On our last full day in Bangkok we traveled outside of the city to see aspects of Thailand that are more representative of everyday Thai living. The Maeklong Train Market is a local fresh market where you can find everything from spices to live catfish (not to mention live stray cats walking over all the products). What makes this market different is how close it is to the train that passes through 4-5 times per day. When the train is approaching the purveyors need to move all of their products away from the tracks, some even have tables that are on tracks with wheels to slide easily. Unfortunately we didn't get to see the train pass by, but we definitely got a sense of Thai life from this unique perspective.
Minature tuna fish... Sabrina didn't like the overwhelming smell of fish and the overall unsanitary conditions of the food
Floating Market
Our second stop on this half day trip was to the Floating Market. A long time ago this market was also used by Thai people to sell fresh products and handmade goods; however, it has become a tourist trap where you find many of the same cheap souvenirs at every booth. Mook told us that if we wanted to buy anything that we should bargain down to less than 50% of the original price. We arrived at around 9:00 am, and thank god we did because after about 40 minutes the canals were so full of boats that you couldn't move. Our paddle boat driver took us through the side canals where the people who work in these markets live, and we were able to see what rural Thai housing looked like.
Beautiful Pictures Max! You're quite the photographer but you've always had a good eye (you picked Sabrina right?!)It's all so fascinating and colorful..I'm really enjoying the commentary with the pictures
ReplyDeleteThose poctures are quite amazing . What a different world , certainly more colorful than any market at home.
ReplyDeleteKisses.
Mam.