you can think of. Furnitures, clothes, shoes, accessories, plants, decor items, household items, even pets! There’s even a courier service for those shoppers who need to courier large items back home. And the choices were....blinding! Take for example, cushion covers. Ya ampun, all kinds of dazzling patterns and colors. I thot of bringing back some for me mums, and pondered upon the selection.
That was when Elles decided to go ahead a few shops for a bit, then come back and saw me still deciding *biasala, extremely fussy kan*, and told me to look for her as she’ll be going right to the end. So I told her, ok, just go on straight, i’ll look for you. After finally deciding on those cushion covers, I started to look for Elly. I went straight, right to the end, No Elly. Patah balik, still no Elly, went to the next row, No Elly. Went to the row after that, still no Elly. !!!. Tried calling her handphone, but it was shut off. By then I was slightly panicky, as I was more concerned about bargaining in a foreign language than I was about ever coming out of the labyrinth of shops. How was I going to shop????? i’ve only just bought 2 handbags, and it was only 11 p.m...i have 3 more hours to go!!! Alone!!
Then I decided to just try and wing my way through. So I walked on, weaving my way through the alleys of shops. I figured if they can’t speak English *and most of them can’t!*, I won’t buy anything from their kedai la. And so that’s what happens; I walked into many, many, many shops, and start fingering their items, and when I asked how much, they will reply in broken English, and if i’m not that interested or I find them a tad too expensive or they start speaking in Thai, i’ll just smile, say thanks and leave :) pretty basic communications skills needed there hehe. Then again, I also discovered a powerful language of calculator, where the shopkeeper would punch out a figure on the calculator, and i’ll take the calculator, clear the numbers, and punch out a much smaller number, hehe. That worked out pretty well. After a rendezvous with a sweet young man, whom I bought 2 sequinned t-shirts from, and who layan-ed me even though I kept punching smaller numbers, spent a loong time deciding, and finally bought 2 aje, I was confident of my calculator skills, and ventured further. There’s sooo many things that I wanted to buy there, but seeing as how its only my second day in Bangkok, and there’s 3 more days of stay there, plus I heard sight-seeing could be pricey, I refrained myself from purchasing unnecessary items *sigh*. I tell you, next time, it’ll just be you, and me Chatuchak, no one else in between. I’ll take my revenge upon you next time..muahahah!
So, at 2 pm, we congregated at the entrance, all tired out, feet aching with sweat running down our back, but with happy faces, and bags of stuff. Elle Chico was so thrilled to see me, cuz she couldn’t find me earlier, and actually went back to the cushion cover shop 4 times! She even bought some for herself! :p and spent some time looking for me hehe. But alhamdulillah, I could find my way around, and survived alone. We then went back to the hotel, dumped our stuff, had lunch of Maggi Cup Noodles, rest for a bit, then went on the skytrain to MBK, a shopping mall about a station away. After the glorious Chatuchak, MBK was merely another Sungei Wang Plaza for us. True, the things were cheap, but it was soo reminiscent of Sungai Wang that me and Elles decided to just while our time away at Dunkin Donuts, chatting. Later, met up with the other girls, who have discovered Boots! I didn’t know they have Boots here! *jakun* so, vowed to make purchases of essential items that cannot be found in Malaysia I.e. personal and hair care products hehe. Kai Yee and Rebecca bought powdered milk for their kids, which they claimed to be cheaper by RM 12, all 6 boxes of that from the supermarket there and then we ventured off to look for Hard Rock Cafe Bangkok. We passed this 2 ladies along the way who were actually eating fried "cengkerik"...very Lonely Planet. I don’t know how she managed it, but Sue *the joker of the pack* managed to obtain a piece and ate it in front of us. Can I just say...ewww???? I mean, I think we can prolly eat it, but still...EWWW!
Had dinner at HRC. We browsed the merchandise shop earlier, but I didn’t find anything interesting. So there goes my sister’s wish to get a HRC Bangkok t-shirt. Luckily enough, it turns out that when u have ur dinner there, and if u order their bottomless Coke or Sprite, you can take the glass home. Hehe, so that was kinda a cool souvenir, and they’ll even get you a new glass *not the one u drank from*, with a HRC paper bag to carry it in..sweet! Me and Elles shared the Seafood Thai Pasta which was freaking spicy, btw. More pics outside HRC and around the skytrain station, then back to the hotel for some zzz.
Ok, I think that’s enough for Round 1. Will come back with more. Toodles.
|
Monday, April 17, 2006 / 10:48 PM
Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this blog.
|
Monday, April 10, 2006 / 9:22 AM
Whoops, my bad
This is a quickie. I just realised that my previous gorgeous blog design was missing my links and archives, and I do need them for the sake of, ahem, my future, so i've decided to switch to this awfully bland, but strangely exciting new template. I hope to be able to add up all the links i've had before *cross fingers* hope i still remember the urls!
Long, long post on trip to Bangkok and family day activities in PD coming up. But let me catch my breath first, and run down to the nearest pharmacy to invest in some whitening products for my seriously sunburnt aka hitam legam skin first.
Chaiyyok, chaiyyok!
This is a quickie. I just realised that my previous gorgeous blog design was missing my links and archives, and I do need them for the sake of, ahem, my future, so i've decided to switch to this awfully bland, but strangely exciting new template. I hope to be able to add up all the links i've had before *cross fingers* hope i still remember the urls!
Long, long post on trip to Bangkok and family day activities in PD coming up. But let me catch my breath first, and run down to the nearest pharmacy to invest in some whitening products for my seriously sunburnt aka hitam legam skin first.
Chaiyyok, chaiyyok!
|
/ 9:22 AM
Whoops, my bad
This is a quickie. I just realised that my previous gorgeous blog design was missing my links and archives, and I do need them for the sake of, ahem, my future, so i've decided to switch to this awfully bland, but strangely exciting new template.
Long, long post on trip to Bangkok and family day activities in PD coming up. But let me catch my breath first, and run down to the nearest pharmacy to invest in some whitening products for my seriously sunburnt aka hitam legam skin first.
Chaiyyok, chaiyyok!
This is a quickie. I just realised that my previous gorgeous blog design was missing my links and archives, and I do need them for the sake of, ahem, my future, so i've decided to switch to this awfully bland, but strangely exciting new template.
Long, long post on trip to Bangkok and family day activities in PD coming up. But let me catch my breath first, and run down to the nearest pharmacy to invest in some whitening products for my seriously sunburnt aka hitam legam skin first.
Chaiyyok, chaiyyok!
|
Confessions
Journals
Experiences
Credits
Counter
