An Evening at Lumpini Park

Last evening, the husband and I decided to go to Lumpini Park for an evening walk. There was a pleasant breeze and I found myself aching for open, green spaces. The park is about a 5-10 minute walk from Ratchadambri BTS station. With a few small lakes at its heart and plenty of beautiful, tropical trees, Lumpini Park has already become one of my favourite hangouts!

At about 7-30 pm, there were quite a few people around but it was not crowded. We glimpsed all kinds: runners, joggers, walkers, stretchers, cyclists, sitters, chatters...even a few martial arts practitioners! The park is surprisingly quite, given its proximity to the main road.

Most folks stick to the 2.5 kilometre track that runs along the outer edge of the park. However, there are also plenty of smaller, interconnecting paths branching off from the main track, Things get pretty interesting down these side-roads -- we saw a couple of lovely shrines and chanced upon a group of cackling old men engaged in some sort of competitive card game! 

If you exit at Ratchadambri Road or Sarasin Alley, you can grab a quick bite before heading home; the former has a makeshift sit-down cafe serving local dishes (just by the gate) and the latter has a row of street-food stalls to choose from (as soon as you come out the gate).

So put on your walking/running shoes, and head to Lumpini Park for some fresh air and exercise -- two things most of us can definitely use more of! :)

Khao San & Rambuttri: Hippie-Dippie Bangkok

This Sunday, the husband and I ventured out of our comfort zone of Central Bangkok. We decided to go to the backpacker area known as Khao San Road. There is no BTS/MRT connectivity to Khao San, so we hopped into a meter taxi instead. Twenty minutes and 80 Baht later, we were at our destination! (We were going from Ratchadambri and the driver took a great back route, avoiding practically all traffic.)

Khao San is your typical backpacker haven -- little shops selling junk jewellery and summery clothes, food carts with fresh fruit and noodles, cheap souvenir stalls, currency changers galore, outdoor cafes with cheap drinks... In other words, the perfect place to spend a lazy, laidback Sunday without breaking the bank -- if you're okay with spending a few hours without air-conditioning, that is! 

Khao San Road in all its chaotic yet laidback glory

If you're planning to shop, bargain HARD or stick to the fixed-price stalls. I bought the below earrings for 20 baht and the bracelet for 30 baht at fixed price shops. However, when I asked about the price of the same bracelet at a different shop, the shopkeeper quoted 150 baht (and I'm not even Caucasian -- she would have probably doubled the figure again if I were!). This doesn't really make a difference for a one-off purchase but if you're planning to shop there a lot (like I am), then it definitely adds up.

Trinkets from Khao San Road

We also discovered "ID sellers" in the area! At first, we were perplexed by the boards with hundreds of Identity Cards -- driver's licenses, student cards, work permits -- displayed by the side of the road. "Is it a lost & found board? A lamination service?" we pondered, until we realised that these were fake IDs for sale! I must admit I was extremely tempted to get a student ID (apparently, you get excellent student discounts in Thailand)...alas, better sense prevailed!

We meandered down Khao San Road, sampling street food along the way. At the end, we turned right onto Chakrabongse Road and then turned right again onto Rambuttri Alley, which is where we finally plonked down at the absolutely delightful Macaroni Club (pictured below). Drinks are cheap: a pint of Chang beer is 80 baht and a Jack Daniels + Diet Coke is 140 baht. They also have an extensive menu -- Thai, Continental, Italian, seafood, breakfast-y items like pancakes, waffles, etc. Service is excellent -- friendly and prompt. There's no service charge.

The Macaroni Club, Rambuttri Alley

A bit further down the road lies the utterly charming restaurant below, called (of all things) My Darling. In a strange twist of fate, it turned out to have the EXACT same menu and prices as Macaroni Club. (Perhaps they opened at the same time and got a great deal on the menus???)

We had an early supper of cocktails, beer and pizza. They also serve sheesha after 7 pm -- although at 400 Baht, it is one of the most expensive sheeshas you will find in the city! Service is friendly but slow. The second round of drinks and the fresh coal for the sheesha took ages to arrive. Granted, the place was buzzing with people by then but there seemed to be enough staff members to handle the crowd. By the way, a bottle of wine at both these places is under 1000 baht, which makes them the perfect venues for a reasonable & mildly drunken Sunday brunch! 

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My Darling, Rambuttri Alley

It was dark and pouring by the time we left. We were umbrella-less and quite exhausted with the day's adventures, so we got into the first cab we could find even though the driver overcharged us horrendously (150 Baht for a journey that cost 80 Baht in the morning). Oh well, I'm just going to think of it as an extra "rain charge"!