Bangkok At Night

2006 marks the 10th year that I have known my friend Rose. We both worked at the same company a decade ago, which was my first job after university. She has witnessed my entry into the business world and has always been a trusted friend throughout the years. The company where we worked had its share of characters, but thankfully I took away a few good learning experiences, but most importantly I made two life-long friends there in Rose and her husband Kevin. Kevin is a great guy and is also someone I can always count on. Kevin, Rose, and I were all single when we worked at the company together and we shared in numerous inside jokes and the mocking of our hopeless co-workers. Kevin was no match for Rose's charm and the two of them are now married with two young boys who keep their parents on their toes.



When Rose found out I was moving to Singapore, she immediately put the gears in motion to come out and visit. I have never seen anyone invest in so much advance planning for a trip, yet she eventually made it out to visit after a year and a half of saving, planning, and driving everyone else mad with her story of how she was going to go to Singapore. Kevin was selfless enough to encourage Rose to visit after seeing how much a trip like this would mean to her.



This was one of the first trips in a long time that I didn’t bring my powerbook along with me. I did have my iPhone (I had just unlocked the SIM with ziphone before leaving) which worked in Vietnam and was crucial for finding free WiFi. Also, in Airplane mode, the iPhone is really a great iPod with a really long battery life.



My main interest throughout the trip was taking pictures with my new Canon 450d DSLR camera. I got some good opportunities to try taking HDR pictures. If you don’t know about HDR, a technique you can easily do with just about any Canon camera, check out this wikipedia article. If you’re bored, you can check out my first set of photos from my trip on my Flickr page.



Like most Asian countries, night markets are very popular in Bangkok because of its convenience. Locals can shop after work hours and city visitors can enjoy shopping at night without having to endure the tropical Bangkok climate.

The most well-renowned night market (due to its location) can be found in the red light district of Patpong, alongside the nudie bars and cabarets. From the latest pirated movies, electronic devices, toys, trinkets, souvenirs and Rolex watch imitations, you can almost find anything you want (or need) at a night market. Don’t forget to pay a visit to the other night markets in Bangkok such as Suan Lum Night Bazaar to enjoy the open food court and beer garden and Khao San Road’s trendy stalls if you’re a tourist backpacker.