Sunrise Tacos, Mexican Cuisine In Bangkok

Posted on March 5, 2013 by koomatzu

Where to go for Mexican food in Bangkok?

Sunrise Tacos is a colourful new restaurant located in Bangkok’s Silom area, specialising in Mexican cuisine. You can find Sunrise Tacos close to the BTS Sala daeng station by following signs to CP tower, then heading towards Chong Nonsi along Silom Road from here (silom soi 4). Outside, the Mexican restaurant draws in passers-by with it’s quaint outdoor sitting area of brightly decorated tables, cushioned chairs, lanterns and imitation turf. A meal at the Bangkok Sunrise Tacos typically cost between 150 and 400 baht.

Here, the portions are quite substantial and filling and they serve fajitas, grilled meats, nachos as well as some very delicious looking cakes. However the great thing about the nachos at Sunrise Tacos, is that they have a whole selection of dips to choose from from the large and impressive dip counter that extends throughout the middle of the restaurant.

A basket of nachos and dips at Sunrist Tacos costs 59 baht. I opted for the healthy choice of grilled salsa chicken with mediterranean vegetables and mexican style rice priced at 195 baht. The chicken was perfect in texture; slightly crispy but moist on the inside, subtly flavoured from the spicy salsa. The chicken fajita was also full of flavour and just the right consistency and crispiness.

The staff at Sunrise Taco are not particularly cheerful or friendly but they are still very attentive and quick. I didn’t have any dessert as the rest of the food filled me up enough, but that looked pretty damn good as well. All in all, for two of us to dine at Sunrise Taco in Silom, Bangkok, it cost a total of 660 baht.

Some people may find the garish, brightly coloured sign off putting when passing, but if you’re a fan of Mexican food, do not let this sway you. The food is very good, well cooked and not greasy, with plenty of choice. And it is quite pleasant to sit in the outside ‘garden’ to do some people watching on the busy and energetic Bangkok road of Silom.

You can find another Bangkok branch of Sunrise Tacos in Asoke as well, just across the main Sukhumvit road from Terminal 21. It’s very close to the Asoke BTS station in Bangkok. Asoke Sunrise Tacos has large beer gardens set back just off the main road.

Money In Thailand

Posted on March 4, 2013 by koomatzu

Cost of living in Thailand

How much the cost of living in Thailand will be for anybody depends on the things in life that are most important to that individual person. For example, I spend the majority of my money in Thailand on sports and exercise, and then on the extra food to supplement this. I live in the centre of Bangkok and I don’t eat street food for every meal, I treat myself more than a couple of times a week to some variation of good food in a cafe or restaurant. I like to spend money in Thailand travelling, exploring and I also like to buy clothes, but on top of this, for some reason I feel drawn like a magnet whenever I go in a Boots or Watsons, I just want to spend my money on everything. What is it with women and pharmacies anyway?

Beer isn’t that cheap in bars and pubs; just as an idea, the cost of a beer in Thailand such as Chang and Singha is around 100 baht a pint (£2 or $3), but you can also buy a bottle of Thai whisky like Sangsom for about 290 baht (£6 or $9); just half of one of these will easily do for me. Beers like Guinness or Hoegaarden will cost from around 250 baht a pint (£5 0r $7).

Anyway this month, my cost of living in Bangkok totalled 24000 baht (£530 or $800). I also made 5000 baht (£100 or $150) from extra work, I didn’t earn much money from work at all this month – I worked about 3 days altogether… my movie career in Thailand seems to be dying a slow death after it has only just begun. Sad times.

Anyway, from what I’ve googled and seen online, a great deal of people seem to say you can’t live on this low amount of money in Thailand, especially Bangkok, but I guess I have proof otherwise. Although I eat out a lot and spend more money in Thailand than I really need to, I just don’t think anyone could live much cheaper than this anyway; everybody has their vices in life. To have an even lower cost of living in Thailand, you would have to live frugally and not have much of a life I think. But of course the cost of living is much cheaper outside of Bangkok.

*Update: Please note that I have since managed reduce my cost of living in Bangkok to around 18000 baht per month (£400 or $600) simply by not going shopping and by eating mostly street food. You can read more about eating on a budget here.

Cost of food in Thailand for one month: 7900 baht (£175 or $260)

Most days for lunch I will eat Thai street food, either to takeaway or sit in, at 30 – 35 baht ($1) for a meal. It’s actually pretty good too. On evenings, mainly out of convenience and laziness, I will often eat at our apartment restaurant or the restaurant next door for around 50 – 90 baht per meal. A couple of times a week or more, we tend to cave and spend money at more expensive, maybe western style restaurants for up to 350 baht (£8 or $12) each.

Most days I will also spend money on extra snacks such as chopped fruit bags, meat sticks, dumplings, steamed buns, fried chicken, soy milk and the odd bubble milk tea; all of which cost from 10 baht per serving. 1150 baht of my spendings this month was used at 7 11s and Top supermarkets mainly on toilet roll, cereal, milk and bread. Cereal is a luxury in Thailand, one box can cost up to 300 baht… Furthermore, water in Thailand is pretty much negligible as you can buy it purified from Reverse Osmosis machines for 1 baht per litre.

Bubble milk drinks from a street vendor

Cost of transport in Thailand for one month: 2738 baht (£60 or $90)

I spend money on the Bangkok BTS sky train on a daily basis. 900 baht (£20 or $30) of this total was spent on the MRT subway, the ferry and topping up my BTS carrot card. I spent 600 baht on taxis, mainly to get to work in Bangkok in the unsociable, early hours of the morning or basically whenever other times the BTS is closed at night. Getting around Bangkok city in a taxi shouldn’t cost any more than 200 baht a journey – taxis in Bangkok for me usually average around 100 baht per ride. A typical journey on the BTS can cost between 15 baht and 50 baht per journey depending on the distance (the MRT underground is also very similar in price). The ferry usually only costs 15 baht. I spent another 900 baht on a 460 km return train and bus journey when making a trip up north. The remaining 300 baht went on two days of moped rental (after splitting between the two of us).

Cost of rent & bills in Thailand for one month: 5500 baht, split between two (£120 or $180)

We pay 10,000 baht for a 40 sqm studio apartment which is situated 10 minutes walking distance from a BTS station in Bangkok. If you live alone, you can find a basic, smaller studio apartment from 4000 baht; for a couple you can find slightly bigger apartments from 8000 baht. It will obviously cost more money the closer you live to the centre or subway/ skytrain in Bangkok. You can find more information in my article renting in Bangkok.

Cost of clothing in Thailand for one month: 4000 baht (£90 or $130)

With this money, I practically bought about 8 new outfits from Platinum Mall and Siam for 1050 baht, at Boots and Watsons I spent about 900 baht (what the hell I spent that on other than sun cream I do not remember! Shameful), 200 baht on phone topup and 1300 baht on a ukulele. Anyway, for more information on average costs of clothing and souvenirs in Thailand you can check the prices here.

Total spent on recreation in Thailand for one month: 3400 baht (£75 or $115)

This includes 600 baht spent on booze, 2000 baht on hotels and 750 baht on a cycle tour (you can see more details on this by clicking here)

Cost of gyms and fitness classes in Thailand for one month: 1000 baht (£20 or $30)

This covers two pole dance classes costing 500 baht per class. I am also a member of a gym in Bangkok but paid for this upfront for 6 months. Technically, this would work out to cost about 2000 baht per month as well.

For more information on the cost of living and money in Thailand, you can check out more on my expenses here: Month 1 and Month 2

Thaipod 101 Review

Posted on March 1, 2013 by koomatzu

Thaipod 101 consists of a range of conversation lessons in varying difficulties, video lessons and a dictionary of the 100 most used Thai words (or many more depending on the package you purchase). The conversation lessons run for roughly 10 minutes in length, they will play a conversation first at normal speed, then slowed down and lastly alongside the english translation. After playing the conversation three times at the beginning, the two Thaipod 101 hosts then go on to talk about interesting facts about the culture and go into more detail about the content of the conversation. This breaks up the Thai lesson quite nicely and gives it a little more of an informal feel.

There are some other smart learning tools with Thaipod 101, for example tagging any words that you might be having difficulty with and then using them as flash cards. They also have PDFs you can download to supplement the lessons. The basic package costs around $8 for one month (N.B the longer you sign up for, the cheaper it gets) and you can sign up for a free 7 day trial to see if you like it first.

Thaipod 101 Review

The downside

I did find that the hosts on Thaipod101 spoke quite unnecessarily quickly – in the beginner lessons they spoke a little fast for someone new to the language but don’t even get me started on the intermediate lessons! Way too fast and mumbly… I always used to think they must just be warming us up because Thai people in real life must speak super fast. Well no, actually they don’t! A lot of Thai people speak really quite clearly, so it is completely unnecessary!

But while I’m on the subject of the Intermediate lessons… I really did not enjoy these lessons. They replaced one of the hosts, Ryan, with a new guy who just had absolutely no character, or life in him for that matter, whatsoever. I really don’t mean to be personal, but his voice was just so tired and mind-numbing… it sounded like he did not want to be there doing his job, he just sounded depressed. Not particularly stimulating when you’re trying to learn a language from this voice. Apart from the dreary tone of these intermediate lessons, I found them to be a little useless in content. Maybe not so much grammar wise, but as for the vocabulary – it was all a little too specific and useless for everyday conversation. It would have been much better to be learning more commonly used words instead.

Another problem I found with Thaipod 101 was that they tended to gloss over and neglect some of the grammatical abnormalities in conversations which sometimes left me a little confused. I think this is a common problem with most Thai learning resources though, Thai is a complex language, full of abnormalities. I guess they were just focusing on the main grammar points of that lesson though, and they did explain and break down those points quite lucidly. I used to be a member of Japanesepod 101 and found these lessons to be much more interesting. I think Thaipod 101 just needs some stronger characters to host it, some more enthusiastic acting and more interesting conversations like they had in Japanesepod 101.

Pros

I enjoyed the Absolute beginner and the Beginner lessons and found them to be particularly helpful for extra listening practice. They were all set in everyday settings applicable in most tourist and expat situations, so were full of useful phrases and vocabulary. It’s nice to have the lessons broken up by the chit chat of the hosts as well, it makes it all a little bit easier to take in, more enjoyable to listen to and not so daunting. The downloadable PDF also summarised some of the rules and points covered in lessons very concisely and straightforward, making them easy to look back on at a later date and review.

The learning tools such as the Flash cards are also quite useful, particularly for those who maybe aren’t so organised and co-ordinated with their studies. The dictionary is great for improving your vocabulary as it comes with pictures, thai script and recordings and example sentences to help you learn. I have heard a lot of people confused and wondering if Innovative Learning (aka pod 101 series) is some sort of scam because they have a tendency to send a lot of emails and the prices quoted on the front page can be misleading. In all fairness it does seem a little bit dodgy! But I have found them to be a very honest and trustworthy company, for example when I forgot to cancel my yearly membership they were very understanding and refunded my money for me.

Membership is so cheap for Thaipod 101 and for the price, it is very good listening practise to supplement any other studies, not to mention some of the useful phrases covered. Personally, I think listening practise is vital to improving in a language, it helps reinforce what you have learnt and train you ears to recognize the sounds and words. The downfall of learning from books, is that you aren’t associating words with the way they actually sound. Give it a try, for $8 you’ve got nothing to lose!

Protein In Thailand

Posted on February 27, 2013 by koomatzu

Bodybuilding in Thailand

For some people, bodybuilding may be regarded as a high priority in their daily lives and hence may be a concern when moving to a different and unfamiliar country like Thailand. There is more to keeping in shape and developing your body to just working out – diet is equally important. For more rigorous exercise like bodybuilding, you need a lot of protein and sometimes it’s not possible, or particularly healthy, to get this from food alone.

Unfortunately, protein in Thailand is expensive. On average you will find 1kg of protein powder to cost around 2000 baht (£40) in Thailand. You’ll get roughly 20 servings out of this. Milk in Thailand costs about 80 baht (£1.60) for a 2 litres carton of milk. So I’d say it works out to about 70-80 baht to make your own protein shake in Thailand. At a typical Thai gym, you can purchase a protein shake at the cafe for around 100 baht.

You can buy protein powders and protein bars (bars from 120 – 170 baht each or £2.40 – £3.50) from most pharmacies and Boots shops in Thailand, although none of the brands of protein are particularly high quality ones like the ones you can get in other countries. However, in Bangkok, the best place I have found so far for protein supplements and similar bodybuilding supplies is located in Silom.

Where to buy protein in Bangkok

Head west down Surawong Road from the Rama IV intersection near Sala Deng BTS. Pass the ‘Japanese street’ – Thaniya Soi 2 and you will find a local pharmacy called DD Pharmacy on the left hand side with a range of whey protein and body building supplements in the window. I have found this to be the best source of whey protein for bodybuilding in Thailand.

Meaty foods 🙂

High protein foods in Thailand

Protein shakes may be expensive in Thailand but there are still plenty of economical and natural sources of protein in Bangkok. There is plenty of street meat available, although some of the meat may not be particularly healthy. You’ll find a great deal of deep fried chicken and unidentifiable meatballs on skewers, which, although surprisingly tasty, is mostly heavily processed (and, according to recent news, possibly made from Soi dog meat). Moo Ping (barbecued pork on skewers) is a tasty source of protein but very fatty.

You can still find many street vendors in Thailand barbecuing some healthier pieces of chicken or fish though. The barbecued meat is really tasty and, as far as I know, maybe the healthiest option for street meat. Barbecued chicken typically costs from around 30 baht, depending on the size of it, and grilled fish will cost from around 80 baht, again depending on the size.

Meatball skewers generally cost 10 baht per stick and come with a dollop of chilli sauce in a bag. You can buy deep fried chicken with a bag of sticky rice and chilli sauce for about 35 or 40 baht (or on its own for around 25 baht – thats 50 pence or 70 cents), but it’s probably a little bit fatty and greasy for some bodybuilders. Assuming most expats bodybuilding in Thailand are reasonably health conscious anyway.

7 11s are abundant in soy milk drinks to give you a protein boost. I have found the red cartons called ‘Vitamilk Big’ to be the best ones; the least sugar and 10 grams of protein per carton. These cost 10 baht each. What with 7 11s existing practically every 300 metres apart in Thailand, chances are there will be one outside wherever you workout – buy three of these fuckers and you’ve got your post workout 30g protein intake. Bam.

If you’re interested in checking out the gyms in Bangkok as well, take a look at my Gym Directory here.

Bangkok To Sukhothai

Posted on February 27, 2013 by koomatzu

Thailand is a huge country full of so many choices of what to do and where to visit. To help guide people on where to travel and what to do in Thailand, I will be starting a mini series of tried and tested mini trips in Thailand. When it comes to organising holidays in Thailand I am ridiculously meticulous and spend a stupidly long time planning the best places to go, what to do and researching the best value hotels with the top reviews.

Ruins at National Historical Park, Sukhthai

Two nights in Sukhothai

How to get to Sukhothai

Day 1: Catch the train (terminating in Chiang mai) from Bangkok Hualumpong station to Phitsanulok. For some reason you can not book the train online anymore, but tickets can easily be purchased on arrival at the train station. Check out www.railway.co.th for an up to date timetable.

N.B: A 2^nd class train ticket to Phitsanulok including aircon on the DRC train will cost around 490 baht. This train leaves at 8.30 and takes 5hrs + meal and snacks included – It’s clean, comfortable and quick with a western toilet

A 2^ndclass train ticket with fan only on the Rapid train will cost around 289 baht – This train does not include a meal and has a squat toilet instead (Quite the challenge on a bumping and jerking train). This train is also slower, taking around 7 hours. It is fine when travelling during the daytime, but it does become a bit of a bug fest at night time with all the windows open (not to mention a tad grubby).

A 3^rd class train ticket costs from around 69 baht- it’s not particularly comfortable so I would not recommend this for journeys over an hour long.

Catch the bus from Phitsanulok bus terminal to travel to Sukhothai – the ticket kiosks are clearly marked and the staff are very helpful in pointing you in the right direction. A bus ticket costs 43 baht and the journey to Sukhothai is just over an hour long. There are tuk tuks and buses outside of Phitsanulok train station which can take you to the Pitsanulok bus terminal located about 5 minutes away – the tuk tuks tend to charge around 60 baht for this.

Where to stay in Sukhothai

For people on a low budget, check in at TR Guesthouse in Sukhothai for around 300 baht per night. If you have time to spare, a trip to the main Sukhothai market is advised where you can buy some extremely cheap clothing and shoes or tuck into some of the local Sukhothai food. Also make sure to visit the Chopper Bar in Sukhothai, a few doors up from TR Guesthouse; a biker style bar where they have an awesome local musician to play american/ country infused Thai folk music every night.

Sukhothai historical park

After exploring Sukhothai town, on day 2 visit the Sukhothai historical Park – Hire a moped from 200 baht and cruise around the historical park ruins with a prepared picnic. Alternatively, catch the songthaew to the old city, and then rent a bicycle to cycle around Sukhothai historical park. It’s best to head out early in the morning or later in the afternoon/ evening to avoid the heat and the crowds. The Sukhothai historical ruins are absolutely huge, but in my opinion, 4 or 5 hours will suffice. Entry to each of the sections of Sukhothai historical park costs around 100 baht each.

Sukhothai countryside

Book a tour with Cycle Sukhothai

As well as Sukhothai historical park tours, Cycle Sukhothai also do countryside, sunset and Karma & Darma tours which are all a little more off the beaten track and show you a side of Sukhothai that you will unlikely experience as a tourist otherwise. In my opinion, touring the Sukhothai historical park is something you can easily do alone without a guide though. Cycle tours can cost from 350 baht – Check out www.cycling-sukhothai.com

Day 3: Take a taxi to the Sukhothai bus terminal for 60 baht and catch a bus back (they come roughly every hour) to Pitsanulok.

+ Optional Phitsanulok detour for nature lovers!

The charming Rainforest Resort, Phitsanulok

*Phitsanulok and Sukhothai are actually situated along the main route to Chiang Mai, so if you have not been before, it is a good idea to continue on the same train and make a visit to Chiang mai too.

The town of Phitsanulok itself, is a little lacking in things to do on it’s own. But if you hire a car or don’t mind catching the bus around, there are plenty of national parks and waterfalls to explore and experience the Phitsanulok rainforest, although they are fairly spread out.

Take a bus from Phitsanulok bus terminal to the highly recommended Rainforest Resort for 25 baht. This place is situated, if you can’t guess, in the rainforest area about 35km outside of Phitsanulok town and off the beaten track. Make sure to write the Thai address down and mention Khaeng song water fall (pronounced nam dtok gaeng song) so that you can catch the correct bus. It is a 5 minute walk back towards Phitsanulok from this waterfall. 1 night in a bungalow will cost from around 2000 baht.
The rainforest resort offers kayaking and white water rafting activities. You can also easily check out the nearby Khaeng Song waterfall where the Phitsanulok locals spend their days off for picnics and swims in the river.

A bungalow at Rainforest Resort

Road trippin’ Phitsanulok and Sukhothai. You can check here for more ideas of what to do in Thailand.

Extra Work In Thailand

Posted on February 16, 2013 by koomatzu

Jobs for foreigners in Thailand

One day in our first month living in Thailand, we met up with an acquaintance of of my boyfriend’s, who invited us out for some drinks on Facebook. The next time we met up with him I mentioned that I needed work while living in Thailand and couldn’t find any suitable jobs for foreigners. At this point he suggested I do modelling or Extra work in Thailand and that he could hook me up with a friend of his who did this… In my experience, people tend to make a lot of empty offers but never really pull through with their promises, so I didn’t think anything would come of this Extra work in Thailand and took it with a pinch of salt.

Well, to my surprise the next day, I got a message from this friend, giving me the friend of a friend’s details and telling me to email her for advice. I was taken a little off guard and to be honest, absolutely hated the idea of contacting a complete stranger for help and job advice… it kind of made me cringe. But… this friend of mine who I had only met twice now, was kind enough to try and help me find work and I was really grateful. So, I had to contact this person for his sake. And I did. Long story short, I met up with this girl who turned out to be most awesome – she hooked me up with her agent and I had a job as an Extra in a Bollywood movie in Bangkok the next day after meeting her.

Extra work in Thailand

Extra work in Thailand can differ greatly from job to job, so if you like a little variation in your work then it can be a more interesting option than teaching English or working within a company in an office. Some Extra jobs can start at 4am in the morning, some can start a 2pm in the afternoon. Sometimes you will finish after 4 hours and other times you could end up working 18 hours with overtime. You could be expected to dance and celebrate at a nightclub or merely sit doing nothing in the background.

Quite often, you will be expected to literally just walk backwards and forwards over and over again. You may be taken to grand mansions set 100 miles out of Bangkok or maybe just work in an abandoned warehouse in the centre. Sometimes you get time to snooze in the sun, sometimes they really get there money’s worth out of you, barely giving you time to eat and repeating over 30 takes of the same scene. There are nice directors in Thailand and there are bad ones that don’t treat you so well.

The only downside of extra work in Bangkok is that it is freelance, so your pay will vary depending on how much work you can find. It can be good fun though, and you get to meet so many interesting people. I also still find it intriguing now to see the adverts and movies from a perspective behind the scenes, although I never actually know the names to be able to look up the finished result.

Anyway, for a standard 12 hour long work day in Thailand, you can get paid from 1500 baht (£30 or $50). It seems low at first but you do need to remember that the minimum wage in Thailand is only 300 baht for a 12 hour day, so it really helps to keep this in mind before you start getting too greedy! However saying that, if you are really lucky, you might find an extra job in Thailand that pays 3000 baht (£60 or $100), or if you get a few lines you can even earn from 4000 baht upwards.

Many people I have met, got involved in Extra work the same way as me – through word of mouth. So sometimes it really pays to be a Yes man! Life and work in Bangkok all seems to be about word of mouth, unlike in the West, you just don’t seem to find everything in adverts in papers or on google in Thailand.

Extra work in Thailand tips

Here are some casting agencies in Bangkok that I have researched and been recommended. If you are in need of work in Bangkok, then it is worth a try sending some photos and your profile through these websites and asking for extra work:

www.modelingbyus.com

www.coolmodeling.net

www.starlighttalents.com

www.tigercasting.co

Facebook: Wattnott Talent

Facebook: Orange Talent agency

Facebook: Banana Casting

Extra work is ideal for foreigners in Thailand and you don’t need to worry about a work permit. You do not need to concern yourself too much with having professional shots to send to agencies – I only have rubbishy pictures myself – but it would help if you happen to have some to hand. But the first step when starting work as an extra in Thailand is getting your foot in the door. It helps immensely if you have contacts but this is just down to luck… If you can just get one agent interested in you, it will be much easier to find work in Thailand from then on out.

After I stopped getting work with my first agent in Bangkok, I sent my details and photos to some other agencies and never heard anything back from any of them. A couple of months later in Thailand though, I had a random phone call from an agency I had never even heard of before, offering me work. I can only assume my previous agent had maybe passed my details on, I really have no idea. At this particular job that they gave me, I met an agent from yet another different company who gave me his business card – this was actually one of the agencies I had applied to and not heard back from. So it really helps to meet people personally on the set in Thailand when you have the opportunity.

Wine Connection Bangkok

Posted on February 13, 2013 by koomatzu

Wine Connection is a chain of restaurants with branches spread across Asia. Bangkok has quite a few branches itself – Wine Connection provides great quality western food, mainly European. This is a great restaurant for indulging on home comforts from the west…

The Wine Connection Restaurant

As already mentioned, there are a couple of different Wine Connection locations across Bangkok city including Rain Hill Sukhumvit 47, Silom Complex and K-Village. If you are living in Bangkok and missing some of the finer quality foods as you might find in Delicatessans in the west, then a visit to the Wine Connection is a definite must.

The interior of all Wine Connection Restaurants tends to be modern and fashionable with industrial brick-effect walls, dark furnishings and dim lighting. Most branches have outdoor seating and the K-Village branch allows dogs.

Wine Connection Menu

The Wine Connection menu serves a range of foods from steak and potato wedges with ratatouille; pizza and pastas; a great range of healthy salads; and other dishes such as paella and Greek moussaka. If you head to one of the ‘Deli & Bistro’ branches of Wine Connection such as the one in K-Village, you’ll also find a great menu selection of cold meats, cured hams and cheeses. It’s quite rare to find decent quality meat and cheese in Bangkok like at the Wine Connection.

For the cost of between 120 and 500 baht for a meal, and 80 to 120 baht for a dessert, I believe the Wine Connection in Bangkok is a bargain! Not only is it a rare treasure to find this kind of food in Bangkok, but for the same good food as in say, England, it would cost at least four times the price. I’ve not found such good salads in Bangkok as in the Wine Connection either, it is a refreshing restaurant to visit for some healthier yet delicious food.

I think that the Wine Connection is one of those special restaurants where whatever you order from the menu, it is going to taste amazing – guaranteed. And everything that I ordered was indeed amazing. I don’t normally order salads… and I don’t normally order key lime pie either, I’m much more of a chocolate person. But it was pretty damn good.

Another great bonus about the Wine Connection is that the drinks aren’t extortionately priced either. Soft drinks on the menu start from around 40 baht – usually at this sort of high standard restaurant in Bangkok, drinks would cost double the price. It’s great value.

Secret Garden Cuisine Bangkok

Posted on February 13, 2013 by koomatzu

Secret Garden Cuisine is a cafe/ thai restaurant in Bangkok famed for it’s cakes (particularly it’s special ‘crepe cake’). Secret Garden Cuisine is situated in the Northern end of Sathorn Road in an old, white colonial English style building with huge bay windows and a pretty fairy-lit garden. Inside, the restaurant part is decorated with green walls, pristeen white furniture and twining plants and ivy. The cafe area of Secret Garden is very cosy, with comfy sofas and natural daylight streaming in through the large bay windows. Meals cost around 150 – 600 baht plus tax and service and cakes cost around 120 baht plus tax and service.

Is Secret Garden in Sathorn any good?

After having heard so much about Secret Garden in Bangkok before I went, I had high expectations for it. Especially the cake which is supposed to be absolutely amazing… Well, for me, it didn’t quite meet my expectations but the food was still good, and good portions as well as quality for the money. I ordered Green curry with pandan rice and papaya salad for 250 baht, and for this I got two generously sized plates of food, and very delicious too. I ordered the recommended Secret Garden crepe cake with strawberry sauce and it just wasn’t quite what it was hyped up to be. It was a little creamy and sickly about half way through. And the brownie cheesecake tasted quite strange, with a slightly rubbery texture.

I have had better cakes in Bangkok, for example Secret Recipe. However, I would consider going to Secret Garden for cake again sheerly for the pleasant ambience and décor of Secret Garden – especially in the cafe and garden areas. It would be a good restaurant to take visiting friends and family. The staff were very dilligent and friendly with quick delivery of food and excellent customer service. They may be construed to be a little pushy at times, like pushing to order starters and dessert, but sometimes this is not necessarily a bad thing if you just need a bit of a push to make decisions! In total, for smoothies, a decent sized, tasty main course, cake and coffee – this costed 600 baht each. Not too bad considering.

If you want to try some delicious and authentic thai cuisine with a twist, if you are or a great fan of seafood, or if you just want somewhere to take your night-club-loathing friends who are visiting for the week, then give Secret Garden Cuisine a try – daytime or night time for a cozy sit down in a charming environment.

Farang And Paranoia In Thailand

Posted on February 13, 2013 by koomatzu

People in Thailand laughing at me

One thing I love about thailand is some of the open mindedness that can be found in daily life. For example, I see a great deal of older and middle aged people reading comics and mangas, I see lady boys on a daily basis – people simply just being themselves, things that you do not always see in other parts of the world due to ridicule and closed mindedness. But in contrast to this, there also seems to be a kind of barrier between some Thai people and the rest of the world. I think that a lot of expats living in Thailand can at some point go through a stage of paranoia regarding racism during their stay there.

Many Thai people can be so friendly, but others seem to find foreigners so amusing, intriguing or even disgusting it seems. As a foreigner in Thailand, it can become quite irritating and also a little personal when people react to you so strangely in daily life. I grew up in a somewhat over-the-top politically correct environment and naturally it has always been very taboo to mention or notice a person’s race… The people that do have a tendency to notice and react to race in my country, tend to be quite aggressively or spitefully racist, but that isn’t necessarily the case in Thailand. So this hateful association with reaction to race in the west can make being treated differently difficult to accept and deal with at times.

There are so many more expats and tourists in Bangkok these days for people to become acclimatised to that I find it very odd for this ‘singling out’ to be so commonplace in Thailand. But the funny thing is, Bangkok – the most multi-cultural city in Thailand – is the worst culprit of all for this. Either way, the reaction to westerners from some people can be quite childish in some ways and it still surprises me to see some adults sniggering and staring for no particular reason. To me, I just can’t help but perceive this kind of attitude as somewhat xenophobic, even derogatory.. but it simply just isn’t a big deal for some to notice race in Thailand. If this kind of behaviour is beginning to grate on you, all I can say is do not take it personally.

The word ‘Farang’ in Thailand

Now, I completely understand that all cultures are different, and it is especially important to understand and accept other cultures when you are living in it yourself, more so. But, it does get to me after a while; being charged a different price simply because you’re not Thai (I still refuse to go a Muay Thai match because of the stupidly steep difference in price between ‘foreigner’ and ‘local’ tickets ;p), even feeling like you’re being laughed at, being talked about and last but not least, being called ‘Farang’. I’m not an easily offended person, and I know most Thai people probably don’t intend to use the word ‘Farang’ in an insulting way… but I can’t help but find it offensive, and I am curious to know if I am the only one who feels this way.

When you’re new and alone in a foreign country, there is a great sense of vulnerability which is not helped when you constantly hear people talking about you and reasserting your ‘differentness’… I hear this word pretty much on a daily basis… however sometimes I hear it with laughter, which sadly makes me feel like some sort of inferior race in Thailand, like an unwelcome outsider. I detest the word Farang and I never use it myself because of this, although I have heard other Westerners use it… but they can often use it in a deprecatory way, whilst belittling other expats or travellers who they deem inferior and inexperienced.

One time I walked into a photo shop to have my passport photo taken, I asked for this in Thai… but I guess my Thai wasn’t as good as I thought because the woman on the counter then mentioned the word ‘farang’ multiple times to her three customers who all proceeded to snigger and stare at me… When some people are just laughing their asses off at you without telling you why or what you said wrong… it’s not particularly amusing, confidence boosting or encouraging to learn the language for that matter. After a while of being singled out in this way, mixed with the simple vulnerable, loneliness of being in a foreign country, your paranoia gets the better of you. I find myself feeling very defensive about this word, my ears pricking whenever I hear somebody around me say it.

Of course you’re always going to get some bad eggs… in every corner of the world. These actions of just a few people can have really strong effects on you when you’re in a vulnerable situation so the bad experiences can easily make you misconstrue the perfectly innocent and normal behaviour of another person. I absolutely hate being generalised by my race, as a farang rather than as an individual human being, to me it is disrespectful; but I try to remember not to emulate this and generalise people by judging them and associating them with others who may use the word ‘Farang’ harshly. Cultures are different, when living in others you must learn to accept your different opinions, some people may not exactly be so ‘colour blind’ or politcally correct by your standards, but it is the intention of that individual person that is ultimately all that matters.

Best Shopping In Bangkok

Posted on February 12, 2013 by koomatzu

Bangkok Markets

There are so many different shopping malls and markets to visit in Bangkok, it can be quite overwhelming to decide where to go for the best shopping in Bangkok for you – particularly if your time in Bangkok is limited. People have different styles, tastes and different shopping budgets too. So take a look at my guide to the best shopping in Bangkok – it’s even in order of price range with the cheapest markets for shopping in Bangkok starting first!

If you have a tight budget and are looking for some super cheap shopping in Bangkok, welcome to part one of my Best Shopping in Bangkok guide. If you’d prefer to skip the cheaper Bangkok markets, check out part two for the shopping malls in Bangkok.

Siam street shopping in Bangkok

Whenever I need to buy something specific in Bangkok and don’t have much time, I always go shopping in the streets of Siam along the road from Central World to Big C. Along Siam, you can find most things from knockoff Hollister joggers for 120 baht, hotpant shorts (FYI great for pole dancing!) 100 baht and vests at 30 baht each.

It’s all cheap and basic Bangkok shopping and I love it. It’s great for easy shopping in Bangkok – one simple stretch of road and a diversity of stalls. Just make sure you head to Siam for shopping in the evening as there are many more stalls to choose from by this time.

+ Tip: Where to buy cheap office clothes for an interview in Bangkok? For the best shopping in Bangkok for office clothing and suits, make sure to head down to the Super K Outlet – a Korean discounted fashion outlet. Super K Outlet frequently has on sales of up to 90% discounts, so you can buy some nice office skirts and jackets etc reduced from as much as 1995 baht down to as little as 100 baht. Not to mention all the scarves, hats and sunglasses they sell at Super K Outlet.

Super K Outlet has been my saviour on many an occasion when I have needed emergency smart clothes in Bangkok that I don’t want to spend all my money on. You can’t miss it – It’s directly opposite Central World on Petchaburi Road complete with Korean pop music blaring and pulsating out from it. (Update – Super K Outlet in Bangkok may have closed down now)

Best shopping in Bangkok for: Shopping on a budget, shopping for office clothing in the Super K Outlet.

Average price range at Siam: Low, from 30 – 150 baht

How to get to Siam: Either take the BTS to Siam and you’ll find a shopping market on the opposite side of the road to Siam Paragon. Or take the BTS to Chit lom and then head past Gaysorn towards Central World . You can’t miss it, the streets towards Pratunam and the streets opposite Paragon at Siam Square become alive with Bangkok street stalls. Most of the Siam markets won’t open until in the evening after rush hour.

Pratunam Market Bangkok

Pratunam is huge area of outdoor and indoor indie wholesale Bangkok market stalls and in my opinion it is makes the best shopping in Bangkok for the biggest bargains of all. Pratunam market is where most Bangkok market stall owners buy all their products in bulk. Obviously you will get a better discount in Pratunam market if you buy more than one item from a shop but it’s still pretty cheap, and due to the sheer size of it, you’re likely to find what you’re looking for if you’re after something specific.

Pratunam market in Bangkok is MASSIVE. You can find many plain and simple items of clothing in Pratunam (reminding me a little of what you might buy in the budget shopping ranges like New Look) such as cardigans, leggings, harem trousers and vest tops… and you can also buy many colourful shirts, printed t-shirts and brightly patterned dresses. Most of this costing less than 200 baht per item.

However, Pratunam is primarily a wholesale market and not so much intended for individual shopping or shoppers just gaily and aimlessly mincing around in their own world. Because of this, it can give one the feeling of just.. well, being in the way. The shopping corridors on the inside of Pratunam market tend to be absolutely tiny and crammed full of busy sellers, people hurriedly pushing through with huge trolleys and even the odd motorbike squeezing their way through.

It’s a pretty crazy Bangkok shopping experience, and similarly on the outside, you are constantly trying not to get run over by the heavy traffic while shopping and browsing through the tiny and tightly packed together shops. Because of this stressful and heavily crowded atmosphere, I find I am unable to shop for long in Pratunam market… Personally it’s too big for me and my mousey brain gets confused – I just find shopping in Pratunam market to be frustrating and the clothing not really worth it.

Best shopping in Bangkok for: Bargain shopping, buying in bulk

Average price range at Pratunam market: Low 100 – 250 baht

How to get to Pratunam Market: Located up Petchaburi Road Bangkok, opposite from Platinum Fashion mall (See below) and around Baiyoke tower area.

Platinum Fashion Shopping Mall Bangkok

Platinum Fashion Shopping Mall has some cool shops, with some different styles to your standard Bangkok fashions. There is something to be found at Platinum Fashion Mall to suit everyone’s tastes, from hippy chic pants to rock chick t-shirts to glamorous dresses – Check the second floor of Platinum Fashion Mall in particular for some more individual styles.

Platinum Fashion is great for shopping wholesale in bulk, so it’s best if you have a friend or two to come with. I would recommend avoiding haggling at Platinum Fashion Mall if you are only buying one or a couple of items as this is a wholesale market so they are unlikely to reciprocate. The prices at Platinum Fashion Mall are decent – on average around 250 baht for a top. Maybe not as cheap as some of the clothes you might buy from the other Bangkok markets, but worth every baht in quality and design.

Another big bonus about shopping at the Platinum Fashion Mall is that it’s quite compact and not too overwhelming. It’s smaller than a lot of the other Bangkok shopping malls but still big enough and diverse enough to find what you need.

Though, the only downside about Platinum Fashion Mall is that the shop owners don’t allow you to try clothes on. Even if you wanted to try a shirt on over your vest for example – not allowed. This means you can end up wasting money on clothes that end up looking better on the hanger but rubbish when you get home and try it on.

Best shopping in Bangkok for: Low budget, alternative and different styles

Average price range at Platinum Fashion Mall: Low 150 – 300 baht

How to get to Platinum Fashion Mall: Get off at BTS Chit Lom, follow signposts for Central World, turn and walk down the road at Central World so that Gaysorn is on the opposite side of the road to you and Central World on your right. Keep walking straight for about 5 – 10 minutes minutes – Platinum Fashion Mall is just past Baskin Robbins on your left.

Chatuchak Weekend Market Bangkok

Of all the Bangkok markets, in my opinion Chatuchak market makes for the best shopping in Bangkok and is by far one of the biggest markets, full of both tourists and Thais alike. One of the big bonuses of Chatuchak market is that it is a pleasant Bangkok shopping experience due to the market stall owners and shop assistants being a little more mellow and fair. What I mean when I say this is that the whole atmosphere is friendlier and they don’t desperately pounce on you or pester you like at some other Bangkok markets.

On top of that, many of the stalls have marked prices charging the same for both foreigners and Thais. For all those out there who detest haggling in Bangkok as much as I do, then Chatuchak market is the ultimate Bangkok market shopping experience! Even just as a day out to browse the arts and crafts, hard and soft furnishings, or gawk at the cute puppies, Chatuchak market is great fun!

The clothes, jewellery and bags at Chatuchak market are very diverse in style as and you can buy handmade jewellery from 30 baht or as little as 100 baht for a cute dress when some places have sales on. You can find any style of clothing from the brightly coloured, cheap summery dresses (typical of all the tourist markets) to simple, popular Thai fashions to very cool, unique clothing from indie designers.

For men, there are a good selection of T-shirts with many different designs up to size XL. There are also whole sections dedicated to denim wear, second hand clothing and converse shoes. Especially great for those with a taste for shopping bohemian and alternative styles.

Chatuchak market can get very busy though, even in the BTS station it can be quite a challenge to even make it to the market! Not only this, but it is absolutely huge. This may be a plus for some people but it’s easy to get lost and confused with where you’ve covered so far. Just make sure you go on the weekend – in the week Chatuchak market turns into an agricultural plant market.

Best shopping in Bangkok for: Sightseeing and shopping for ethnic, bohemian stlyes of clothing and house wares

Average price range at Chatuchak market: Low 150 – 250 baht

How to get to Chatuchak Market: Follow the crowds from BTS Mo Chit Station

Khaosan Road Market Bangkok

If you’re struggling to find clothes in Bangkok to suite your tastes amongst the ultra girly, ribbon adorned Thai fashion, Khaosan road is your place. It definitely caters more for the Westerners shopping tastes… Khaosan Road has loads of hippy style clothing and alternative jewellery…

It’s all relatively cheap but nothing is priced so there is of course a chance of overpaying unless you are an expert haggler… shopping is still usually fairly priced at Khaosan Road though, even if you are ripped off a little bit… just see my Bangkok shopping price guide for tips anyway. Some of the goods along Khaosan Road can be a little cheap in the way of materials and quality, but if you look hard enough you can still find some better quality items; leather cuffs, flowery cotton dresses, handmade earrings etc.

Khaosan Road

It can get a tad manic so if you’re not a fan of the typical tourist-trap vibed places then this may not be the best shopping in Bangkok for you. Khaosan Road is perfect for shopping in the evening and having a few drinks in the bars along the way though otherwise! Be sure to check out the road adjacent to Khaosan Road, Rambuttri Road, which is a little more mellow and nicer on the eyes.

Best shopping in bangkok for: T-shirts, bohemian styles, dresses and clothing for Western tastes

Price range at Khaosan Road: Low 150 – 300 baht

How to get to Khaosan Road: Ferry to Pra Arthit pier from Saphan Taksin

Rambuttri Road, next to Khaosan

Train market Bangkok

Update: As of May 2013, Rod Fai Market has been demolished to make way for the new Bangkok BTS route. But the new Rod Fai Market has now relocated – You can read more about the new train market in Bangkok here.

The Train market, or Talad Rod Fai as it is sometimes called, is located very near to ~~Jatujak market~~ and, similarly to Chatuchak market, is also only open on the weekends, but only in the evenings. The Train market is a cool and quirky place to hang out in Bangkok – you can chill out in one of the small bars opened up from the back of Volkswagen camper, or you can browse the old antique displays and trinkets for sale.

In keeping with the antique and vintage theme of the Bangkok market, the clothing is also mostly vintage in style as well. You can also find many stalls selling cheap, second hand converse trainers and other sneakers quite cheaply. Randomly, I also found an underwear stall here, where they sell some good underwear sets for 150 baht. Overall, the train market has a real nice, laid back vibe to it – a pleasant environment for shopping in Bangkok and listening to some good music.

Best shopping in Bangkok for: Vintage clothing and retro knick knacks, or just chilling out and drinking a beer

Average price range at the Train Market: Low 150 – 250 baht

How to get to the Bangkok Train Market: ~~From MRT Kamphaeng Phet station, walk about five minutes in the opposite direction of Jatujak market (after 5pm Saturday and Sunday). It is on the right side of the road.~~

Patpong Night Market Bangkok

My opinion on shopping in Bangkok Patpong Market – Avoid it. Patpong Night Market can be a bit of a tourist trap, you do not see Thai people shopping at Patpong Market. In my opinion, Patpong Market sells the same clothing and souvenirs as most of the other markets, only they seem to target Westerners and so inflate their prices big time.

Nothing has a price tag and you are expected to haggle when shopping at Patpong market, which to me is a bad sign unless you are an expert haggler. I asked the price of a crappy looking pair of rope thong sandals at Patpong Market – just because I needed a cheap temporary pair. The sales woman said ‘1000 baht’. She then followed me with her calculator asking how much I wanted to pay to which I was not interested in the slightest!

I found these shoes elsewhere for 250 baht while shopping at Asiatique a week later. The only positive about shopping at Patpong market, is that they have a supply of larger sized clothing to fit westerners, in case you are having trouble finding clothes in Bangkok to fit.

Best shopping in Bangkok for: Plus sizes and souvenirs

Average price range at Patpong Market: Low, 150 – 1000 baht

How to get Patpong Night Market: Can be seen from BTS Saladaeng station

Asiatique Bangkok

Asiatique is similar to Chatuchak market in Bangkok but not as big. Maybe if you feel a little overwhelmed by Chatuchak, Asiatique would be a good substitute for market shopping in Bangkok. Also, if you are more interested in mixing your Bangkok shopping up with some fine dining and pretty, night time lights – this is your market!

Asiatique is great just for a visit and even just window shopping in Bangkok – There is plenty of clothing, trinkets and soft furnishings to choose from (very similar to some of the shopping in Chatuchak market). If you like Asiatique, also try K-Village which is very similar and pleasant to explore and dine.

Best shopping in Bangkok for: An evening out… or just to buy some pretty accessories or dresses

Average price range at Asiatique: Low 200 – 350 baht (The restaurants are more expensive though)

How to get to Asiatique: Catch the free ferry anytime from 6pm which departs from the central pier in Saphan Taksin

Siam square Bangkok

Siam square is made up of a maze of arcades; small individual shops cluttered along the walkways both indoors and outdoors. I think one of the things I appreciate about shopping in Siam Square the most, is the diversity in style, quality and prices… Whereas in the usual Bangkok markets, you typically have a massive repetition of the same clothes and bags in all the different stalls; and then at the completely opposite spectrum of things, you have the fancy shopping malls selling ridiculously overpriced designer fashions.

Plenty loads of individual boutique shops to be found in Siam Square

At Siam Square you can still find, for example, an affordable pair of shoes for 299 baht, but you can also find yourself some very good quality shoes from 800 baht upwards. You can still get a t-shirt for 200 baht, or, in contrast, you can find yourself a fashionable evening dress for 800 baht or more. Similarly, there is a nice range of jewellery and accessories from handmade necklaces and stone pendants, to alternative leather cuffs and sparkly feather earrings.

Best shopping in Bangkok for: Interesting and reasonably priced jewellery and accessories, alternative skater shops

Average price range at Siam Square: Varies – low to medium: 200 baht to 1000 baht

How to get to Siam Square: Located directly across the road from Siam Paragon at BTS station Siam.

Outside shops around Siam Square

Best shopping in Bangkok. Check my Thailand price guide for the ultimate Bangkok shopping experience. Or, check my other guides on where to buy cheap shoes, clothes and gadgets in Bangkok.