At the RipCurl Bangkok Summer Carnival.
Tag Archives: bangkok
Where to find Waboba in Bangkok
We’ve had quite a few messages recently asking where to find the Waboba Extreme ball in Bangkok. The ball is coming to various places very soon, but for now you’ll be sure to find them at Planet Scuba, 666 Sukhumvit. It’s very close to Emporium at Phrom Phong, and adjacent to Soi 24.
Once you’ve bought your ball, don’t forget to enter our video competition for a chance to win a holiday in Phuket.
Driving by Numbers
The Bionic Salesman
A Journey around Thailand
So much for the rain. The newspapers were full of flood warnings as I set off on the second leg of my journey around Thailand, but it rained only three times on a three-week trip.
Those three rain storms all came on the first day as I drove down the east side to catch the ferry to Koh Samet. The rain came in blocks of sky, an aggravated shout that soon ran out of breath. For a while it was like driving through a liquidiser. Mostly, there was brilliant sun. Continue reading
Salesman Sees Red on Trip to Khao San Road
The Bionic Salesman
A Journey around Thailand
The Redshirts came out in force on Sunday. I noticed it first at Ratchathewi, where every third vehicle was a wriggling octopus of scarlet revellers from all the generations.
Children, parents, grandparents all crammed into pick-up trucks so full that their legs dangled off the back. Grannies held up their flags as they stood against the truck cabins. Children sat bewildered or played with their toys. Cars were just as full, with Redshirts sitting in the opened boots, with their legs dangling.
I was on my way to Khao San Road, and it was immediately obvious that shouldn’t take a taxi. I walked the full distance from Ratchathewi to Khao San Road, with the traffic beside moving in stops and starts, so that every few minutes I would hear the same blast of music and the same cheers catching me up from behind. Continue reading
Siam’s Squawking Man from Xi’an
Xi'an Man in Siam
A Journey around Thailand
“Two cliches make us laugh but a hundred cliches moves us because we sense dimly that the cliches are talking among themselves, celebrating a reunion.” Umberto Eco
It must be homesickness that makes me use this quote again. Readers of my other attempts at blogging will recognise it.
You need to remember that I live in China, where they have no fear of cliches, embrace them, cherish them, even.
This is nowhere truer than with the conversations you have with people you’ve just met. These conversations are like reading from a script. The pattern never varies but people never tire of it. It is at once both cliched and profoundly comforting. In China, you’ll never be lost for words. Continue reading
Trail of Two Bangkoks
The Bionic Salesman
A Journey around Thailand
Ah, Thailand at last – land of beauty, smiles, elegant beaches and unfathomable ways. I’ve been here a few days now and I already feel I know something of the country’s fine traditions. I know, for example, that at four thirty every Friday, the people of Bangkok like to get in their cars and park them in the streets with the engines running. I’ve already learned not to go anywhere on Friday afternoons.
I’ve taken a liking to the little streets of boutiques and restaurants in Siam Square (see pix). This is the city’s good side – indigenous, young, vibrant and creative. I walked there for ages. Bought some crispy pork and an Itchy (or is it Scratchy?) T-shirt. Couldn’t resist a smirk when I got to “Miss Puke’s” massage parlour. Continue reading