Bangkok—Fitting it all in

We can’t do it all. We need to recognize that our flight leaves on Thursday and accept reality (maybe cry a little too). So we prioritize. Shopping at The Bobae Market, then massage, then an evening bike tour of Bangkok.

The Bobae Market is a clothing market that primarily sells wholesale but will also deal with bargain hunting farangs like us. We can’t try anything on, but that’s to be expected when one bypasses retail. At the canal boat pier we must have appeared to know what we were doing because first some Australians and then some Americans asked us for directions. After helping them figure out the system we realized—we’ve been here a while! We know where things are and how to get around (‘Cept for that bus). We feel like regulars! We don’t wanna go home! Can we stay a little longer???

The massage was a fantastic experience. Those ladies find every single tight muscle and work them hard (you might cry)! For having petite hands and tiny sized Thai bodies, these massage providers somehow morph into Incredible Hulk when it comes to power and strength. Deana and I came out all bendy, twisty and pummeled into muscular submission. 60 minute Thai massage—highly recommended if you have $10 to spare! ($12 if you leave a tip—worth every bhat!)

Randy opted  to shop at MBK mall with Ben in order to avail himself of the air conditioned atmosphere, spend some time with his son, and maybe find some treasure to bring home. (Despite returning empty handed).

We had a final opportunity for some two-wheeled exploration. We took the Evening Bike Tour excursion with Jay, from Velo Thailand and it was an exhilarating experience that exceeded our expectations, and one that can never be replicated at home! Amazing Jay knows her way around the city. She took us down hidden alleyways that would have been impossible for us to discover on our own. Jay is also a wealth of knowledge and was able to answer some enduring questions we’ve had. We saw Bangkok the way we love to see all of Thailand—on bikes, seeing it all—the beautiful, the flawed, the gnarly—all utterly interesting! In the lesser visited west side of the Chao Phraya River we saw tiny communities connected by even skinnier knobbly pathways that twisted and turned into hidden areas that enthralled and delighted. We visited The Flower Market, Wat Arun, and Chinatown. The road through Chinatown was crazy with cars, people, taxis, tuktuks—we squeezed through, around, in front of and behind all the moving road users. Jay confirmed what we’ve come to learn—there are no real rules (not that are followed, anyways). You go by instinct. Look for an opening, put your hand in the air to stop traffic then flow to where you need to go.

We flowed to the Pak Khlong Talat Flower Market, Thailand’s largest wholesale flower market, open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It’s a sprawling market with endless rows of roses, orchids, carnations, and miles of marigolds, jasmine and lotus flowers to name a few. It’s difficult to comprehend the enormity of its size and the scale of production. If we didn’t have so many questions it could have rendered us speechless.

Night time riding in Bangkok is amazing!