Bangkok - Day 5

Today started early... too early. Or maybe it was just the lack of sleep.

Susah... nak gi Bangkok, or actually anywhere in the world - when travelling, I hate sleeping.

Simply because I want to make the most of my time.

First stop of day five... Tao Hong Tai, ceramic factory which makes almost everything imaginable possible to create in ceramic. Don't believe me? Check out the pics.

See what I mean? Ok, so there's a fascination with pigs and cows. But admit it - comel kan?

And when I say everything imaginable, I meant it. How about a Thai version of a Transformer meets Macross and somehow along the way, a dash of Voltron?

And we're back to more of the staples. By the way, note that everything is hand-painted, which is kinda cool.

This piece in the factory cum showroom is the most cutest for me. Dian mesti suka ni kan? Merasalah ko tiba-tiba ada katak tengah semak lak.

And of course everything had to give it a go. We all had little cups to paint on before meka bakar in the oven to dry it and lock the paint on. And all I can say is, damn... there were some ugly cups by the time we were done. It's definitely not as easy it seems.

But then again, masa kelas lukisan dulu pon penah kita wat camni. I bet everyone got the same results. Heh!

And then on to more stuff...

Er... I don't think this is abstract or anything. I think it's exactly what it is. Two dogs shagging. And by the way, this is a lamp. Cute... but I don't think any of us would want this in our room.. or even house.

And don't get me started on what I think this is...

Anyway... some of the stuff here is absolutely to die for. We were given time to roam the place and see how they hand painted everything. The process is tedious, and all I can say is, again - I have respect for Thai craftmanship and creativity.

Here are some of the most oddest pieces. From lamp structures to wall decor.

Outside the little cafe, there was this little twisted Tim Burton mets Thai Buddhist hell scenario. Freaky shit! Click on the picture and enlarge it so you can see just what I mean.

By the way... in the middle of the pic, on the right side, look closely. There's even a skull there. We left wondering if it was real cause it did look real enough.

Even our tour guide couldn't tell us if the pieces were decorative, or used as something to ward off bad luck or such. Though I think it's freaky enough to frighten anyone trying to break in. Euwww.. scary mary! Sapa nak beli la ni semua pastu letak kat laman umah. Amik ko!

And so.. it's time to move on to the next location for the day.

Next stop. we headed for lunch at the Siam Cultural Park. The park was beautifully landscaped. It has a mini wax museum, which has like a lot of figures of important Thai personalities.

There was also Mother Theresa. But somehow I was disappointed with the figures as they didn't look all that impressive.

Lunch was vegetarian...yeah... so you wonder why I didn't bother to even take one photo? Matilah ko!

Our packed day continued with a visit to Wat Baan Kung, a small temple 'in' a tree in Amphawa district, Samut Songkhram. Over 200 years old (or something like that), the temple was built like any normal one would be. Only the Banyan tree which houses it, started growing about it, and surrounded it until it became inside a tree.

A lot of people come here to pray. Tempat nak mintak.. well you get the picture.

I didn't take too many pictures of the temple sebab tapak tokong ni, is quite historic.

It was the camp of king Taksin during an attack by the Burmese army in 1768. However after the successful campaign the site was abandoned for almost 200 years, until in 1967 it was redeveloped.

When we arrived, I was wondering why there were so many people training muay thai in the hot sun. Turns out...

Amik ko. Patung merata ngan pelbagai pose gituh. It was a different stance of combat. And there were dozens of those figures in the courtyard. I can only imagine how it looks at night.

Check out this one though. Don't know if someone forgot to paint him or maybe the paint came off, but dude looks naked!

And introducing the rest of the cast.

We stopped by the Baan Amphawa Resort & Spa for makan which is more known among locals... before our return to Bangkok. Gorgeous view... have to come here and stay one day. Belah malam ada firefly tour agik.

And so.. it was back to Bangkok as the sun begin to set.

Hold on... when we were stuck in the jam, snapped this pic. Some schoolgirls were camped outside some hotel waiting for a Korean or Japanese pop group which was in town and were staying in that hotel.

Ada aku kisah?

We went to Silom area. Home!!! Er.. heh! We went to Montien Bangkok hotel for dinner.

The hotel may not look as flashy as some of the other hotels in town I've been to, but the food, fusion cuisine of local and Western, and service was a WOW!

I like some parts of the decor... like this.

Motif intai bawah kain? Baik layan makanan nih jek.

Malas nak snappy agik cause sibuk melantak. Hungry gila... all this walking and sightseeing wrecks havoc with my diet. Matilah diet.. feeling.

After we were done, headed to one of my fave spots in Suan Lum night bazaar. Konsep cam Uptown sikit la, campor ngan Jalan Telawi. Ada gerai-gerai banyak jual anything and everything. And then on the other side ada tempat minum bagai.

Best gak lepak.. but we hung out dalam kurang sejam je sebab nak gegas balik hotel, siap dan nak lepak area Silom again. Last night... so we wanted to chill out.

Comel tak.. alahai. This pup belonging to one of the shop owners was going crazy kejar that toy thingie.

And so, from Suan Lum, a late on the rooftop pool of the Renaissance and a shower... it was on to Silom for drinks and a good time with friends. Four of us stayed till the bars were closed just talking (getting drunk) and watching all the locals and tourist mingle while listening to the worst live band that ever existed.

PS - Can't remember what time we got back... can't even remember how I got back. Matilah ting tong.