Bangkok (Lonely Planet) - Andrew Burke [89]
ERAWAN MUSEUM (CHANG SAM SIAN)
Map
0 2371 3135; www.erawan-museum.com; Soi 119, Th Sukhumvit; adult/child 150/50B; 8am-5pm
On the way to Ancient City and created by the same man, this museum is actually a five-storey sculpture of Erawan, Indra’s three-headed elephant mount from Hindu mythology. The interior is filled with antique sculptures but is most impressive for the stained-glass ceiling. The museum is 8km from Bangkok’s Ekamai bus station and any Samut Prakan–bound bus can drop you off; just tell the driver Chang Sam Sian.
SHOPPING
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SHOPPING AREAS
OPENING HOURS
KO RATANAKOSIN & THONBURI
BANGLAMPHU
CHINATOWN
SIAM SQUARE, PRATUNAM, PLOENCHIT & RATCHATHEWI
RIVERSIDE, SILOM & LUMPHINI
THANON SUKHUMVIT
GREATER BANGKOK
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top picks
Amulet Market
Chatuchak Weekend Market
Mahboonkrong
Nonthaburi Market
Siam Square
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What’s your recommendation? www.lonelyplanet.com/bangkok
Commerce and shopping are so ubiquitous in Bangkok that they appear to be genetic traits of the city’s inhabitants. Hardly a street corner in the city is free from a vendor, hawker or impromptu stall, and Bangkok is also home to one of the world’s largest outdoor markets, not to mention Southeast Asia’s second-largest mall. There’s something here for just about everybody, and often genuine and knock-off items live happily side by side. Although the tourist brochures tend to tout the upmarket malls, Bangkok still lags slightly behind Singapore and Hong Kong in this area, and the open-air markets are where the best deals and most-original items are found.
Bargaining is part of the culture at markets and small family-run shops where prices aren’t posted. For tips on engaging in this ancient sport, see the boxed text.
Thais are generally so friendly and laid-back that some visitors are lulled into a false sense of security, forgetting that Bangkok is a big city with untrustworthy characters. While your personal safety is rarely at risk in Thailand, you may be unwittingly charmed out of the contents of your wallet. See Click here for more information about scams.
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SHOPPING AREAS
The area around Siam Sq has the greatest concentration of shopping malls for designer and department-store goods. Street markets for souvenirs and pirated goods are on Th Khao San, Th Sukhumvit and Th Silom. Thai-style housewares and handicraft items can be found in the older parts of Bangkok, such as Banglamphu or around Th Charoen Krung.
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OPENING HOURS
Most family-run shops are open from 10am to 7pm daily. Street markets are either daytime (from 9am to 5pm) or night-time (from 8pm to midnight). Note that streetside vendors are forbidden by city ordinance to clutter the pavements on Mondays, but do so every other day. Shopping centres are usually open from 10am to 10pm.
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KO RATANAKOSIN & THONBURI
Bangkok’s oldest district specialises in the ancient arts of health, safety and fortune. Locals come to the leafy lanes to inspect sacred amulets and pick up pellet-sized pills of Thai traditional medicines.
TRADITIONAL MEDICINE SHOPS
Map Health Supplies
Th Maharat from Thammasat University to Wat Pho, Ko Ratanakosin; 8am-7pm; air-con 503, 508 & 511, ordinary 15 & 53; Tha Chang (N9)
Bangkok’s commercial medicine cabinet occupies the riverside thoroughfare of Th Maharat. Packaged in plastic pill bottles bearing an unsmiling photo of a trusted authority, commercial formulas combine various herbal ingredients – such as galingale, lemon grass, kaffir lime and other flavourings used in Thai dishes – to target a specific disease or to promote general wellness.
Shops carrying massage supplies cater to practitioners and students at the nearby Wat Pho massage training school. Keep an eye out for the dumpling-shaped herbal compresses that are