Fly Now III Window Display (Bangkok)

Here's a window display that caught my eye while I was at Siam Centre in Bangkok, a place that houses the best Thai local designers for clothes. This is the shop front of Fly Now III, and its styling can be best described as a surreal dreamscape where Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream meets the world of the Chronicles of Narnia. The clothes worn by the magical creatures exude an exotic mix of colours and playfulness. Couldn't really get the pictures I wanted due to the glare and reflection from the glass windows, but managed to take some shots from another of its branch at Siam Paragon. Strangely, my friend didn't like it at all due to the huge animal heads but I did.

Grey Hound at Siam Paragon

Had dinner with my friends at Another Hound by Greyhound (a mouthful of a name) located at Siam Paragon. The Greyhound version of Thai papaya salad comes in a much smaller portion than what we were used to, which is usually a mountain of papaya shreds. It was an elegant portion with little grapes and pineapples but there wasn't really much to share or to pass around. The mussels with tomatoes and basil came with 3 slices of bread, strategically placed to hold back the gravy. It had a nice sweet sour taste when eaten with the bread. The squid ink sphaghetti with scallops looked and tasted heavenly as the scallops were very fresh while the calamari tasted just right, without being over fried or oily. 

The Greyhound chain is famous for its attention to details. Heard from friends who come regularly - its ice lemon tea is served with ice cubes made from frozen ice tea. This way, the drink will never taste diluted even if the ice melts. Unfortuately, we had dinner really late that Sunday night and they ran out of lemon tea ice cubes. But overall, it was a beautiful evening.  

Handmade wooden chimes from Bangkok

I am impressed by the creativity of the Thais. They have managed to embrace changes in today's modern world, yet retain the pride of their culture with energy and enterprise. Thai handicraft is renowned and their eye for quality control makes their exports competitive. Some of my favourite buys in Chatuchak include wood carvings of animals, skilfully put together as wind chimes of a different kind. A string that is simply yet deftly put together contols the movement of its parts - flappable wings on pigs, pecking chickens in a cage, etc. The lady who owns the shops designs and puts together these whimsical and enchanting wooden creatures that are skilfully carved by villagers. Souvenirs or toys with an artisan touch are really charming. Even my two daughters are amused and they now hang at different corners of the house.

Special Lights

The Greyhound brand in Thailand started as a designer name in clothes. Since then, the brand has extended itself to cafes and fine dining. I've heard so much of it from my friends who frequent Bangkok so often that I had to visit the place myself. Wasn't so impressed by the exterior of "Another Hound by Greyhound" at Siam Paragon till I was led to a special dining room of chandeliers. They were not the kind of chandeliers that boast of the finest Sworovski crystals. Instead its brilliance lies in its non-conventional simplicity. Rings of steel with attached customised cut glass pieces of spoons, beer mugs, vinegar glasswares, wine goblets etc. It filled the room with a grandeur that is not stuffy but best described as elegantly beautiful and this also extended to its food presentation. More of that in another post as I would like to dedicate this post to the beauty of its lights.

Chatuchak Weekend Market, Bangkok

It is one of the world 's largest indoor market selling a whole range of goods, from clothes, accessories, plants, household goods and ceramics to antiques, food and even pets. Divided into 27 sections with each section specialising in a category of goods, though the  demarcation is never quite clear sometimes. Best part of Chatuchak is its organic growth and expansion through the years, with its origins as a smaller flea market in the 1940's for the locals to what it is today. According to its official website, the Chatuchak Weekend Market attracts around 30% tourists. I especially like the fact that locals and tourists get to shop at the same place which makes it more authentic. 

I arrived in Bangkok last Saturday night and spent a day at Chatuchak on Sunday. Despite  almost a day there, I managed to only cover section 2 -7 and not all 27 sections, a mere fraction of the market. I was multi-tasking along the way, taking pictures discreetly while trying to get a better price for my purchases, though I must say I am really bad at the art. Most of the time, I get to reduce the asking price by only 10% -15%. I could do better but bargaining takes time and I was anxious to see and buy more. Some people start from as low as 50% of the asking price, making their way from there.

Just as the stalls at Chatuchak were getting ready to close for the day at around 6pm, it started to pour. Despite being tired, I was enjoying myself way too much to want to call it a day. But alas ! Till the next time then. I will be back. 


A succulent and juicy selection of fruits that will never turn rotten

  


A boxy selection of vintage inspired bags

 


Look out for the Thai designer section at Chatuchak

 

 

Beautiful fabrics for hats on hot days

 

 

Time out for a drink at the many stalls and cafes

 



Hanging ceramics of baby elephants

  


Toilet signs that are way more fun and colourful than M and W

 


Little custard puffs sold in bags

 


Glass bottled drinks are still popular in Thailand

 


Mango with glutinous rice, a Thai favourite

  





Smiling monks in a row (snapped discreetly)

 
           
 

                                        






Eating with locals at a side stall.

 
 

Spicy and delicious

Portraits of Thai royalty everywhere

  


Grilled street side chicken

  


Fried street side fish cakes

 

Too cute to eat cupcakes

Cupcakes are such a sweet indulgence. Just looking at them makes you happy. One of my collegues was leaving and gave each one of us a cupcake. I simply love the penguin on top of a blue wave of frosting. Here they are in sitting in a box. Penguins, ladybird bugs and bumble bees. A visual treat before they are all  given out.

Flea market finds

I have not been flea marketing for quite sometime and I was really beginning to miss it. My already cluttered cupboards can surely take something more. But I was prepared to be a little more restrained than normal. Only if the things were beautiful and cheap.

Just like inflation these days, prices at the flea market seem to be on the upswing. In the past, there were many charming old couples who had personal vintage things to sell at reasonable prices but lately, many dealers seemed to have moved in, asking for rather high prices.

Met a new lady stall holder who had quite a number of beautiful things. A beautiful oriental vase with a strange pump top caught my eye. It turned out to be a Japanese water dispenser and written at the base -"Produced by Hario". It was one of the two bottles she had received as a wedding present in the 80's and though it was never used, she was willing to part with it for a reasonable price. Thought it was a good deal as the base really had a beautiful Japanese ceramic design and the pump was strong and clean. Hario, as I subsequently discovered means king of glass in Japanese and the Hario factory goes all the way back to 1921. Today, it produces coffee and tea makers which are stylish and modern. This vintage model was totally not in keeping with their present style but like all things old and vintage, I loved it ! The lady was at the stall was so nice that she even sold me a wooden tray with beautiful hand painted flowers for $2. Looks like I won't be able to shake off flea marketing just yet.