July 25, 2012

Sawadee ka Bangkok!

My main purpose of going to Bangkok was to run the Standard Chartered Bangkok Marathon.
Since I've never been there, I decided to go earlier and explore the city.

The run started in front of the Grand Palace and because of that, we chose to stay at Khao San area. This area is popular with backpackers and budget travellers as the accommodation here are quite cheap. I was spoilt for choice but finally went for the one which received the highest rating in Hostelbookers.


NapPark Hostel is not located exactly on Khao San Road. It's two blocks away, at a quieter Tani Road. It's not the cheapest hostel in Khao San area though, but I was satisfied with the price I paid - clean bathroom, free high-speed WiFi, nice Thai ambience and helpful staffs. The only setback was that they didn't have kitchen in the hostel, but well... it's not a big problem for me.



USD 12.88 per night

Each bed comes with its own light, mirror and power socket. There's also a divider and curtain between beds, good for those who wants privacy but I guessed somehow it restricted the communication between travellers. Everybody does their own thing in their little space. 

When I had nothing to do, I just went out and wandered around Khaosan and the nearby Soi Rambuttri.
The area was very entertaining... 

 

From the cheap massage (it's super cheap ok!), 


to watching people eating the fried insects!


Grasshoppers, crickets, worms, scorpions...
I almost puked when I saw a guy happily crunching the fried scorpion. :O

There's also a lot of fake syndicates here!



Student Card? Driving License? Degree Cert?
Just let them know what you want and they'll prepare it for you within minutes. The price depends on which service you need. I was actually tempted to make a fake Student Card. You know, kot boleh dapat discount kat cinema. :p But I didn't do it laa.. cos I'm a good girl. hahahaha...

 

It's so happening here... night and even day time.




Travellers converge here to shop, hang out, drink and party...





 Khao San Road never failed to entertain me.

5 comments:

Zila Zainal said...

Oh i miss running.. and thailand too :(

Ernie Khairina said...

sabaar je laaa..bole buat degree instant haha

rara said...

zila: let's run and go to Bangkok! hehe..

ernie: hahaha tu la pasal.. buat Phd laa.. jadi doctor terus.. :p

Nur Hidayah Husaini said...

HI. may i know the nearest train station to/from Khao San road?

rara said...

@Nur Hidayah: Hi Hidayah. There's no train station nearby Khao San. If you're coming from the airport, stop at Phaya Thai. From there you can take tuktuk. If you're going for sightseeing, can take the boat from Phra Athit, and stop at Sathorn to change to BTS Skytrain.