Asoke, the Red light area & canal travel

Bangkok, Day 16

Today's route plan started by hopping onto the BTS to Asoke. We had decided to go back to the Interchange 21 food court in the basement area, where we had visited on our very first full day in Bangkok. Now, 2 weeks later, we are less starry-eyed about everything on offer, a bit more adventurous about what we will try, more confident in how to order what we want and more knowledgeable on the various methods of paying for the food - get us! :)

So we planned out a route that would cover the Asoke area and we thought we'd loop back to the Thong Lor area via the canal ferry - talk about us getting gallus in our old age and it's such a difference when it's just the two of us with no whingy kids in tow to deal with (shout out to our children that we love dearly but one in particular would easily drive us mad on holiday!).

5 Dec 2024

However, our starting plan was not to be. For some reason, the Interchange food court was not open - we later found out that it was due to a public holiday. Thailand celebrates the 5th of December as a tribute to the birth of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej the Great, it is also known as Father's Day in Thailand. The celebration is for the beloved late monarch’s extraordinary contributions to the nation, including his dedication to sustainable development, education, and the well-being of all Thai people.

However, there was no sign or notice to explain why, but everything was in complete darkness. So we about turned and headed back to the Terminal 21 food court to get our brunch/lunch. Now I know all we seem to talk about is food, and well, we do love our food, but we don't actually eat constantly. We have a light breakfast, then a brunch/lunch and then something later in the evening. We quite often pick up our evening meal on the way home too, so that we don't need to go out again in the evening, especially if we have done a lot of walking during the day. Our evenings are our sanctuary time for rest and recovery!

Lunch at Terminal 21

Now we really could not complain about anything. We had a table with a fabulous view and the food was excellent too. The only slight negative comment in R's view was that the portion sizes were a bit smaller than in other places but we reckoned for around 40 Bhat (£0.92) a meal, you could easily buy a couple of dishes if still hungry. In our case, it gave us the excuse of having a dessert (yeah - like we even need a reason!).

Lunch for me was a chicken biryani rice dish, and R had some crispy pork and green noodles dish. Of course, just as the lady serving him was handing over the dish, she threw in some coriander to his abject horror - hence he then spent some time playing with his food as he fished the 'soap tasting' (his words) herb out of his food. Afterwards, he had got some little coconut dessert pancake things which were lovely.

Durian - "the king of fruits"

Now, you may or may not have heard of durian before. It's an edible fruit and is known in many regions as the "king of fruits". The durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and thorn-covered rind. The fruit can grow as large as 30 cm (12 in) long and 15 cm (6 in) in diameter, and it typically weighs 1 to 3 kg (2 to 7 lb). Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk from green to brown, and its flesh from pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance, whereas others find the aroma overpowering and unpleasant. The smell evokes reactions ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. The persistence of its strong odour, which may linger for several days, has led many hotels and public transportation services in Southeast Asia to ban the fruit. The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet desserts and savoury dishes.

Durian is something that has been on our 'food list' for a wee while now. Whilst you often see it as a packed dried version, the 'fresh' version is not that popular or readily available. We had seen the fresh stufff in several supermarkets but the price was quite expensive (350-600 Bhat / £7-14) depending on the pack size and we were reluctant to buy any, in case it was actually revolting and also we didn't want to buy it and have it stink out the apartment. So the perfect solution to this dilemma presented itself when I noted that I could have a durian dessert in the food court for 50 baht (£1.16). It was served with sticky rice, coconut milk and some durian strips on top. The durian looked and had the consistency akin to hot, sticky chewing gum (or what I would imagine hot sticky chewing gum to look like). I know some people also say it is sort of like a custard when you bite into it. It had an unusual and different taste, not like anything I can think of to compare it with. I didn't find it unpleasant or very smelly (perhaps we had a less stinky version?). R also tried it and thought it tasted 'funky'. He only had one mouthful, and that was enough for him. I finished the plate (there's a surprise, I hear you say!) and whilst I thought it was ok, I much prefer mango sticky rice to this, but at least we can tick it off the list now!

Soi Cowboy

Soi Cowboy is absolutely not our cup of tea but we could not come to Bangkok and not have a little look at the area. Soi Cowboy is a short street in Bangkok, Thailand, with some 40 establishments, mostly go-go bars and is a known red light area. It caters mainly to tourists and expatriates looking for a 'good time'.

Of course, we were only ever going to be brave enough to venture into this street during daylight hours when there were no bars open, no shows going on and very few patriots or 'hosts' about. During the day, there are some street food vendors selling their goods, and it's more just a throughfare road. However, the place was a bit manky and rank, so goodness knows what it must be like when it's heaving with people, booze and the heat (or maybe it just looks worse in the light of day!). Another place we can tick off the list, and we don't need to see it in full swing - we have YouTube for that.

University Area

After our brief stop at Soi Cowboy, we headed to the Asoke ferry pier. Now this was a longer walk than we probably anticipated; there was little shade from the sun, and there was not much to see along this road, which was also pretty busy with traffic. En route, we did hop into a nice little University area which offered a brief respite from the sun. It was so weird, though, to see some folks (probably University students) running on the track as it was just boiling!

Khlong Saen Saep Ferries

When we came to the end of the road, we were a little confused as to where the actual ferry pier was located. However, after a quick refreshment from the nearby mall, and with brain cells working again, we deduced that it had to be on the other side of the main road and that we could get there via the nearby blue MRT underground station. The pier had the price lists and routes listed, and for our trip from Asoke to Thonglor, it was 12 baht (£0.28) each - what a bargain!

The ferry ride itself was fun and a great experience. The boat did get quite crowded, and they don't wait long, so you need to be ready to get on and off, but we got to see another side of Bangkok via the short distance that we travelled via this route.

After getting off the ferry, we now just had to walk back to the apartment - easier said than done! Again, I'm not sure if we underestimated the distance or the heat was just a bit too much for us but we were starting to flag (me so, more than R). R on the other hand was dealing with his own trauma of navigating steep, open ended stairs with burning hot metal hand rails as we left the ferry pier.

A quick stop off in 7/11 for some groceries and then it was finally back to the apartment for a much needed shower and a rest.

Bangkok, Thailand