Salam....
The saying goes as ... " it will not be a complete visit to Bangkok if you did not go to the Chatuchak Market". Therefore, its our priority on the list.
Chatuchak Market is the weekend market which opens only on Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 6pm. Its a large market with many stalls. The stalls are grouped according the goods they are selling. Its adviceable to have a map of the market when exploring it. Chatuchak market is the place where you can get souveniors for a reasonable price. But... be sure to have a good bargaining power.
As we had done our homework earlier, going to Chatuchak Market from the hotel was a breeze. We took the shuttle boat from the hotel to the Santhorn Pier. The pier is connected to the Saphan Taksin BTS station. BTS is the Bangkok Mass Transit System, the transportation system that connects the important places in the Bangkok City.
From the Saphan Taksin station we headed to the Mochit Station. The nearest station to the Chatuchak Market. From the many blogs that we read, we were assured that we cannot be lost once disembarking the train at Mochit station because most of the people whom disembark at the station are heading towards the Chatuchak Market. We can just follow the crowd to go to the Chatuchak Market.
And... it was very true. Mochit is the last station on the train system line. Almost everybody whom disembark from the train headed to tge market except for few locals who have other errands. We cross the crossover bridge from the station and went straight to the market by following the crowds. Our first aim is to find a musolla to perform our solah, then lunch. We printed a map of Chatuchak Market before starting the trip. It looks easy to find the musolla with the map, but we were wronged. There were too many people there and being the first timer, we could not figure out our location. Alhamdulillah we found and information counter and managed to get a better map of the market, and by asking around, we managed to locate the musolla.
It was a small room in an alley within the block. Male and female area was divided well. However, the ablution area is in the open space. Its a challenge for us with the aurat issue. Alhamdulillah... one mission completed. Next challenge is to find a place for lunch. We were assured through blogwalkings that there are few muslim eating places within the Chatuchak Market. And we set to meet the challenge. With the help from few locals we managed to locate Saman Restaurant near to the clock tower within the market. As it was around 3pm, there are too many people queueing for lunch at the restaurant. We were cautioned about the pricy food, but we do not have any option. We waited for few minutes to get a seat. The food was OK, the sticky mango rice was excellent. For a 150Baht for half portion of the sticky rice it was fulfilling. We had fried rice. We wanted to try the Tom Yam but when told that the waiting time is more than 20minutes, we decided to be satisfied with what is availbale. After lunch we began our venture of the Chatuchak.
Honestly, it was a very exhaustive venture. Walking pass the small alley, between throngs of people. Too many things to see, and not sure what to buy. If you need a foot massage, there are plenty of it in every alley within the market. However, i shall not advice muslim lady to go for massage as it was done in a joint place with male customer, again it will be the issue of upholding our aurat.
My advice, buy the things that you want at the first sight as you might not be able to find the same stall again after moving on.
My second advice is to wear a comfortable shoe for walking. You are sure to burnt your calories away through walking at Chatuchak Market.
My third advice is to have the mineral water with you. It is definitely very hot and you will sweat a lot and needs a good drink to replenish your body fluid.
Overall.... its a good experience. Alhamdulillah. Allah permits us to view the variety walks of life
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