Post Tsunami Pictures @ Patong Beach (Jan '05)

Recently I wa backing up a lot of my old pictures to my new laptop. I would like to share some of the interesting pictures I took a few years ago.

This was taken in January 2005 at Patong Beach, Phuket Island. Well, the stories goes like this:

The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake. The resulting tsunami itself is given various names, including the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Asian Tsunami, Indonesian Tsunami, and Boxing Day Tsunami. -Wikipedia

Phuket Thailand was the places that was hit by the tsunami. I was invited back then for a media trip to the affected areas of tsunami in Jan 2005, app. one month after the tsunami. The media trip includes tour agencies representatives and reporters.

We were greeted graciously by the local governor and we were explained the details of the damages caused by tsunami. We were told, the locals had started rebuilding the affected areas days after the incident. By 1 - 2 weeks, most beaches were cleaned up. Many would not believe such claims.

For that, we were then brought to areas that were affected by tsunami such as Patong beach.



Its hard to believe this the beach that has been affected by tsunami weeks ago.



More than hundreds of people died on this beach a few weeks ago during our visit. Unbelievable.



If you could see the uneven sand area throughout the beach were caused by the devastating tsunami.



At one of the nights, there was a huge memorial of tsunami victims at Patong Beach. Each light on the beach indicated a single life that was taken by the disaster. We were joined by medias from around the world during the memorial.

It was one of the most unforgettable trip I had. Phuket remained one of my favourite destinations up to date. I've been there 3 times.

Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep @ Chiang Mai, Thailand (Jan '03)

First first ever trip to Chiang Mai, Thailand. After touching down the airport, we were checked in to the hotel and brought to the lovely Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep. The temple was famous for its Buddha's relic.

Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep (Thai: วัดพระธาตุดอยสุเทพ) is a Buddhist temple in Chiang Mai Province, Thailand. The temple is often referred to as "Doi Suthep" although this is actually the name of the mountain it is located on. The temple is located 15 km from the city of Chiang Mai and is a sacred site to many Thai people. From the temple impressive views of Chiang Mai can be seen and it remains a popular destination of foreign visitors.- Wikipedia



The trademark scenery of temple...



Inside the temple... It was a pity that I took such least pictures at that time. The place was amazingly beautiful.

World Largest Market @ Chatuchak, Bangkok, Thailand (Jan 09)

Chatuchak, the largest market in the world, is also known for its role as the weekend market. However, my last trip I couldn't make it to the weekend so many might wonder, how is Chatuchak during weekdays. I tell you how....

On my very last day in Bangkok, I decided to go to Chatuchak. It was a weekday.

Many might thought that they will be closed on weekdays, well its not all that. Some or most shops are still open on weekdays.

I went to the paintings section and there were lots of impressive painting. I wished I could drive all the way up and bought all those stuffs. Just to let you know, my parents drove to Bangkok before, in fact to Chiang Mai also.

There were lots of plants displayed on that day. I saw lots of pick up trucks carrying plants, maybe there were from outstation or other areas of Thailand?

Transportation was not an issue in Chatuchak. Taxis and even tuk-tuk were on standby if you need them!
In case, you couldn't take back the stuffs you bought. There's a few courier companies there can do the job.

Chatuchak can be accessible by BTS Sky Train (right to the front of the market! Very convenient) or taxis. Taxis are everywhere in Bangkok.

Shopping @ Central World, Bangkok (Jan 09)

My first time to Central World to be frank and I must say, its huge. Catered to medium to upper market (I guess), there were lots of things to shop in this gigantic shopping mall. From what I've heard, this place used to be a trade center, so you can imagine the size of this place.

There were cineplexes!

A few storeys of lovely restaurants....

One thing I realized about Bangkok malls were, you were not allowed to take any pictures. I took lots of risks taking this pictures and share to everyone here. Sharing is caring okay! This place I would consider similar to Siam Paragon, much bigger and more foods. They were still renovating bits here and there at the higher level as its still very new I guess.

Central World is walking distance to BTS Sky Train, Platinum Mall, MBK and Siam Paragon. My best opinion, get the CAB! It won't be that much depending on traffic jams.

Super Spicy Noodle @ Yum Saap, Bangkok (Jan 09)

* NON - HALAL

The last food post from Bangkok in January. The first time I ate at Yum Saap was in 2005 when I was in Phuket. This will be my second time.

I ordered a "Mama" Tom Yum Seafood Noodle at 59 baht and a side order of Crispy Pork Skin at 15 Baht. It was spicy even I ordered the least "damaging" meal. However, for spicy lovers and Mama noodle lovers, this will be no big deal. There are also different specialties.

Mama noodle is Thai's instant noodle. Its a brand name, very popular among Thais with authentic spicy sauce.

Yum Saap is at most places in Bangkok and Thailand.

The Platinum Fashion Mall, Pratu Nam, Bangkok

This is one mall that you must go in Bangkok if you are a shopaholic. Why Platinum Mall?

The Platinum Fashion Mall is a 5 billion baht (100 million euro) shopping mall in Pratu Nam, Bangkok, Thailand, which specializes in fashion clothes and accessories retail and wholesale. It is a six-storey complex with an 11-storey condominium building above the complex.

The clothes shops operate on the principle that buying 1 piece is a retail sale and warrants retail price, but buying 3 (or sometimes more) pieces is wholesale and you get the wholesale price. An example of pricing structure is 1 men's shirt retail 250 baht, 3 shirts wholesale 500 baht.

The mall is on Phetchaburi Road, next to Pantip Plaza and opposite Pratunam Complex, a 14-storey mall. It is also near Central World Plaza. - Wikipedia

So its a 6 STOREY shopping complex. Outlets in thousands! They have also dedicated floors for women, men and even fashion. Level 7 is food court (bottom right pic). One of my favourite shop is Shiroi Neko (bottom left pic), located at 4th Floor. There's a few coffee outlet Black Canyon inside the mall, so when you got tired, you can chill there for a while.
Shoppers here used huge plastic bags and sometimes they dragged them around. If I'm not mistaken, there's 4 storeys of shop lots dedicated for ladies fashion.

Platinum Mall is easily accesible by taxi. Go in the taxi and said "Platinum Mall", if they don't understand, say Pratu Nam (ask around when you reached pratu nam, walking distance). It is also walking distance to Central World.

Dim Sum @ Hong Min, MBK

* NON - HALAL

I believe in luck sometimes. I was randomly picking a restaurant when I was in MBK. I bumped to this Chinese restaurant, Hong Min. Since, I'm not a big fan of spicy food and I loved dim sum so much, I decided to try out this place.

I ordered 3 plates (since I'm eating alone). There's a plate of the prawn dish was quite interesting. There's a quail egg inside the dim sum. That was my first time eating such dim sum. The sauce was special as well. Instead of sweet sauce in Malaysia, they provide 2 sauces, soy sauce and a yellow sauce (I suspect ginger). I ordered Char Siew Bau also! But just so so, nothing amazing. The dim sum was cheap, 30Baht per plate and it was pretty good. However, I realized they are famous for other Chinese foods as well. Too bad, I only got 1 tummy, if not I would try the rest.

Great service, good food and great pricing. They have 6 more other outlets in Bangkok.

Address:
Level 3, MBK Center
Bangkok
Tel- 02-611-543

MBK Center, Bangkok (Jan 09)

MBK Center, also known as Mahboonkrong or Mabunkrong (Thai: มาบุญครอง), is an enormous marble shopping mall in Bangkok, Thailand. At eight stories high and 330 metres long, with 2,500 shops using a total selling area of 89,000 square metres, this shopping mall used to be one of the biggest malls in Asia when it was first founded in 1985. It is particularly well known for its many vendors of mobile phones and other electronics, as well as furniture stores.-Wikipedia

MBK Center is very popular among tourists especially Malaysians and Singaporeans. Basically, you can get almost anything in MBK. From, electronics to furniture and they have a huge cineplex as well. I watched a movie there few years back.

In certain parts of MBK, its like a market. It has dedicated floors to things like electronics, clothings and so on. Some might like it and some might not. It has also Tokyu departmental store as well.

MBK is easily accesible with BTS Sky Train or taxis. Catered for medium to low income shopping center with a few lovely food courts. An option to go for all-in shopping center.

Bangkok Roadside BBQ Stalls (Jan 09)

* NON - HALAL
Bangkok is filled with many food stalls. Its everywhere. Even in front of luxury shopping malls like Central World. Nevertheless, I did try out their infamous BBQ Stalls (roadside version).

They normally sell chicken satay, chicken wing, pork satay and the chicken liver (I think). The pork satay is usually 5 Baht per stick (10 Baht in shopping malls) and chicken satay is 10 Baht per stick (20 Baht in shopping malls). The other 2.... I forgot to ask...

I tried the pork satay, not too bad. Often a bit dry, tender but well marinated. The chicken satay is always juicy. Mainly because its well marinated and its a combination of meat and fat I guess. Its very addictive when you find a lovely stall that BBQ the chicken to perfection.
Its a must try Bangkok street food BUT remember to bring your tummy pills (just in case).

Khaosan Road, Bangkok (Jan 09)

Khaosan Road is infamous for its backpacking hotels and inns. It is also a place that I never visited before. Since I heard so much about it, me and Pete took a cab there.

It definitely a very happening place indeed. It crowded with tourists snapping pictures around.

There are lots of food stalls as well as restaurants and pubs. They also sell liquor in bucket for 150Baht, cheap! There are many different types of foods sold here, from insects to Japanese.

The crowd are usually tourists. Its an interesting place to go. In fact, I don't really mind staying there. Lots of entertainments and foods! Its a backpackers haven for sure!

Heineken Green Space @ Zen World, Bangkok

* NON - HALAL

I never knew Heineken is so huge in Bangkok. The Heineken Green Space was an eye opener. The beer garden which operates only on cold season will be closing at the end of January.



Located at the Central World Building, Heineken party starts from the streets of Central World Bangkok with games and live bands. However, the real deal is not there.



At the side of the building, there's another building called Zen World (1st picture, top left). We took the lift to 18th floor, that's the real deal! With live band as well, half of the place is open air with breathtaking views of the Bangkok city.


January is still a cold season so at 18th floor, you can feel the breeze. The lights at the top of the open air space are color changing. And they serves sub-zero Heineken as well. A jug of Heineken was only 200Baht! That was so cheap. The crowd was mostly teenager to young working adults. Lots of hot chicks....


While we were outside, the inside was packed with people listening to the live bands. The place is usually packed at all nights. Its a place to go until 31st Jan. A lovely place to chill and great Heineken beers. I wish Heineken can pay me for this.... The place was so cool!



Address:
18th Floor, Zen World
Bangkok City
Tel: 02 100 9898

Unique Chinese Steamboat @ Ruen Pech, Bangkok

The first night of my latest Bangkok trip was treated with a lovely Chinese steamboat cuisine. Located at the opposite of Amari Atrium Hotel, this 2 storeys Chinese steamboat restaurant is one of the pioneer Chinese steamboat restaurants in Bangkok. Given such a long history, this place are quite popular with some of the locals there.

Since its only 2 of us, me and Pete (my bestie), we ordered a "few" things for our steamboat. The vege dish was unique. Translated it as 3 nuts vege, the vege was stir fried until crispy with 3 different types of nuts. Even though I felt its a bit oily, this unique vege dish I had not seen anywhere else before.

The steamboat to me was not much difference when the orders came. Yet, the dumplings and the taufu were good.

Pete said the best was this beef dish. Beef marinated with chinese wine and egg, the beef then needed to be mixed all the ingredients all together. Lightly dipped into the boiling steamboat, the taste of the beef will be pretty good. In order to have a greater taste of the wine, dipped the beef into the steamboat then dipped into the sauce again. That will bring the special sauce to taste.

The service there was excellent. The feast cost us around 600Baht. I tried to get the address in English, no luck. But I managed to get its number. This place is a nice place to try out. Tour companies or tour guides will never bring you to such places. One thing good about free and easy is you can try out different type of restaurants.

Address:
Tel: 0-2314-5047, 0-2314-4274