If my first trip to Thailand two years ago was with my colleagues, and the second one last year was to watch The GUTS World Tour, my third visit to Bangkok this year was more… random and food-filled.
I had actually been toying with the idea of going on a vacation sometime next year. So when my sister blurted out, “Why not Bangkok?” and I agreed, she immediately followed with, “Why not this year?”
In the spur of the moment, we told our mom that the three of us were going to Bangkok this November. And if this trip could produce imaginary tokens as souvenirs, I would get a golden piece of understanding, compassion, and… all things food.
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I always think a trip doesn’t begin when your plane takes off or the train starts its engine—it kicks off long before you hurry to the airport or station. To me, it includes the moment you’ve overpacked the day before, or when you try to sleep (but fail) because you’re too excited to even close your eyes.
With that said, let me begin the story from the night before. If we’re counting the pre-trip, I must say it started… not exactly on the right footing. I had a fight with my mom over something futile (it was absurd, actually), and we ended up not talking for a few hours. I packed my bag in silence, booked a car ride to my sister’s place in silence, ate in silence—and it was honestly torture. I hate silence when it’s not by choice.
Thankfully, we made up that night before bed. To prevent this exasperating awkwardness from happening again, the three of us made a pact: none of us should get angry at each other for the whole week we were in Thailand. Breaking it meant paying IDR 200,000 (around USD 12) to the other two.
When a girl says she will keep counting, you better believe she will. With that in mind, each of us knew we had to be more understanding—or pay the price (literally).
Once we made a truce, peace followed. Getting ready at around 1 a.m. no longer felt like torment. I woke up feeling super excited for the prospect of a fun week off—and it showed, because I was the first to get ready.
A quick airport trip very early in the morning is something I’ve grown familiar with, so the fact that our taxi arrived as early as 2:30 a.m. was perfect. We got there about thirty minutes later. I had Roti Boy’s Salt Boy bread for breakfast. It was so good (or maybe I was just super hungry—I wasn’t sure).
And yes, I also had a cup of noodles because it was cold and I craved hot soup.
We finally boarded the flight at 6:35 a.m. and took off at 7:30. My mom and I slept for around an hour, while my sister slept almost the whole flight. After three and a half hours, we arrived at Don Mueang International Airport.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Bangkok.
Ahhh, I missed this. I missed Bangkok’s air. It had been a year since I last visited this vibrant city, and I longed to just wander around Bangkok and eat all the time.
Our first meal in Bangkok was ham and cheese sandwiches, odeng, and pork and chicken sausages from Lawson.
After we filled our stomachs a little, the three of us took the MRT toward our hotel. It took around two hours to get to Pratunam, and it felt like the longest two hours because of how heavy our luggage was.
Good thing my sister goes to the gym almost every day—she carried all the heavy stuff.
Upon arriving at the hotel, we immediately sat down—we were so, so tired. Our hotel, ABC SO Hotel, had a beautiful bay window. We relaxed for a bit before heading to our first destination.
Our second (and last) stop for the day was Jodds Fair Night Market. I originally thought the place only opened at night, but my sister told me some vendors started selling in the afternoon.
Keeping this in mind (and since I was starving), we went there hoping to find something good.
It turned out to be one of the best decisions ever. Arriving in the evening meant the market was less crowded, so we could wander around with ease. And since we went in November, the weather was so nice—the sun wasn’t scorching hot, and it only drizzled briefly a few times.
Cons: most vendors were still getting ready.
No worries, though. We still managed to eat quite a lot in an hour and a half:
Pork Bone Soup / Leng Saap (299 Baht)
We requested the chili on the side because I can’t handle too much spice.
Mango Sticky Rice (Small, 80 Baht)
My mom’s craving.
Durian (389 Baht)
So creamy—tasted like a mix of sweetness and alcohol. Loved it.
Salted Egg Lava Buns (120 Baht)
Four pieces, four fillings: original, golden egg yolk, Nutella, and peanut butter. A bit like mochi but served hot. Our favorite: peanut butter.
Coconut Ice Cream with Mango (89 Baht)
A perfect closing to the night.
After our appetites were satisfied, we were exhausted from all the walking and carrying. We returned to the hotel, and by 8 p.m., all of us were already asleep.
***
If our first day in Bangkok started very early, our second one didn’t. My mom, as usual, woke up first. My sister followed—but instead of getting ready for the day, she got ready to run in Lumphini Park. I woke up not long after and started doing my makeup.
Here was my outfit of the day (which turned out exactly as pretty as I imagined):
After my sister returned from her run, we went to the nearby market to find breakfast. Our first stop was skewers—her favorite. We bought a pork skewer and a chicken skewer.
I really loved the pork skewer. It was delicious.
We then randomly stopped at a noodle stall. I’m not sure what it was called, but we ordered noodles number five. It looked like this:
It tasted sour, but in a good way. We loved it.
Before heading back, we stumbled upon a stall selling Chinese fried dough (in Indonesia, we call them ‘cakwe’). Out of curiosity (and because I love cakwe), we bought a pack with pandan sauce.
It tasted exactly as we imagined. I mean… it’s cakwe.
Breakfast was still so filling, and we loved everything we ate that morning. Since my sister hadn’t showered after her run, we went back to the hotel to wait for her.
This was when the day got interesting. After she finished her hair, we took the bus to Lumphini Park. It was my first time riding a public bus in Thailand since there was no MRT line to our destination. Overall, it was seamless—we paid in cash to the conductor, and the fare was even cheaper than the MRT.
When the bus stopped in front of Lumphini Park, we got off.
If you love people-watching, I bet you’ll love Lumphini Park in the morning. Some people were walking slowly, some running, some doing taichi, yoga, and even waltz. Some sat and chatted with friends. We even saw Bangkok dragons sun bathing—they looked scary, even though they were just chilling.
For about an hour, we wandered around the park, charmed by the peacefulness and busyness of the view.
When we began to starve, we searched for a bus to take us to our lunch spot.
At almost 11 a.m., we arrived at Wattana Panich, which is famous for its 50-year-old soup. Based on my sister’s research, the noodles were great. We ordered its fine noodles and small noodles.
At first, the soup tasted just okay. But once the waiter helped us mix the spices on our table (I guess our faces looked super clueless), the dishes became so much more flavorful.
After lunch, we wanted dessert, so we headed straight to Mae Varee to buy mango sticky rice.
But the bus we needed wouldn’t come!
Since the weather was nice (and it was only a one-mile walk), we decided to just walk. We made a quick stop at Seven Eleven to buy a very cold, refreshing drink.
To our surprise, Mae Varee turned out to be strictly a shop. With nowhere to sit, we bought our orders to go (two packs, because my sister wanted more) and walked back to the hotel to eat them there.
We made another stop at Seven Eleven because we were thirsty again.
After resting (and more charging because our phones needed it more than we did), we spent our evening wandering around Platinum and December’s. We bought cute mini keychains for souvenirs at Everything 20 (everything literally cost 20 Baht!). We also found two cute shirts for my mom.
After all the wandering, we started to starve. My sister recommended Kub Kao Kub Pla in centralwOrld, which she had tried and loved. We ordered the sizzling hot seafood tom yum and chicken pandan.
Yum.
We then went back to the hotel, got ready for bed, and called it a night.
What a relaxing yet fulfilling day. Just as intended, we didn’t want to overdo our trip, and it felt right to have enough time to retreat and rest.
***
When I woke up the next morning… I didn’t feel very well.
I think I went through the first two days with not enough water, and the effect caught up with me on the third day—I had a sore throat. But since I still felt generally okay, I didn’t make a big deal out of it. We started our day exactly like yesterday: looking for breakfast at the nearby market—only this time, we ate in the hotel room.
Breakfast was chicken and pork skewers and a bowl of seafood tom yum to share.
It was good, again. After eating, we got ready and went to the nearest Big C, which opened at 9.
We then spent almost two hours wandering around the massive supermarket, deciding what to buy as souvenirs. In the end, this was my haul (not including my mom’s and sister’s):
Notes: If your purchase is more than 2,000 Baht, you can claim a VAT refund by asking for the refund document on the third floor. Just look for Big C’s customer service.
Once our shopping spree was done, my body felt slightly weaker because of the cold air conditioning. We rushed to centralwOrld for lunch and decided on Somboon Seafood.
Lunch was super delicious, I have to admit. We ordered a small fried curry crab and a plate of stir-fried oyster with flour and egg. The crab’s seasoning was amazing, while the oyster was so fresh, perfect with Thai green sauce. With two small bowls of rice, lunch cost us 942 Baht—pricey, but worth it.
Since I didn’t feel fit enough to walk and my sister had too many things to carry, we returned to the hotel by tuktuk. This was where bargaining skills were needed. We managed to lower the price from 200 Baht to 100 Baht (still 10 Baht more expensive than Grab, but fine).
Back at the hotel, we rested for about an hour. My mom and I quickly slept. After taking my medicine and regaining some strength, we continued our journey to Chinatown.
This was my first time in Bangkok’s Chinatown—and I can confidently say I would love to go back. The vibe was immaculate, the food was great, and there were so many cute photo spots.
Our first stop in this area was Nai Ek Roll Noodle. We ordered the roll noodles soup (small size) and deep-fried crispy pork with rice (small size).
Everything tasted amazing. I would definitely return and recommend the place.
Next, we tried a local dessert we assumed were coconut rolls.
Again, amazing.
After more walking, my sister was intrigued by a pork and salted egg bun from a street vendor, so we tried one.
Look at the filling—it’s packed with pork and tasted so good.
For the next two stops, however, we weren’t as lucky.
We almost got scammed by a fritter vendor. The seller, an old lady, took our payment but insisted she hadn’t. After some back-and-forth, she finally gave us our change.
And the bad experience didn’t stop there. At the next small eatery, the waitress mixed up our order. Instead of crispy oyster omelette, she served stir-fried oyster. It was an honest mistake—a human error anyone could look past. But instead of apologizing, the waitress and her coworker argued about it in their language. The coworker even lightly hit our table before checking with the boss. When he returned to take back the dish, we told him the stir-fried version was fine, but the whole situation ruined our mood.
Conclusion: very bad service—definitely not recommended.
Those last two experiences affected us more than we admitted. In unison, we agreed not to eat anymore and simply walked to the nearest train station.
During our ride home, the sky grew darker as night fell. Bangkok looked more beautiful than ever. Its distinctive busyness and city lights shimmered through every street and intersection.
Since we still felt like walking a little, we wandered around the Pratunam night market before going back to the hotel.
After another round of durian and pork sausage, we were exhausted. Each of us showered and got ready for bed. There were still many exciting days ahead of us, and we were quite convinced that all the bad luck had blown away with the wind during our last two stops in Chinatown.
***
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