Bangkok Blog

My New TV

bloginbangkok — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 22:47:51 +0000

I have found my new plasma tv – it measures 104″ diagonally and is full HD (1920x1080p). You need to stand on your toes to reach the top of it! Shame it costs around AU$70,000.

Oh well…here it is in all its glory:

Bangkok Traffic

bloginbangkok — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 06:38:58 +0000

Like all big cities Bangkok traffic sucks. There are so many cars, buses and taxis in Bangkok on a day to day basis that the city streets, sois and freeways seem to always be clogged, never ending. Along with this is the fact that most of the trucks and buses are of the dirtiest diesel kind you can imagine, the smog level on a hot sticky Bangkok morning makes breathing almost a chore. Several times while walking along a busy street and copping a mouthful of smoke I have thought I was going to suffocate on the fumes…it is that bad.

The government is slowly plotting to extend both the BTS Skytrain and subway systems to try and get more cars off the roads, while recently I read they are looking at banning carparks in new condo developments that are built next to existing skytrain/subway lines and stations….mmmmm.

Anyway, here is a pic of Petchaburi Rd, one of the arteries through Bangkok that cuts through the busy Pantip Market shopping strip.

Buri Tara – Bangkok Dining

bloginbangkok — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 06:26:45 +0000

Last year my local Thai friend took me to this great little restaurant called Buri Tara down on Rama III Rd by the river. I had no idea where it was located and the friend that took me had since moved to Dubai so I had no way of finding it again. By coincidence I came across a review of the place in a local food guide and bingo – there was the address!

My second visit to Buri Tara was just as good. This place is hidden away behind a carpark and other restaurants and is hard to find with no directions. It is very stylish, nice modern decor and frequented mostly by Thais (always a good sign). They serve great Thai food but I noticed they had added a whole heap of western dishes, most notably pasta. It seems many Thai establishments are adding Italian to their menus due to younger Thais thinking pasta is the ‘cool’ western food to eat. Great, now Thailand will get fat too. But I digress. I had some great fried rice, chicken curry and the best Pad Thai Goong ever (Pad Thai with prawn). Here are some pics…check out the prawn with my pad thai!

Best Bangkok Taxi Driver

bloginbangkok — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 16:48:26 +0000

I found the best taxi driver in Bangkok. He picked me up when no one else would touch me for under 100 baht, drove me to MBK shopping mall on Songkran. Refused the 100 baht tip i gave him (I didn’t let him give it back to me) and above all else speaks great english. His name is Mr Toi, call him on 089 060 4388 if you need a long taxi trip in Bkk or airport, Pattaya, etc. Highly recommended. Tell him Mr Derek sent you.

Oh. He also has a sense of humour:

Best Italian in Bangkok

bloginbangkok — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 09:58:25 +0000

Ok it’s a big call I know, but I am prepared to call it. I’ve eaten at several Italian places in Bangkok and most have been average at best. Some better than others, most notably Spasso in the Grand Hyatt Erawin. But with Spasso you feel like you need a suit to get in and bring many 1000 baht notes with you.

This little place I found lies in Sukhumvit Soi 11, about 500m down the soi from Sukhumvit Road, and is called CONTRAZI. I say you always judge an Italian restaurant by the bread you are served at the start of your meal. The fresh warm moist focaccia loaf drizzled with olive oil and fresh parmasan hinted at the great food to come. Dinner for 2 with wine was 1500 bath (AU$40) at this price you cannot go wrong. Nice little restaurant that looks brand new with very sexy interior design and great Value. Ph (+66) 02 254 5995.

My yummy veal lasagne:

Happy Songkran!

bloginbangkok — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:49:35 +0000

It is now Thai New Year here in the land of smiles, the water festival known as Songkran. For 3 days the whole of Bangkok shuts down, every man and his dog takes to the street with water rifles, buckets and whatever else holds water and tries their hardest to soak as many people as possible.

Here I leave you with a nice little pic from Khao San Rd, backstage at the Sam Miguel Bar just before these girls go on stage for an hour of dancing and gyrating in a swimming pool in front of 1000′s of crazy drunk thais and farangs!

HAPPY SONGKRAN!

Paparazzi Purchase

bloginbangkok — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:25:42 +0000

Before leaving for Thailand I purchased a Canon 40D DSLR along with the 17-40L f4 and 70-200L f4 professional lenses. I also picked up the top of the line 580EXII flash. Let me say I love the 40D…it is such a jump up from the 400D which I was using previously. Anyone thinking of this upgrade do not hesitate – the 40D is worth every cent. I cannot say the same for the 2 lenses I picked up. They are both great lenses in their own right but after using them for a month I have started to work out EXACTLY what lenses I want.

The 17-40 L is a great lens but it has 2 issues that affect my photography – f4 is too slow and no IS. I now realise that I need the 17-55 f2.8 IS Canon lens. This lens has a good range, is fast at f2.8 and has IS which I need badly. The 70-200 is also nice but again f4 is too slow and it has no IS. I will look at picking up the f4 with added IS version. Photography is a life long passion and the art of lens acquisition is a must-have skill.

Baby Elephant Walk

bloginbangkok — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:10:33 +0000

Well not really babies, these elephants are paraded up and down Sukhumvit Road in the heart of downtown Bangkok aka tourist town. Their handlers sell you expensive pineapple for 100 baht (normally 10 baht) to feed the elephant. For this picture I gave the guy 20 baht for a photo and told him to go jump for his 100 baht. I question the animal welfare here, is the elephant cared for when all the tourists are gone? Does the elephant like walking up and down concrete roads all night? I really don’t know….but it is a sight to see regardless.

Telco Tips for Thailand

bloginbangkok — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 23:04:21 +0000

For many people staying in touch with family friends is a top priority when travelling. Thankfully the good old mobile phone (cell phones for the American readers amongst you) makes it easier than ever to keep the lines of communcation open (some may argue for the worst!!!)

Most travellers simply ensure international roaming is active on their phone service before they leave their home country so they can roam onto one of the networks in Thailand while here. I think a far better and cheaper option is picking up a prepaid sim card and making this your sole method of phone contact while in the land of smiles.

Happy Sim on the DTAC network and One-2-Call on the GSM/AIS network are the leading prepaid products due to sheer availability of refill vouchers that can be purchased anywhere there is a Family Mart or 7-11 store. I mostly use the Happy Sim product on the DTAC network but have found the One-2-Call service on the AIS network to have better reception especially indoors and in more rural locations outside the cities.

When arriving in Bangkok at Suvarnibhumi Airport some people may need a prepaid sim ASAP. The place to go is Family Mart located on level 2 a few stores away from Starbucks. Just ask for a Happy Sim card or One-2-Call sim card. They both come with 99 baht credit so you will be able to start calling within minutes. If you prefer to wait you will be able to pick up a sim card pack at any 7-11 or Family Mart store once you’ve settled in.

The reason I love using local Thai prepaid sim cards is the insanely cheap call rates – most call rates are between 1-2 baht per minute – this means a 30 minute call within Thailand will set you back only a dollar – crazy! Calling overseas from your prepaid service is a lot more expensive so try to stick with using text messages instead which only cost a few baht to make contact back home.

There are many promotions running for cheap call rates so make sure you dial the promo line for your prepaid service to hear all the available rates at any particular time.

Bangkok Dangerous

bloginbangkok — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 21:09:51 +0000

The trailer for the new Nick Cage movie Bangkok Dangerous is now up on YouTube

This is actually a remake of the 1999 Thai movie of the same name written and directed by the Pang brothers (who have also directed the new Nick Cage version). The original is a great movie that was done on a shoestring budget but blew the box office up in Thailand as it was so well directed and written. Looking at the trailer it seems they have changed one of the major plot points (Nick Cage’s character in the original was deaf & mute) so I’m not sure how this will play out on the big screen. Some great filming locations can be seen in the trailer – Soi Cowboy and Patpong for starters.

Also while on the topic of movies I was sad to see that I missed out on the chance to be an extra in the new Oliver Stone movie Escobar about druglord Pablo Escobar that was being shot about an hour out of Bangkok. The ad in the Bangkok Post requested male extras “of all shapes and sizes” to play army soldiers – included in the deal was full catering and 1000 baht cash a day! I would’ve gladly paid them 1000 baht to be an extra (yes I am bit of a film buff).

It seems real estate and import/export aren’t the only booming industries in Thailand…that is now 2 big Hollywood films shot in and around Bangkok in the same year while there are no less than THREE Hollywood remakes of Thai movies now showing (Shutter, The Eye starring Jess Alba and Bangkok Dangerous).

Go Thailand!