Browse Tag

Bangkok

Thailand: Ratchada Night Market (Rot Fai 2) — what it used be

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Apr 04, 2022
/
Bangkok, Thailand, Travel

Date: 2 November 2019

After spending some time at Chatuchak Weekend Market, I took the MRT (Bangkok’s subway) from Chatuchak to Thailand Cultural Centre station. I came here to visit — what was then — a increasingly popular night market.

I say ‘was’ because… look at the date I was there. Just two months later, COVID hit the world. Thailand’s tourism sector came to a halt. And for a city like Bangkok, that sees nearly 40 million(!) visitors annually, needless to say, the lack of tourists had a massive impact on the footfalls flowing into Bangkok’s popular night markets.

Now, the site in Ratchada district where Rot Fai 2 market used to be looks like this now:

That said, according to a video by Coconuts Bangkok, uploaded in August 2021, the Ratchada Night Market will make up a comeback… eventually. Unless a property developer is already eyeing the land for another luxury development in Bangkok 🙄

Rot Fai means ‘train’ in Thai. The night market used to be located by the train tracks in the Chatuchak area but later moved to the Ratchada district.

Anyway, if the Ratchada Rot Fai market does return to the same location, here’s how to get there and what the market offers.

Once you exit Thailand Cultural Centre MRT station, head towards a mall named Esplanade.

Esplanade mall Bangkok Thailand — The Rot Fai night market is behind Esplanade

If you search for Rot Fai night market online or look it up on Instagram, you will most likely see a photo of an over head view of the colourful tents at the market. To get that iconic shot, you don’t need a drone.

Continue reading “Thailand: Ratchada Night Market (Rot Fai 2) — what it used be” »

Thailand: Flying from Ho Chi Minh City to Bangkok

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Feb 14, 2022
/
Thailand, Travel

Date: 1 November 2019

After 11 days of travelling, I was now on a VietJet flight to Bangkok. I began my trip in Phuket, where I spent two nights on the island before landing in Ho Chi Minh City. I spent nine days in Vietnam, and now I’m flying again.

Clouds over Vietnam sea — We were flying over the Gulf of Thailand

VietJet lands at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Arriving Suvarnabhumi airport Bangkok — I always feel nostalgic whenever I land at Suvarnabhumi 🙂

Whenever I take the travelators at Suvarbahumi (of which there are many to get to immigration), it would always remind me of my first visit to Thailand in 2009, which was my first international trip, and how this blog got started!

I had booked my stay at In A Box Hostel for my arrival in Bangkok. The hostel is just a 1-minute walk from Ratchathewi BTS station. I chose to stay in a hostel because I would be moving to a nicer hotel later, and also, it had been a while since I experienced a hostel. The last time I stayed in a hotel was back in 2015.

I don’t know why, but I can’t seem to find any photos I took of the dorm, and I thought I did. That said, In A Box Hostel looked fairly new and had very nice rooms with clean, comfy beds for 300 THB (₹670/$9/€8) per night in the shared dorm. But this… was pre-COVID. As of this writing, they don’t offer shared dorm rooms, only private rooms.

I don’t blame them. Even if I were to travel again soon, I don’t think I will stay in a shared room (for safety reasons).

Anyway, I had to visit a DJI service center to get my brother’s gimbal repair. Another reason for staying at In a Box Hostel was because the DJI service center was a 10 minute walk away.

I went there and the people were generous to fix the gimbal at no cost! 🙂 That was one of the things I needed from DJI. The other was a drone, something that had been on my bucket list for years. I was waiting for the DJI Mavic Mini, which would have been a great starter drone for me, but the DJI staff told me they weren’t sure of the release date, even though it would be soon.

Indian restaurants Bangkok Thailand — I walked all the way to a shopping center called Indra Square, which had a bunch of Indian restaurants opposite to the mall

Thai KFC spicy chicken rice bowl — I ended up eating at KFC. They had this spicy rice bowl that I wanted to try out!

I always try the local menu at major fast food chains, just to sample dishes I won’t find back in India. The Thai KFC spicy rice bowl was a tad too spicy for my liking.

Ryo camera Indra square Bangkok — Indra Square was filled with tourists from South Asia, buying every thing from clothes to chocolates… even from a camera shop?

Market bangkok shopping complex — The Market Bangkok mall

Whenever I am in Bangkok, I usually try to stay in Sukhumvit and near a BTS (metro station). It’s a very convenient area to be in and the food choices are very diverse. Although BTS fares have risen, I avoid taking taxis to get around Bangkok.

Continue reading “Thailand: Flying from Ho Chi Minh City to Bangkok” »

Siem Reap to Bangkok by bus… my experience at the Thailand border

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Dec 12, 2019
/
Cambodia, Travel

Date: 16 May 2018

Today saw our tour of Cambodia come to an end. This journey began when I met up with my girlfriend in Chiang Mai, Thailand, then flew to Phnom Penh (Cambodia’s capital), then took the bus to Siem Reap, spent a day exploring Angkor Park and today, we depart for Bangkok. But instead of taking a flight, I figured we would cross international borders by road instead.

Giant Ibis bus to Bangkok — We booked the 7:45am bus via Giant Ibis. Tickets costs $32 per person. The bus was hardly full.

Green fields Cambodia — It’s not that flights from Siem Reap to Bangkok are much more expensive. I just never crossed international borders by road before so I thought I’d get to experience something new.

Cambodia public school — I also wanted to see more of Cambodia’s countryside and the way of life out here (pictured is a public school)

Hill Cambodia countryside — But much of what I saw were farmlands

Giant Ibis bus rest stop Cambodia — We would stop once along the highway for a rest stop break

Poipet road Cambodia — Closer to noon, we had reached the border town of Poipet

Happy Mart Cambodia highway — Poipet isn’t big but it is the most developed town I had seen along the way since leaving Siem Reap

Cambodia Thailand border crossing — The bus would drop us here and then pick us up again from the Thailand side. We were all given badges and asked to follow our guide.

Our bus came with a guide who had a look at our passports before getting down from the bus and when I told him I was from India, he was like “oh”. He told me Indians and Chinese often face hurdles with immigration at this border. We were also told we would have to pay 100 baht to Cambodia immigration upon exit.

Poipet departure Cambodia border — That green structure is the Cambodia immigration for departures

It was crowded inside but lines moved fast. The Cambodian immigration officer asked for the 100 baht but did not give a receipt or anything. I still wonder why we had to pay money upon leaving Cambodia… and that too in Thai baht.

Continue reading “Siem Reap to Bangkok by bus… my experience at the Thailand border” »