Wat Arun, Little India, and the Floating Markets

I was out for a walk when I ended up veering toward the boarding pier to dock right at the foot of Wat Arun, but the heavy downpour prevented me from reaching the top of the tower…
A walk in the rain and a little chat with a kind, elderly gentleman, from whom I successfully haggled for a long skirt and two pairs of shoes…

Yeah, I know, I just couldn’t help myself… I’d been looking for open-toed leather sandals for the summer for a long time… And in Belgium, fashion is always a challenge for me when it comes to finding shoes and clothes that suit my taste… I hate “bling-bling,” and it always drives me crazy that men’s fashion is so much more understated… So, I usually order my stuff from Asia… At least they have a good selection. Unlike here!
We then talked for quite a while about my background, since he wasn’t convinced I was “truly Belgian” without really understanding the rest of it. He recommended the most beautiful temples in the area and the floating market—advising me to avoid the tourist traps—and asked me about the countries I’ve already visited, etc…

The storm passes, my feet in the water because the river has overflowed slightly, and I take the boat back toward

 Chinatown and the Hindu quarter—Little India—which he’d told me about. I had dinner at a cozy little shop at a street corner. I was intrigued by the shopping centers filled with gorgeous fabrics that were very good quality for the price… Trying to find satin for less than 2 euros a meter! I thought of my mom and all the things she could create with all that… She would have had way too much work 🙂
I spent the whole afternoon and early evening weaving my way through Chinatown and Little India… I felt right at home.

Today, I got up very early to go to the floating market.

The most famous one is nearly a hundred kilometers from where I’m staying, so I decided to visit the ones closer by—though it’s not easy to get there on my own. I hailed a taxi—a charming gentleman who turned on the meter right away without me even asking…

The problem was that he didn’t speak a word of English, but luckily two young people helped me translate. It cost me barely 120 baht, and the 3-hour boat tour—which took me to all three markets—was 99 baht. Counting the return trip at 80 baht (I’ll explain why in a few lines), so for 300 baht—including a few snacks—I was able to enjoy these floating markets, whereas a tour operator would have charged anywhere from 1,000 to 1,800 baht. And it’s even more expensive if you go to the more famous “Damnoen Saduak Floating Market”—and, above all, you won’t have any freedom.

I took a coconut break—it’s true that even though I’m an undisputed fan of fresh coconut, I hadn’t yet had the chance to drink one! As I settled in, I saw the desperation in the eyes of a young foreign couple looking for a seat; I motioned for them to come sit at my table, letting them know I’d be happy to have them join me. We spent our time chatting. A young couple from a small village in Norway, who were completely out of their element in big cities—and in Bangkok, for that matter. The guy had spent the last two months traveling between Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia to meet up with his girlfriend, who was arriving in Koh Lanta for 15 days; the two of them were heading back up to Bangkok to return home… They offered to share a taxi among the three of us; they’d pay for the ride to their hotel, and I’d pay from there on. They told me I was very brave to be traveling alone for such a long time. They wished me lots of fun. We had a good laugh with the slightly zany taxi driver… With all that going on, I didn’t ask their names… Oh well! I would have forgotten them anyway. I got back completely exhausted.

Tomorrow, I’m heading to Ayutthaya, the former capital of Siam, which served as the capital for a little over 400 years. I’ll tell you more about it tomorrow.

I compared prices and realized that since I’m traveling alone, prices go up pretty quickly through tour operators… Prices go as high as 8,000 baht! Almost 210 euros!!! So I’ll be going it on my own tomorrow by train—Bangkok’s central station, Hua Lamphong, is just 3–4 subway stops from my place. Once I get there, I’ll rent either a motorcycle or a bike.

Have a great day, Belgium!