5 days of Bangkok, not quite authentic taste of Thailand

I took a few days off and spent this Christmas in Bangkok. I have to say, I love traveling! And Bangkok is amazing!

Without and presumption, I fond Bangkok a wonderful place for a short vacation like this. There are plenty of reasons to praise Bangkok. But first of all, it's safeI simply got packed just one day before the flight and left 4 pm in the early morning.

first impression

As a Thai friend said, there are three weather type in Thailand: Hot, Very Hot, Super Hot.' It is true. So true that I had to take off layers of jackets and coats on the way to downtown. I can't believe it's December and I'm sweating on Christmas!

The youth hostel we booked is located in Siam, a rather convenient place, somewhere around city centre. After everything and the luggage was settled, I decided to hang around Siam to have a real taste of metropolitan Thailand!

Siam is basically made up of clusters of shopping centres, each nicely linked with another, in order to keep people get totally lost and spend all the money here! This reminds me of those shopping centres in Hong Kong. But Thai shopping malls are a bit different. They don't share so much resemblance with each other. It's more like a mixture of a little  bit of everything. Old within new, and high street fashion blended with local market stuff. I spent the entire afternoon hanging around, I guess I'd been to probably only five out of ten, or even more.

While I did the shopping, my dear partner was still stuck in Taipei. She's having trouble dealing with her visa and packing. Fortunately she got the tourist VISA in the last minute. I texted her "Bring Nothing. Nothing at all! Bangkok's got everything! And Cheaper!'

I suppose if it's not because of my poor limited budget, this article might just become photos of the good stuff I bought.

And the escalator always lead you to another magical place, a literally labynith

Siam in a sense equals to our "Xing Yi Disctric" in Taipei City. It's a embodiment of modern, western and capitalist life. People's outfit is nicer and brighter and everything is accordingly more expensive here. The department stores and shopping centres around Siam are elaborately decorated with bubble lights and bells and giant rabbits (looking like misplaced in this place rather than Alice's wonderland), and off course, Christmas tree. Christmas jingle is playing all over. A jolly atmosphere of Christmas is impeccably in the air, in this 27 degree tropical land.

Aren't they suppose to be Buddhists?

an ordinary food stall

Anyhow, it's quite a pleasant shopping experience in Siam. They have much more choices, better quality (which they enhanced that it's made in Thailand, instead of China). and absolutely temping price. It's no doubt a shopping paradise!

But the local market's my personal favourate, as usual.

The local market near a huge shopping centre is very much alike to those night markets and grocery stores where sales cheesy stuff one for10 dollars in Taiwan. And I found I was the only foreigner in the market. That's the best thing to go traveling. I always fancy a real taste of authentic local life, instead of tourist spots.

strange food, those fried things with feet, I'd suggest it insects...

the vendors outside the overground station (they call it 'skyline)

In order not to upset my stomach in the very first day of the trip, I kept them, sadly. (Obviously I fall  short of the high expectation for the 'Chinese eat anything' legend,'

And my journey continue happily ever after with my partner next day!

(to be continue)