We were on a mission today to find the Klong Lat Mayom floating market. We were about 10km away and walking there and back would have taken a lot of time and the heat would have destroyed us! We caught a bus along the main road so we were only about 4km away. Next we asked a lady who was sitting in her car if she could give us directions. Here starts a new day of extreme kindness and helpfulness ...
"Yes, I know the floating market. I am going too. Would you like to come with me?"
We climbed in and had the most amazing time together. We explored the beautiful setting, the interesting boats, the divine foods, interesting taro milk bubble drink and fresh coconuts. Once again it was very difficult to pay for anything because of the Thai generosity! Incredible.
We were having such a nice time we spent the rest of the day together. Our next stop was the IconSiam shopping mall. It is in the centre of Bangkok and we travelled in air conditioned luxury for about 15km to get there. Parking was difficult so the car was double parked in the Mall's car park and left it in neutral so the security could push it out of the way if necessary. IconSian is huge and the most luxurious shopping centre we have ever seen. The ground floor is beautifully presented as a floating market and Thai street food hall. As you work your way up the building you pass every designer shop there possibly could be, Japanese stores, Chinese stores ... Even a British store. Well that is if you want to buy a brand new Rolls Royce! Yes, A Rolls Royce shop!!
Towards the top of the building are exclusive restaurants with balconies overlooking the city. Wow, what a view! Also on the top floor was an incredible water feature where the falling water makes patterns and even words.
Eventually our time was up and we sadly had to say goodbye to our new friend, who had been the perfect guide and chauffer. We had another place to be and she was already booked up for the evening.
A free shuttle bus outside took us to the Sky Train stop. We hopped on and 10 minutes later arrived in Siam Station. A 10 minute walk took us to a cute little park. The sun was setting and the Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra were performing a concert in the park! We listened to the orchestra in serene surroundings and had a wonderful relaxing time sitting on the grass watching the sun go down.
Time to head back. We thought there may be a direct bus from the park but we didn't know where the bus stop was. We asked 2 ladies in Starbucks if they knew. They said getting a direct bus to the area we wanted to go wasn't possible. They then explained what we needed to do but thought it a little complicated. What they did next was ... unbelievable! They packed away their laptop and drinks and said,
"We will take you. My mum always says when we see a foreigner who needs help, we should help them. It will give our country a good name and people will want to come."
They took us to the stop we needed, dropped us off and apparently were going back to Starbucks to continue their evening and relax! We were blown away by how much some people are willing to help. What lovely people we are meeting in Thailand. They are making our time here very special.
We finished off our day eating papaya salad. We had one medium and one spicy... too spicy!
