damian1

Day 20 of my Thailand trip. And it is already the last day before I fly back to the Netherlands. What a trip it has been, and what I have been able to see a lot of beautiful Thailand in these three weeks.

To get the most out of the last day, I booked a day trip on the advice of family and friends who have been to Thailand before. This time I booked tour to Damnoen Saduak Floating Market & Maeklong Railway Market.

The start of the tour

The day started early, because the tour operator would pick me up from the hotel around 6:15 AM. Before I would be picked up, I wanted to stop by the 7 Eleven to do some shopping for the day.

After I had done some shopping I quickly walked back to the hotel. The tour operator would pick me up at any time. To my surprise, I was not picked up by a minivan, but a taxi was waiting for me. The taxi would drop me off at Khaosan Road, from where the day tour would start.

Khaosan Road

I arrived on Khaosan road around 6:30 AM, pretty early for me personally. But also very cool to see the peace on this normally so crowded street with tourists and partygoers. This is what Khaosan Road in Thailand is known for. It is the central place where most backpackers gather in Thailand.

Khaosan Road - Bangkok, Thailand.

As you can see from the picture, the Thai workers started their working day early. During my trip they were working hard to completely renovate the road surface of this popular street. And of course there is no better time to do this than early in the morning when the last revelers have just left the street.

Khaosan Road

After waiting about 30 to 45 minutes, the mini bus full of tourists finally arrived to pick me up for the tour. This bus was already completely full, so I had the luck of the place next to the sliding door. This is where you have the most legroom, which is something I can use well with my height of 1.94 meters (6 feet 4, I'm guessing).

Damnoen Saduak Floating Market

The drive to Damnoen Saduak Floating Market took approximately 1.5 hours. The Floating Market in Damnoen Saduak is located just over 100 kilometers outside of Bangkok and is on the agenda for many tourists and visitors to the Thai capital. The market is known for the traders who sell everything from fruits, vegetables, Thai treats and souvenirs.

Picture I took at the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market

The destination is known as a unique experience, but in my opinion it was anything but unique. It was mainly a meeting point for tourist. The market is very busy and it does not feel authentic at all.

After arriving at the market we were led to a vendor where we still had to buy a ticket for one of the longtail boats. If you wouldn't buy a ticket for this boat, the whole unique aspect of this journey would have disappeared. The boat trip was a tour through the canals, where the only goal was to sell you products.

The Thai people were selling goods in boats as well as in shops that were located everywhere along the canals. Here the sellers were ready with fishing rods to bring in your boat. The experience is not recommended at all as the Thai people, who are normally very friendly and welcoming, were not friendly at all here. All in all, this was not an experience for me that I would recommend to others. The only positive point was that I was able to shoot a number of beautiful images and photos, but this is certainly the case.

Vendor selling food

After the tour, a picture was taken of you in the boat, which you could later buy in a tile. The goal was of course to sell you this. This way the tour operator could still earn a little extra from the many toursits that they bring to this “authentic market” every day.

The authentic Damnoen Saduak Floating **SCAM** Market

During my visit I immediately came up with a new name for this market, namely the Floating SCAM market! Despite the fact that I think the content should be fun to read, I also think I should give you an honest picture about the different sights that I visit. If you ever want to do such a tour in Thailand, do not visit the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market!

Would this day still be a success? It all depends on the next destination: Maeklong Railway Market.

Maeklong Railway Market

The Maeklong Railway Market is a pretty unique, it's not just as any other market, but as the name implies, it is a market that is held on a train track. Just like the previous destination, it was also very busy with tourists, but not disturbingly busy.

I hear you ask, why is a market held on a train track so unique? Well, the train track is actually still in use. The train still passes eight times a day, and the exhibitors have to remove their products from the track and close the awnings of their market stalls.

Pretty cool, right?

After securing their goods, the Thai sellers begin to direct everyone to a safe place. It is really a spectacle to see. After securing their goods, the Thai sellers begin to direct everyone to a safe place. It is really a spectacle to see. The train is honking to chase away tourists who are still on the track to shoot the perfect photo. A complete madhouse and a real experience. It's pretty fun to watch and to see how normal it has become for the Thai sellers. What was also pretty is funny is to see the vendors to be amazed about the stupid antics that some tourists are doing at an approaching train.

Train at the Maeklong Railway Market

The train passed you less than 10 cm away. You could just touch it while it drove past you.
After the train passed, the market began to start again as if nothing had happened.

I decided to go for a walk because and was amazed at what is saw. The most beautiful stalls with fresh fruit and other food were located along the track. I also ran into the local butcher shop, and was shocked by the way the meat was sold. Judge yourself:

The market also continued on the other side of the train market. Here, sellers tried to steal a piece of market share from the 7 Eleven. A nice sight to see how local vendors park their stalls in front of Thailand's largest convenience stores.

Local vendors VS. 7 Eleven

After a visit to the 7 Eleven, kidding, of course not. Of course I support the local vendors to win the competition of the 7 Eleven. I bought a fruit shake and some food from two stalls next to it. With these purchases I had to hurry back to the bus, because we would return to Bangkok city any time. On the way back to Bangkok I spotted something typically Thai. Three people sitting on one scooter.

Thai Scooter Gang

Summary of the day

while the floating market was a complete debacle, the Maeklong Railway Market was not. The train market was truly a spectacular one that I would not have wanted to miss.

After the trip you will be dropped off again on Khaosan road which is the perfect place to resume your day. I didn't do much for the rest of the day. I took a short walk through the back alleys of Bangkok, took the picture below and returned to the hotel.

Bangkok Back Alley

Once back at the hotel, it soon started to get dark. Here I decided to admire my last sunset of my trip on the hotel's roof terrace. What a great trip this was, and we have to go home tomorrow. Next week one last blog about this amazing journey.

Sunset at the hotel

Cinnamon Video

Here it is, the last video of my Thailand trip in February. View the beautiful images of the not so authentic floating market and the great train market.

https://cinnamon.video/watch?v=428248278748890473

For subscribers there are 17 exclusive pictures!

After a long journey I am back in Bangkok and woke up in the Admiral Premier Bangkok hotel. A quiet day was planned, during which I would explore the area.

Exploring Bangkok City

Bangkok is an impressive city where there is always something to do. And this can be anything, just walking through the city can be a very interesting experience. You come across the most beautiful places and you get to know the culture of the city well. That is why I decided to explore the area around my hotel.

Because of all the expensive hotels, the environment I found myself in was focused on tourism, the wealthier Thai and businessmen. The streets around the hotel were quite local, with typical Thai restaurants along the way, where the street is also the kitchen of the restaurant. Quite interesting if you ask me, and very nice to see how the chefs here can put worldly dishes on the table with a fairly primitive kitchen.

Restaurant close to the Admiral Premier Bangkok hotel

Five minutes away from the hotel, the more expensive restaurants appeared. Here you could find different food chains such as McDonalds, KFC, Subway and many more. But there was also plenty of Thai restaurants to choose from.

Terminal 21 Shopping Mall, Bangkok

There was a shopping mall close to my hotel, and because I had time to spare, I decided to go here. I had no idea what to expect, but I was perplexed by what I saw. A gigantic shopping mall of about six floors. Certainly not what I expected, but certainly nice to get lost in.

Terminal 21, Bangkok

The shopping mall is designed as an airport. It was nice to see that every floor was dedicated to an iconic city, such as Tokyo, Paris and Istanbul. In the shopping mall you could find everything from clothes to jewelry and from electronic products to food. There are many restaurants you could choose from, but mainly the food court was a pleasant surprise, as I spent a lot of time just wandering through the mall. The food court is a true paradise with the choice from all of the iconic Thail dishes.

One of the food courts at Terminal 21

And I must say, the food was delicious. There was a great variety of street food cooked, rice, chicken, pork, seafood and vegetable dishes too. You need to have a prepaid card – you can get them at the information desk, top it up, then buy food. The balance on the card can be used for 30 days but at the information desk, you can get the balance back if you want too.

There are a huge variety of foods, There are table next to the window to sit and eat but there is take away options too.

It is really good to try, not only because of the cheap prices but because of the delicious food!

A plate of rice, chicken and cashew nuts cost 32 baht (exactly $1)! And for this price you didn't get much, but enough food. I mean the food below cost just $1.

Food court card an my dish

The price and quality of the food isn't the only thing I was amazed about. After dinner I decided to get a fruit smoothie. And only in this booth itself 6 people already worked in a very small space. Everyone had their own task, from taking the order, to mixing the fruit to serving the smoothies. It was one large collaborative team, which could serve the tastiest smoothies in less than half a minute. The pass with the credits on it made everything even easier. The smoothie itself was even more expensive than the food, as I paid 35 baht for this ($1.10). Still not expesive though! 😅

Smoothies at Terminal 21

Rooftop pool – Admiral Premier Bangkok

Back at the hotel I decided to enjoy the tranquility and the rooftop pool that my hotel had. The pool had a really calming environment, without being overwhelmed by the chaos and the sounds of the city. My lounger had one of the best views from the roof.

Rooftop pool at Admiral Premier Bangkok

When I see these images again, I want nothing more than to return. Life at the rooftop pool is in such contrast to the chaos of the city of Bangkok. Precisely because of this also a place to relax in the middle of the city. During sunset, the rooftop pool gets even better. The sun shone perfectly between the Bangkok skyline. I couldn't miss the chance to shoot this photo.

Suset at the rooftop pool

Right next to the hotel was a road, where it was nice to look down to see how life on the street goes on. The view from the roof of the hotel was amazing, this combined with a starting sunset makes it the perfect place to spend some time!

Views of the streets and skyline from hotel rooftop

Diner at Terminal 21

After a while at the hotel it started getting late again. In the afternoon I was so overwhelmed by the extensive selection at Terminal 21 Food court that I decided to eat there again. This time I decided to go for the Thai noodles with shrimp, something I wouldn't choose at a street vendor, but I still wanted to try it out! And you guessed it, it was delicious.

Thai noodles with shrimp

After this meal I was still a bit hungry. The day before I had chatted with Niels that I still had to try Mango sticky rice, a typical Thai dish that I had heard many good stories about.

And now was the perfect time to try this dish. There was too much choice, and making a choice from so many options is not my greatest skill. My opinion; the combination seems nice, but I still like the mango more without the rice. I personally think the mango is too good to be eaten with rice, mango is just simply too good for that! 😂

Mango Sticky Rice

The day was not complete without some ice cream, something I had too little of during my trip to Thailand. So I decided to treat myself to an ice cream for my way back to the hotel.

🍧🍨🍦

I hate to have to tell you this, but unfortunately I didn't shoot any footage this day to show you. So no Cinnamon Video this week... Anyway, I hope you liked the blog. In any case, I enjoyed writing it a lot.

Do you have a subscription to Coil? Then I have for you! In the subscriber only section you can find 11 bonus pictures of this day!

This is the day that I'm going back to the destination that I first started my trip and will also end my trip – Bangkok, Thailand.

Checking out at the hotel

First of all, of course, I had to eat breakfast and check out at the Aonang Eco Inn hotel. Breakfast was included at the hotel, so I started my day with a few delicious sandwiches and a fresh orange juice. After packing my bag I was able to check out and had to wait for the bus to take me to Krabi airport. I had just enough time to visit one of the many 7 Elevens close to my hotel, I mean those 7 Elevens are just about enywhere in Thailand, so convenient!

Checking out of the hotel

Krabi Airport

With enough bananas, drink and other snack I was back just in time. The van that would take me to the airport just arrived and shouted my name, great timing! The van that I booked was a so called airport bus, and costed me about 150 Baht ($5), and this for a journey that takes 1 hour and 30 minutes. So cheap, this would never be possible in the Netherlands!

The airport itself was not very special. There was one hall where all passengers from different destinations gathered. All these passengers were accompanied by over 20 birds that somehow entered the airport and just flew around and lived their lives here. 🤣

The flight from Krabi to Bangkok airport was just as long as the bus trip to the airport itself. And a one-way ticket from Krabi to Bangkok cost me only about $100. The flight was pretty good, there was enough room for my legs for me as giant dutchmen! I really just don't remember so much from this journey, I didn't make any photos or videos, which is a shame. But luckily I wrote some notes down, so writing this blogs brings back so many memories, which I find really awesome!

Back in Bangkok

After 18 days of traveling I am back in Bangkok, back to the place where the journey all started. It has become a trend to book a slightly more luxurious hotel at the end of my travels. Of course I had to travel to the hotel first. For this I had several options, of which the A3 shuttle bus service of the government was the best option.
This bus is connecting Don Mueang International Airport (DMK) with Bangkok City. The Bangkok A3 Bus fare is 30 THB ($1) per person for a 45 minute bus ride.

Shuttle bus to Lumphini Park

Lumphini Park

The final destination of the bus was Lumphini Park, one of the largest green spaces in central Bangkok. I was once in Lumphini Park in 2017, and I loved this park so much that I decided to walk through it. I love the atmosphere and the vibe of this park, mainly because of the wonderful tranquility in the middle of the city, the people who play sports and the animals you can find there. It was a tough walk, because of course I was still walking with all my luggage through the middle of the park in the heat of the day.

Lumphini Park

Admiral Premier Bangkok

To get to the hotel from Lumphini Park I had ordered a Grab taxi, a 15 minute ride cost me less than $ 5. In Bangkok, I decided to stay at the Admiral Premier Bangkok Hotel. A hotel that offered the most value for the money. In the hotel I had opted for a normal studio, nothing special, a room with a bed and bathroom. The best thing about this hotel is that it has a rooftop pool.

During check-in I suddenly heard that the hotel was booked quite full, and they had upgraded me to another room. Once I got to the room and opened the door I was shocked, booking this hotel was one of my best decisions of my trip. After looking at their site I found out that they had not given me a studio, but one of the more luxurious suites. This room had a kitchen, living room, separate bedroom, balcony and luxurious bathroom (Cinnamon Video).

I decided to make just take some rest this evening. I walked to the nearest 7 Eleven, bought some snacks and beer and decided to watch a movie in the hotel.

Chang beer

On the way back I came across a street vendor that sold snacks. A kind of mini pancakes made of egg with a piece of sausage in it. It tasted really good, and I hadn't tried it before.

Mini pancakes made of egg with a piece of sausage

**Cinnamon Video
**Be sure to watch the Cinnamon video I made of day 18 of my trip. You will get an impression of my hotel, a tour through my hotel suite and a small impression of the city.

https://cinnamon.video/watch?v=412848608992298411

Only Coil subscribers can see the bonus pictures

It is already day 17 of my backpacking trip in Thailand, and the trip is now almost coming to an end. I have about five days left until my return trip, of which 4 in Bangkok. This morning I woke up at the Rapala Rock Wood Resort and I still had to see what the day was going to bring me. The hotel was quite fully booked, and there weren't really other options, as the resorts were quite pricey.

So what am I going to do, am I going back to Ao Nang where I also spent the last few days, or can I spend another day on the island Let's find out!

The route to breakfast at the hotel

**What's the plan?
**During breakfast I had given myself the task to see what the options were. At this point I realized that not planning a trip can sometimes have its disadvantages. I soon found out that another night at this great location was not an option, so the only option was to leave the small peninsula called Railay Beach and return to Ao Nang.

Of course I was smart enough to not leave right away at the start of the day, after all it was still early in the day and Ao Nang is only a fifteen minute boat ride away. Plenty of time to relax and enjoy the views and beach of this beautiful location. After breakfast I packed my belongings, left it at the reception of the hotel and made my way to the beach where I had spent a large part of my day yesterday.

Railay Beach, Krabi province

Today it was a bit busier on the beach than it was yesterday, which was mainly reflected on the beach itself, but also on the water. Tourists boats came back and forth, and I'm not talking about the Thai longtail boats.. Luckily I did take my GoPro to the beach today, the perfect opportunity to shoot some videos from the beach as a reminder of this pretty busy, but certainly very beautiful location. Be sure to check out the Cinnamon video if you want to get an impression of the beach! 😉

Going back to Ao Nang

It was time for me to go back to the hotel to collect my things and look for a long tail boat. On arrival my backpack was taken up by lift, unfortunately this was not the case on the way down. So I had to do a little workout to get to the bottom of the stairs.

It was a short but beautiful stay at Railay Beach, and I certainly would not have wanted to miss this beautiful place. I found out that boats also left for Ao Nang on my side of the island. You only had to wait longer here, as there were fewer tourists on this side of the island. After a while a family arrived, and they turned out to be Dutch too. We were all with just enough people to leave by boat. So we left Railay Beach behind us and the beautiful way back could begin.

It was quiet, so I had a perfect view

Ao Nang

Back in Ao Nang I decided not to sleep in a hostel again, I opted for a little more luxury. And for $ 32 I found a place that suited this perfectly. A private room at the Aonang Eco Inn hotel. I made a video tour of the room which you can find in the Cinnamon video down below.

My room in the Aonang Eco Inn hotel

It was a pretty good hotel room, with a balcony on boullevard street. During sunset it was absolutely perfect, the sun was shining perfectly on the rocks opposite my hotel room, which gave a very nice effect. So I quickly got a beer at the 7 Eleven, and sat down to enjoy the view!

The view from the hotel balcony

Since I had already seen everything in Ao Nang, I decided that I would return to Bangkok the next day. I had two options, one was to take a bus back to Bangkok, and the other to fly from the airport in Krabi. Since I didn't have many days left, and domestic flights are not expensive in Thailand, I decided to fly. A one-way ticket from Krabi to Bangkok only cost me $ 100.

Completely ready for tomorrow, I decided to have dinner and enjoy the beach at night for the last time. It's just so relaxing to enjoy the sound of the waves in combination with a fresh cold beer! Can I end the day any better? I don't thinks so.. 😀

Cinnamon Video

Be sure to watch my video from day 17 and get an impression of the beach, my hotel room and the view from the balcony. Be sure to let me know what you think of the video, always good to get feedback and know what you think is the best shot!

https://cinnamon.video/watch?v=408619784712750691

Only Coil subscribers can see the 6 bonus pictures and read my story about the *FAKE beer***!
**

For the fifth day in a row, I wake up at the Pop In Hostel in Ao Nang, Krabi Province. Today is finally the day that we are on our way to a new destination. A place that is not accessible via the mainland, but is also not an island. Wonder if you have any idea what it could be? Read on and you will find out!

Starting the day

Once again I'm getting breakfast at Saad Kitchen. I just couldn't get enough of the delicious fresh fruit with delicious yogurt in the morning. The fruit was so fresh, something I could ever experience in the Netherlands. So I had to make the most of it and enjoy this delicious breakfast one more time. A better start to the day is almost impossible.

Breakfast at Saad Kitchen

The last thing I had to do before I could make my way to the next destination was to check out at Pop In Hostel. This hostel with its great location was a perfect base to discover the surroundings of Krabi province. We have seen many beautiful things here, such as Khao Ngon Nak Nature Trail and The Tiger Cave Temple. Are you ready to discover what the new destination will be? Okay, I'll tell you ...

Goodbye Pop In Hostel, maybe we will meet again!

**Railay Beach
**So if you're still trying to figure out what I meant by “A place that is not accessible via the mainland, but is also not an island”, I will tell you! My next destination will be Railay Beach, a small peninsula only accessible by boat. High limestone cliffs are cutting this bit off for mainland access.

Hostel to Railay Beach

As I told Railay Beach is only accessible by boat. A ticket for the boat trip of about 5 minutes on a longtail boat costs 150 baht ($ 5). The time at which these boats will leave is not fixed. Railay Beach attracts many tourists, some stay overnight, but also many of them are doing a day trip to this idilic place. Boats come and go to this beautiful island. During the boat trip I was able to take the following picture of a boat that came to accompany us.

Thai longtail boat boot

And this time too the boat was powered by a gigantic old truck engine. I mean, look at the smoke coming out of the engine in the photo above. This cannot be good for the environment, I am curious for how long longtail boats like these are still allowed in Thailand. Still, it remains special to sit on such a boat (see video for truck engine).

Truck engine on a longtail boat

Arriving at Railay Beach

Since I had booked an overnight stay on the island, I had to bring all my belongings with me. It was manageable to enter the boat with backpack and a daypack. But getting off the boat with the same luggage definitely became a bit more difficult. We had to climb down a rope ladder, and this time the water was almost up to my waist. A nice challenge, but luckily the Thai boat driver came over to help me.

I arrived on the west side of Railay Beach, however my hotel is on the east side of the island. I was happy that it was only a 10 minute walk to my stay, the Rapala Rock Wood Resort. Before reaching the hotel, I had to conquer the long and steep stairs of the hotel. Luckily they had a lift for the luggage, so the stairs were not as bad as it looked.

My Backpack taking a lift 😂

For one night in the cheapest accommodation in Ao Nang, I had to pay 540 Baht ($ 17). Once I arrived at my room I quickly unpacked my belongings and packed my daypack with the things I needed. With my swimming gear on, I left to explore the island. I soon found out that Railay Beach was a bit more expensive than all other places in Thailand. You quickly paid double for food and drinks, especially beer. I soon found out what caused this, I saw a boat coming full of new stock for a shop. The boat had to be unloaded by a tractor with a trailer. He drove into the sea to collect the goods from the boat. Very special to see the reality and life of Railay Beach.

First of all, I decided to go to Phra Nang Beach, about the southernmost spot of Railay Beach. To get here I had to walk on a nice path, long cliffs with Stalactite
and monkeys.

Stalactite

**Phra Nang Beach
**Although the walk was already beautiful, the beach certainly was. On the beach of Phra Nang Beach I decided to spend my day. I laid out my towel on the beach and decided to take a walk on the beach.

The view from the beach was really great, beautiful rock formations lay at the edge of the beach and even in the water. This also makes this place so popular with tourists, because it was ridiculously busy. I therefore decided to look for a slightly quieter place. During this search I walked along the beach, and suddenly saw boats in the water selling food. This looked so cool that I had to buy something to eat.

I decided to get a chicken baguette. I decided to eat it in the shade opposite the rock formation, enjoying the view. 😍

Sunset

After some time on the beach it was getting quite late. I knew that the sunset on the western part of the island would be very beautiful. I quickly decided to go walk this way, so that I could buy myself a beer and enjoy the sunset. After some time on the beach it was getting quite late. I knew that the sunset on the western part of the island would be very beautiful. I quickly decided to go this way, so that I could buy another beer and enjoy the spectacle. I arrived at this section of the beach just before sunset. The view was already very beautiful, with all longtail boats in the water, with gigantic rock formations in the background.

Railay Beach (West)

It was my best decision of the day to go to this side of the island. Enjoying the sunset with a delicious cold beer could be deserved. After a day full of new impressions, this is a nice end to the day. Without too many words, I just let you enjoy the photos.

Cinnamon Video

Of course, this blog wouldn't be complete without a Cinnamon Video. And if I say so myself, I think this week's video is very special, and it gives a very nice picture of the boat trip, the island and of course the sunset. See it for yourself!

https://cinnamon.video/watch?v=402816216051221754

Only Coil subscribers can see the 9 bonus pictures!