This collection of photographs depicts the streets in Bangkok at different periods of the day, the modes of transport as well as the food places and cafes I have been to. In this series, I have included the addresses of the cafes/restaurants for your reference, if you are interested to make a trip to Bangkok! Please feel free to ask me for more details :) I love ambling along the streets in a foreign place and figuring out the main intersections, though it can sometimes be nerve-racking especially when I tend to lose my bearings at night. 1. Pla Thong Mookata buffet If you are looking for quality mookata at an affordable price, this is it! Located along Phaya Thai Road, this open-air dining place attracted a steady stream of people, huddled in groups sharing light-hearted conversations. There was a generous spread of meat, cooked food, vegetables, fruits and desserts. Steamboat pots were filled to the brim with juicy layers of grilled meat and sweet, leafy vegetables boiled in a chicken soup base. 2. Chatuchak market Bangkok is known for its plethora of street food stalls selling local fare, ranging from barbecued, skewered meat and seafood, flavoured drinks, thai desserts to my favourite - assorted fruits carts! Chatuchak is a marketplace with vendors selling street food, clothes, decorative elements like dried flowers, household items, electrical products, miniature sculptures and an array of craft supplies. 3. Yaowarat The street food scene in Yaowarat comes alive at night, buzzing with life. The tables and stools set up in front of the makeshift food stalls were occupied quickly with the arrival of the evening crowd. A multitude of food stalls lined the street and people inched along the road with ongoing vehicles whizzing past. There was the omnipresence of red lanterns, Chinese music booming through the stereos and restaurants serving shark's fin and bird's nest soup. The tantalising aroma of roast meat wafted from the kitchen grills, coupled with the sweet, lingering smell of dessert soups. 4. Ink & Lion cafe Ekkamai was a neighbourhood that my friend recommended to explore for its cafes. Ink & Lion was the first one on the list! It was great having the time to while away indoors on a scorching afternoon, with old school vinyl records playing in the background and coffee as company. Ink & Lion Cafe Soi Sukhumvit 63 - Soi Ekkamai 2 Nearest BTS station: Ekkamai (5-minute walk away) 5. Nikko cafe I had a sudden craving for tonkatsu curry don when I stumbled upon Nikko cafe, a Japanese-inspired cafe nestled in Ekkamai. A hidden gem, really! Though it was a considerably long way from the BTS station (further down from Ink & Lion), it was worth the walk. This plate of tonkatsu curry won me over with the first bite. The batter is light and crisp, chicken tender and the curry is thickened with roux. Nikko Cafe Soi Ekkamai 12 Nearest BTS station: Ekkamai (20-minute walk away) During my time in Bangkok, I chanced upon images of the late King Bhumibol of Thailand when I walked into the convenience stores. I was at a cafe when I picked up a travel magazine and in it, featured an article of the Royal Project developments in Thailand, aligned with King Bhumibol's 'Sufficiency Economy' theory. The basis of this theory was to live within one's means, and if the country practised sustainable development then the people of Thailand would always have enough. Quoted from Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Director of the Institute of Security and International Studies at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, he aptly described King Bhumibol, "To the Thais, King Bhumibol was the consummate leader and anchor of their land. The late King is known to not smile a lot, and the Thais felt that he smiled less so that they could smile more. When he advanced in years, their sympathy and respect intensified because they saw how his work had taken a toll, how he suffered into old age for the country that they had." I saw his portrait again at Chatuchak market. There is no doubt that he will always stay in the hearts of the Thais, so will the legacies that he had left behind. 6. Porcupine cafe Porcupine cafe is situated in Ari, a relatively quieter neighbourhood, as compared to Ekkamai. When I was there, the cafe didn't seem too busy, which was why I fell in love with the ambience right away. It's just this feeling I had - this comfortable feeling when someone walks in and knows immediately that she has found her comfort zone within a shared space. The light flowing into the cafe through the glass panels made for a warm glow - perfect to do some reading in a corner! Porcupine Cafe 48 Soi Phaholyothin 7 (Soi Ari 4 North) Nearest BTS station: Ari (10-minute walk away) Bangkok's traffic jams and open air market squares are fuelled by a massive shopping crowd. It is indeed a shopping and food paradise in Southeast Asia. What was most memorable for me was spending quality time with my family, when we took a break from our hectic work schedules and enjoyed each other's company the whole time we were in Bangkok.
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