Bangkok, beyond the ghettos of tourists

For: Javier Brandoli (text and photos)
Previous Image
Next Image

info heading

info content

Bangkok has plenty of flaws and they are all so obvious that I suppose that is the magic of this giant-sized city., of traffic jams and life scattered through the streets until everything turns into an endless labyrinth of shops, restaurants and temples in which the windows and tables merge with the sidewalks and drains. And in all that madness we discovered a Bangkok that we found fascinating.

It was especially so because we had the opportunity to enter the city through the main gate., not for the guest. A couple of Francesca's friends, she thai, They put us up in their house and showed us their city.. And there, to summarize, everything gained charm and realism compared to the terrifying Bangkok (valid for all of Thailand in my opinion) of so many travelers who flock madly to Khao San Road and surrounding areas (backpacker neighborhood).

The atmosphere is very similar to that of some places on the Spanish coast

Everyone chooses their trip, but in the backpacker area one will access hotels for 15 EUR, many massages, semi-street restaurants, lots of mojitos and discos and with something valuable you can get a tattoo to show off when you return home. The truth is that the atmosphere is very similar to that of some places on the Spanish coast where, like there, the tourism business is done by weight.

And we were able to escape from that thanks to our friends and walk through that touristy and also fascinating Bangkok of palaces., monatesrios, boat rides and markets to take refuge in the life of a normal neighborhood where life drove us crazy and surprised us. It was in the routine of the neighborhood in the Langsuan area, where Andrea lived, that we find the best moments, the pauses and truces that it allowed us to deceive ourselves and pretend to be inhabitants. In the massages we gave each other at Jasmine, a well-kept center on the fourth floor of a small shopping center where they broke our backs with their fantastic Thai massages. Not far from there, about a hundred meters, We turned down a narrow alley and arrived at another massage center where the dogs rested at the door and there were always dozens of locals in a massage that tasted of spices and smoke..

A massage that tasted of spices and smoke

Search, next to Chidlom Sky Train station, We stumbled upon Erawan Shrine, a Brahman temple on the corner of Ploenchit and Ratchadamri streets where couples go to make offerings to get pregnant or have a good marriage. They sit and a group plays music while some women perform dances behind them in a ritual.. Precious. On that same sidewalk, in front of Siam Paragon shopping center, the most luxurious I have ever seen and on the fourth floor there is a good collection of shops selling medium/high quality Thai products, A street market is set up on Sunday next to an area of ​​small shops where the products are of higher quality and no tourists are seen.. There we tasted one of the famous and delicious ice creams from the Mango Tango chain that Thais love..

Finally, It was getting absolutely lost in Bangkok where we had the most surprising moment. We were going from the backpacker area to Wat Arun, the Temple of Dawn. We wanted to go on foot, crossing the Chao Phraya River to the other bank and then skirting it. We did it and without realizing it we entered a network of very narrow streets that led to the houses that are above the waters.. We passed by very humble homes that were deteriorating. Sometimes we negotiated canals through narrow wooden passageways that avoided the liquid dirt and we discovered a world that was too dirty and cruel if we looked up and saw some nearby skyscrapers.. I have lived in Africa for five years and I have never seen a mass of people living among so much garbage as there..

Rats crossed us, coming in and out between forgotten garbage bags.

Tons of waste floated under the houses. Several times we were crossed by rats that came and went between forgotten garbage bags.. And then we saw old women having tea in almost empty houses and men taking care of their fighting cocks with a distant look towards life.. Everything in the middle of that oriental calm capable of surviving hell. And so we turned left and right., without sense, in a labyrinth of intertwined life and suddenly, after two hours, Following the direction marked by a skyscraper, we arrived at a large avenue so distant from the place we came from that it seemed as if we were passing through a door between two worlds.. We left behind a harsh Bangkok that captivated us and through which we walked in a certain silence to contemplate the lives of those people without bothering them..

Finally, in this first chapter of Bangkok, I offer a guide to great restaurants for all budgets that is the work of the charming Araya, a Thai woman who, due to her good culinary taste, deserves a monument or to be an ambassador of tables and taverns. Francesca and I did it to him. I mention the good places, that were all the ones she took us to, and I forget the bad places, especially in very touristy areas, that there was also. Nor am I talking about the pleasure it is to eat some chicken skewers or sausages that are made in the streets for obvious reasons.. Pruébenlos, like noodle soup, as they walk through the avenues and alleys of this fascinating city.

Expensive

Patara, without a doubt the best thai we ate at. Wonderful, fantastic very good, very well decorated and very well attended. Our guru told us it was the best Thai in Bangkok.

http://www.patarathailand.com/

Gyu Kaku; a restaurant located in the Japanese neighborhood of Thaniya, and Bangkok. They put some charcoal embers in the middle of the table and you make the delicious Japanese meat yourself at the table. There is also New Zealand beef, Australia and Thailand. Upstairs there is a dining area with cushions on the floor. The meat is delicious.

www.gyu-kaku.co.th

The Verandah at Mandarin, a restaurant inside a hotel by the river. Romantic, with good views and high quality thai food.

http://www.mandarinoriental.es/bangkok/fine-dining/the-verandah/

Scirocco at State Tower, a restaurant and cocktail bar that claims to be the highest open-air restaurant in the world. Dozens of tourists and many of the beautiful people of Bangkok pass by there.. Posh and expensive, it deserves a visit for its views and its cool atmosphere.. The bar counter is in the center of the roof. In any case, prepare your wallets because a mojito costs more than 20 U.S. dollars. For movie lovers, say that images of The Hangover II were recorded there. Seems like a good place for a movie with that title..

http://www.lebua.com/sirocco

 

Cheap

Soi Polo Fried Chicken. A small, tacky Thai restaurant with good food. Table is shared, The jugs are plastic and there are only beers, but the flavor of the dishes is wonderful and the atmosphere special. It is next to the beautiful Lumphini Park. Nothing touristy.

http://www.tripadvisor.es/Restaurant_Review-g293916-d1128744-Reviews-Soi_Polo_Fried_Chicken-Bangkok.html

restaurant on the street Th Yaowarat., Chinatown. On the main street of this famous and busy Chinatown there are dozens of street restaurants. uncomfortable, in the middle of traffic and at night under a neon dome, We had a fantastic dinner in a corner. The food was excellent, The price is very low and the atmosphere is fun and lively, although there are hundreds of tourists here.. I don't remember the name of our restaurant, I don't know if I had it, but they are all similar.

Shornthong Pochana Seafood. A Thai restaurant of Chinese origin. Its appearance is shabby, filled with small tables full of Chinese families, but your food, specialized in fish and seafood, delicious. In the zone, outside chinatown, There are other similar restaurants specialized in Seafood.

http://bumres.blogspot.it/2012/07/sornthong-pochana-seafood-rama-iv.html

 

 

  • Share

Comments (3)

  • Itziar

    |

    I'll write everything down and I'll go there in a few weeks.. Thanks!

    Answer

  • Javier Brandoli

    |

    I found the restaurants to be very good., but be careful with the Itziar prices of which I say expensive (especially Patara, which on the other hand is the best). Kisses and you'll tell me

    Answer

  • Bangkok

    |

    Good story, but it's the typical I didn't do what tourists do that everyone writes. In Bangkok there is very little left to discover.

    Answer

Write a comment