The Colors of Talaad Don Wai

Talaad Don Wai, or Doi Wai Market, is an amazing Thai local market situated about 45 minutes from downtown Bangkok.  It's half way to Nakorn Pathom, taking PinKlao elevated highway makes it so easy to get there.

My family and most of my friends from home love to visit markets.  We love food and we rather spend time around the food then going to the musuems and historical places since my visitors come to Bangkok so often, they have had enough of the sight seeing tours.

I brought my mom, my sister and her family, together with my mom's college friends in Thailand to talaad Don Wai.  At first they were a bit surprised that we wanted to drive all the way just for a market, but as soon as they arrived, they stopped complaining.

Love the variety of things to see and do in this market.  I was a little worried that my little nephew will be bored while the girls were enjoying the shopping but he was happy  feeding the fish in the river by the market. 

I'd definitely recommend friends to this market.  It's definitely worth the drive to the real market compare to shopping in the grocery stores in the city.

Guava - Farang in Thai

Local Coffee - Beats the starbucks coffee

Grill banana - normally eat with caramel syrup

A kind of vege that I have never tasted
 

Back to the River, Ampawa

It's the time of the year where everyone needs a break, a break from those hectic work load, crazy traffic, almost unbearable heat in Bangkok.  Heading to our favourite Ampawa during weekends is always an easy yet refreshing choice.  An hour from Bangkok, we headed to Don Hoy Lot for lunch.  The little sign off the motorway was clear but the turn was shortly after the 'Don Hoy Lot' sign, so we were very careful keeping an eye on it because we were so hungry and did not want to miss our lunch.

 did not expect such a big portion of oysters when we were trying to have a 'light' meal :)

Well, our destination was Amphawa, of course!  Our stomach were happy and therefore our concentration had gone downhill, following the sign to chonburi, we passed the entrance to floating market.  It took us another 45 minutes to reach Amphawa.  There were a lot more shops around this time, lots of boat selling food as well.  It was a beautiful scene as always. 

The huge crowds made it hard to walk around and but we did enjoy the market.  Although there were a lot of food and desserts, I'd never have chance to try most of them because I was too busy checking every single details and taking pictures. The usual charm of the market remains, a lot of cute little stores with uniquely designed handicrafts, t shirts and sourvenirs. 

Besides enjoying all the food and shopping, Amphawa is famous of fireflies.  We did not take the fireflies watching ride since most of us have already done so.  It's a place where we should spend a day or two, experiencing the homestay by the river, waking up early in the morning for monk ceremony and sit in a cafe or pub for a drink during the day for people watching.

Kuala Selangor

A half day trip to Kuala Selangor was refreshing after months of hectic city life and loads of work.  This place has became a spot for food and a weekend getaway.  Our friends, the host from River View restaurant invited us to have dinner at the restaurant and took us to see her hometown by the river.   I have always enjoyed sampans, fishermens' boats and rivers and of course seafood, so this trip was a perfect getaway.

Didn't manage to see the fireflies this trip but since I have seen them during my last trip here, and those in Amphawa, I was good without the boat ride.  The moon was full and bright and with our great hosts and company, we had a good time indeed.

Shanghai, So Modern Yet Conservative

It's been long since I last written, a few attempts of leaving Bangkok for good did not success.  Now I'm back in the familiar land of smile and constantly flying back and forth between Bangkok and KL.  World is smaller and everywhere can be home.

Shanghai has made a big impact on me, a short stay with no friends to start with, I still remembered the first day of being in Shanghai walking in the cold and sitting in that ramen chain.  It was a mixed feeling of being a chinese who can speak the same language and not being a chinese in the land of china. 

It was good that I enjoyed travelling alone,  exploring the city during my off working hours kept me balanced.

One of my favourite alleys, Tai Kang Road.  An area where the combination of traditional, modern, stylish, and classic be found.   I found it breathaking when I found it during my stay in 2007.  It was one of the places I can remember so clearly, wonder if they have completely changed right now.

6 Years Anniversary

It was Dec 31 2003 when I first left the States for Thailand. I pretty much celebrated the New Year on the plane and was excited about my new journey in this unfamiliar country. I got to Bangkok a little after midnight and I still remember the heat and polluted air I breath in the first thing I got to the carpark

I was all excited with the new experience but I was also suffering from not being able to understand a single Thai and not able to communicate with others. I'd go to the same place ordered the same food over and over just because I did not know what else they have. Not staying in the city nor close to any train station made it worse for me to get around.

It was the AUA that brought me to know some friends and learn some Thai, and getting a job in Kimberly Clark certainly helped me adapting to this place and feel attached. After I moved to the city, getting around wasn't any problem and English is commonly spoken in the city. I started exploring Bangkok more and found that I've love the cultures here and have adapted well in this beautiful land of smile. Sometimes we forget or do not appreciate things happen around us. The locals might not see any beauties in the everyday lives or the street vendors, the market sellers, monks and all.. Just like I never appreciate how beautiful Penang is when I stayed there until I went back many years after as a 'tourist'. It's important to change the view or role once in a while in our life to see things differently and feel differently of a certain thing.

I've started exploring Bangkok and other part of the cities after I've gotten my SLR camera, though I wish I've had more trips to the North or nearby cities. There are endless things to shoot and the pictures are almost certain to turn out nicely. The colors and activities along the streets, the wats and buildings with modern and antique architecture, delicious and eye catching food and ingredients and the list goes on...

I consider Thailand as one of the best places to stay in and definitely a place to retire. I've once considered Thailand as my home and even I have to leave, I'll still come back very often.