Outside SH: A Weekend in Bangkok

It's a new world when 4 hour flights, don't phase me for a weekend getaway... the in-flight entertainment doesn't hurt either. So when Matt had been traveling a couple weekends in a row and was headed to Bangkok, Thailand for a 3rd weekend, I was more than happy to join him.



Now, the question becomes, what should do for the weekend, when I've already been to Bangkok with Lesley as my amazing host, but Matt has not and absolutely should see all the wonderful sights... (as you can see from the prior trip's elephant trip bathing I'd been bragging about, Matt had some high expectations!)

But we found a solution: a night bike tour!

While, I think there are a couple tour group options, we went with Grasshopper Adventures, which I would absolutely recommend. So once Matt was finished with training on Friday evening, we popped over to the shop just before sunset.

So I've been riding my bike in Shanghai for a couple months now (did I mention I got a bike here?) and since we were riding in Bangkok's back alleys the traffic wasn't so bad, but there were quite a few obstacles in the way... potholes, signs in the center of the road, children, etc, which all made for a true adventure in the dark.

Needless to say we had an amazing time and I got the chance to see some of the same spots I'd visited before, but they took on a whole new look at night.

With over 95% of the Thai population of Buddhist faith, it goes without saying that there's an abundance of temples throughout the country, over 40,000 to be exact. Each one is unique and all that I've seen are incredibly intricate.

We started at "Wat Arun" meaning "Temple of Dawn" (Wat = Temple).

Wat Arun

my artistic pic with our bikes, didn't quite turn out as I planned

snack time! the fried triangle chip looking things on the left actually have a duck egg in the center and they are DELICIOUS!!!! ... we didn't eat the little squids though...

next up... Flower Market. I could've spent HOURS here... but luckily for Matt we were on a schedule with the group and I only had my iPhone with me... The Flower Market is one long street (maybe more?) jam packed with shops selling only flowers that take over the sidewalks plus pour out onto the street. One side is dedicated to flowers to offerings at the temples... such as marigolds, garlands, etc.  The other side is lined with different flowers for gifts, home decor, etc.  I enjoy BOTH sides! :)

loads of marigolds

Oodles of garlands & offerings

I'd be happy to be on the receiving end of any of these bouquets... :)

Last stop, Wat Pho. Temple of the reclining Buddha. The only problem here is that the actual interior spaces are closed so you couldn't SEE the reclining Buddha. Still pretty lit up at night!

(reclining Buddha from my last visit in 2009)

we did learn that this temple has some China influence! these intricate porcelain flowers on each of the towers are from broken China porcelain (given as a "gift" to Thailand?)

Confucius protecting the gate. Also, a gift.. Oh, and it started raining... but we were fine with just a little drizzle. :)

We'd completed 3 locales in 1 night and still went out for dinner... 

Saturday morning we woke up to spend a little R&R by the pool and it was off to the weekend market! The Chatuchak Market to be exact. It's 35 acres of shops and you can buy ANYTHING here! Which is incredibly dangerous when you have a husband who's eyes light up at the sight of life-size wooden elephants and life-size real-life monkeys.

Luckily, I got him out of here with only this AWESOME tank top. Yep, that happened.

The market

 

here it is!!!

 just some other random awesome options

  

  

I found the UPS shipping location!... this is for you dad!

 

then it was time for Matt's first Thai massage. If you've never experienced it, it's WONDERFUL. Pretty much you get into a little room where the floor is a mattress & these tiny Thai women climb on top of you & stretch you out for an hour all for about $7. It's heaven... doesn't he look PUMPED?! I should've taken an "after" photo.

 then it as a little rooftop drinks at Banyan Tree

 which apparently has a dress code. But luckily they had a pair of pants (about 2 sizes to small) and some shoes (at least 3 sizes too small) for Matt to show off. Lookin' good babe! 

Off to dinner at the Asiatique Riverfront.  ...got any grapes? ;)

Instagram summary of the evening.

we will miss Bangkok and the W... and my unhealthy obsession with taking pictures of this wall