For our last day in Bangkok we’ve booked an early morning excursion to a couple of the capital’s more unusual neighbouring trading posts: the Maeklong railway market and the Damnoen Saduak floating market. Both are some seventy kilometres out from where we are staying and difficult to access through public transport - a tour is a convenient way to get there, although it does mean getting up at 6:30am!
After doing the usual rounds in our neighbourhood collecting the group for today, we set out for the ninety-minutes drive there. On the way, we get to exchange tips with some of our fellow travellers: for the first time we meet someone who’s been to South Korea and recommends staying in Myeong-Dong district in Seoul. The trip is surprisingly bumpy even though we’re in a comfortable minivan and on what looks like a highway - we’ve noticed during our stay that the Thai roads generally aren’t as smooth as you’d like or expect, regardless of size.
We get to Maeklong at around nine, just in time to set up and watch the train. This is the main attraction of the Rom Hup market we are visiting: vendors are set up both sides of a narrow lane along the tracks, with awnings and wares covering the entire width. Five times a day, when the service to Bangkok passes through, the merchants run ahead of the locomotive, efficiently packing everything away to let it through, while shoppers squeeze to the sides to avoid being run over. Our guide has organised everything expertly and secured us spots in a train-side cafe with a perfect view of the whole exercise. While we are sipping our Thai Milk tea (complete in cute take-away cup with a little home-made string handle) we watch as the cafe owner ruthlessly shoos away any non-paying tourists to clear up a spot for his customers. As we just start to see the first bright red carriage in the distance he gets everyone behind a previously invisible yellow line which has suddenly appeared as the street clears. I naively thought we only needed to clear the narrow one-meter gauge tracks but of course the train is much larger than that: it takes up almost the entire street and narrowly passes over some of the wares left out - everything is calculated to within an inch. As we watch, it carefully drives through, literally five centimetres from our nose! We’ve heard reports of these kind of markets being banned as unsafe and I can certainly see why - you just need one person to mess up to have a bad accident. It’s all very well run here though and we get to marvel at how tight the fit is and how quickly everyone unpacks and gets back up and running once the train is through - in two minutes, it’s like it was never there! And so are we as we continue on.
The next stop is the Damnoen floating market: this one is organised on and over canals, only a short ride away. For a more atmospheric entrance, our tour includes a longboat ride into the market, arriving the traditional way, by water! It’s an exhilarating ride as we’re super low on the waves and the canal is surprisingly choppy, mostly because of the regular boat traffic. As we bounce and speed our way through, we overtake a few other crafts - our driver is obviously more experienced - and get quite a few splashes, but it’s part of the fun. It’s only twenty minutes but we love it, and it’s also nice to be out of the bus in the fresh air. As we get closer to our destination, the riverbanks change from gardens and orchards and become more built up with pretty wooden houses, residential at first and slowly transitioning into small stalls as we approach. We glide through a stately arch marking the entrance, but still have a bit of a journey after that past many closed-up stores until we reach the open part of the market.
As we disembark, our guide kindly warns us not to buy anything for the first couple hundred meters: the first merchants are ridiculously overpriced. Once we’re past that gauntlet, we’re into the market proper and it’s quite a sight: busy stalls both sides of the canals, some with walkways, some going right down to the water. A mess of motor and paddle boats crowds in the middle, with a few of those being additional, mobile stalls! On our guide’s recommendation, we get a paddle boat tour around the market proper - it’s a nice, lazy way to get a first impression as we slalom through the bustle. I have to curb my over-enthusiastic pointing as our captain takes the slightest movement as a request to stop at a given stall. It’s a bit too early for me to commit to buying anything, and everyone in our boat must feel the same as the furthest we get is a light bit of bargaining. Once we’re back on land though, I’m determined to get some souvenirs: we’re planning to send a parcel back home from Chiang Mai, and before that I’ve not been able to buy anything since we’re backpacking!
Ollie grumbles but lets me loose and I come away with a true treasure haul - our guide has been helpful in pointing out the quietest, less tatty stalls and after shaky beginnings we’re finding our feet with the bargaining. We’re probably still paying the tourist price but we manage to shave about half the initial offer on most items and all in all the whole lot comes under twenty five pounds for a couple of dresses, a scarf, a nice mango-wood bowl and a few presents: not bad! That’s an extra bag to carry for a little while until we make it to a post office, but I’ve delighted at finally having been able to buy a few things - I love market-shopping and bargain prices and it’s been hard to refrain until now. Skirting around the showmen posing with their pet anacondas (neither of us likes snakes!) we make it back to the van for an uneventful trip back to our hotel.
We’re leaving for Chiang Mai today, with a night bus this time as a change from the night train which left me frozen and Ollie’s back locked up. We only depart at 10pm but we start heading towards the terminal immediately after another lovely lunch at the Duklong canal side cafe, in our favourite Bangkok neighbourhood near our hotel. Once there, it’s a quiet afternoon as we mooch about the local mall, stock up on snacks, and have a quick clean before boarding the bus. We get a bit of a scare as it’s the absolute last bus and comes in late - after the terminal has already shut down! But luckily we’re not the only ones waiting and our transport does arrive after all. The coach is spacious but we’re in seats, not bunks although they recline pretty far. It’s comfortable though and we get a blanket, water and a snack included. It’s also very quiet as everyone else is also keen on sleeping - within minutes of leaving all lights are off and so is Ollie. I take a bit longer but manage to snooze after a while.
Not for long however as at 2:30am the driver makes a pit stop, blares on the lights and gets everyone off the bus for half an hour! Apparently a usual practice but very confusing at this time of the night for us first-timers. We wander around bleary eyed until we’re allowed back on - and then sleep fairly comfortably through the rest of the night. Seems like there’s no perfect night-time travel solution in Thailand: bunk and freeze, or nappus interruptus!
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