Bangkok Day 2: En Route to Ayutthaya

TRAVEL

For our second day of touring, we were taken on a bus to Ayutthaya, the former capital of Siam. Our first stop was the Bang Pa-In Palace, the Summer Palace of Thai kings.

The complex is populated by a surprising mix of European, Thai and Chinese-style buildings. It was an interesting break from the temple-hopping.

It was a little strange to see clashing architectural styles but hey, what do we know?

A brightly-painted watchtower

A veritable army of gardeners keep the grounds immaculately landscaped. You can even explore it with golf carts if you want to spring for the rental fee. 

And now, a random herd of grass elephants.

The ruins of the old city

Check out the cool Buddha head enveloped by the tree.

At this point, I was more than ready to head back to Bangkok.

A few requisite tourist photos

Even the Buddhas get a costume change. Their gold (or yellow) garments change according to the season.

We leave you with a photo that got us some slightly angry stares from the guards. Our friends have been striking this pose whenever they travel to new locales and it's gotten to be a "thing" among us so here's our first lame attempt. :) We're sorry if this is offensive to Buddha!

Bangkok Day 1: Shopping

FASHION

P: David and Goliath shirt, JayJays shorts, Zara chukkas

Wearing appropriate clothes for the heat and the miles of walking (mostly inside the malls).

D:  vintage polka dot button down, striped shorts from the dept store, Holster jelly flats 

Nothing shmancy, just a chill outfit suitable for Bangkok's warm weather.

FOOD

We were looking for a Thai restaurant while waiting to be checked in. Good thing Feuang Nara was right across our hotel.

Thai milk tea, ubiquitous but always good, refreshing and perfect to tame spicy dishes.
D: I need this in my life everyday!! 

Fresh coconut shake, not unlike what's found in the Philippines.

The Pad Thai was sticky and flavorful and we really liked the texture of the fat rice noodles.

The crab fried rice could be a meal by itself with the generous amount of seafood found inside. It just needs a bit of chili and fish sauce.

We decided to order the rice crumb pork because we don't usually see it in the menus back home. The meat was super tender and the plum/tamarind sauce gave it a tangy kick. 

Chicken with cashew nuts, a staple of every menu. 

SHOPPING 

Our first stop was Siam Paragon, just to dip our toes in Bangkok's shopping waters before heading off the deep end in Platinum.

At the Gourmet Market for Thai delicacies, dried fruit, rice crackers and other snackables. The dried strawberries are a must-try!

We were immediately drawn to this display of awesome gelato-filled mochi balls.

East meets west in the combination of mochi and gelato, with flavors like red bean, green tea, and after eight mint. This mochi was different from the ones back home! We didn't have to warm them in our hands or wait a few minutes before digging in. The texture was smooth and perfect from the get-go.

D: After walking around the mall for a bit, we somehow ended up in the shoe section of Paragon's department store and I was greeted by the sight of this: Jeffrey Campbell overload!!

I was freaking out in a major way because they had so many styles in stock! I was so happy to be surrounded by non-vanilla styles! I wish Fashion Forum would bring in some of the "wilder" designs of Jeffrey Campbell!

My brother and P were laughing while I had a mini-meltdown. I think even the SAs were amused as I stroked my favorite pairs.

<3 Now I have yet another shopping-related reason to visit Bangkok again.

After Paragon, we hopped on over to Siam Discovery for a look-see.

Love all the window displays! Check out the paper bags taking the form of some of the most iconic arm candies! I spy a paper Chanel, Balenciaga, and Hermes!

There were quire a few boutiques for guys as well, all very edgy and on the adventurous side.

(FOOD AGAIN)

We decided to eat inexpensively at the food court and take a break from Thai food for a bit so dinner was in the Japanese hamburger chain, MOS Burger.

MOS burger with cheese - that's a fat slice of tomato, special MOS sauce, cheese and a beef burger

Yakiniku rice burger - the beef is marinated in a salty, sweet sauce and goes perfectly with the rice for a savory treat

Half and half - the fries were thick-cut and the batter on the rings was light, crisp and tasty

At Siam square, ready to head home before another long day of touring.

Bangkok Day 1: The Grand Palace (and Ichigo Update)

TRAVEL

On day one of our Bangkok trip, we headed out early to the Grand Palace to check out the usual tourist stops.

The Grand Palace is a collection of halls and temples set in the sprawling grounds right in the heart of Bangkok. The royal family used to live here but now it's mostly used for official ceremonies and tourism.

Everything was encrusted with colorful tiles and mosaic patterns.

Here's our helpful guide Tony filling us in on history and random facts.

All the structures are constantly being cleaned and restored to keep them looking spiffy

We missed out on what the golden spire actually is but it looks pretty impressive.

The outer court with giant guard statues

Scale model of the Angkor Wat in Cambodia

It was a hot, tiring morning after a red-eye flight but I guess we had to get a little bit of culture in to offset the real agenda of the trip: shopping! More on that soon!

Ichigo giveaway update: Congratulations to KAT VALDEZ! You've just won yourself a pair of Tanya tux slippers! We'll be getting in touch with you shortly so please check your email. :)
 A big thank you to everyone who joined! 

Unusual Picks

FASHION
So I finally broke my shoe shopping ban. Yep, I guess that didn't last very long but no surprise there. What did surprise P (and me) was the pair of shoes that cracked my resolve: a pair of sneakers!
Now, I do love (most of the time, obsess over) a pair of heels, but I'm definitely not the kind of girl that shuns all flats ("Ew, I'd rather die than be caught wearing flats!"- so not me at all). I need them for work. I need them for travel since I refuse to schlep along cobble-stone streets in a pair of heels! I need them for trips to the supermarket. However, before this purchase, I have to admit that I only owned one pair of sneakers - Adidas trainers for the gym. 

So what broke the ban? Well, I've been eyeing Superga sneakers for a while now and a pair of plain navy blue ones seemed ideal for my daily jaunts on the preschool playground. It's just that every time I passed a Superga store, I'd always think to myself that there's a pair of heels with my name on it somewhere else.

Then one day, I spotted this ombre version in the children's department and what do you know? They were almost a thousand pesos cheaper than their adults' line! These are the times when I'm happy to have freakishly small feet!

So much more ideal than the navy blue pair. I can't believe I actually parted with some hard-earned cash for a pair of sneakers! The timing was perfect though because I needed a sturdy pair of walking shoes because it was time for us to hie off to Thailand for a holiday!

D: F21 mint green sweater, tribal print skirt made by Manang Rose, my lola's vintage necklace

I used them to trek all over the gritty streets of Bangkok and explore the ruins and temples of Ayutthaya. I think they held up quite nicely, though a little sullied around the edges.

Here's us at the airport lounge before grabbing a quick Charlie Chan pasta dinner while waiting for our flight out. Watch out for Thai food, tours, and shopping to be featured in our upcoming posts!