In the wee hours of Saturday morning, I was filled with the anxious anticipation of seeing some one loved and greatly missed, so I couldn't sleep. Everything was ready: bed made, house clean, clutter organized. I listened for the phone call that would announce the driver had my parents in his car. It seemed that it was taking too long, so I checked online to see if the plane had been on time; it had arrived nine minutes early. Of course, I knew that immigration, picking up bags, and customs can take awhile. I also knew that my dad is not one to rush. Finally, Kuhn San called; they would arrive at our house in about forty minutes! Now came the final wait, listening for the car driving down our alley.
I read, talked with Philip, nursed Simeon back to sleep. After a busy week of homeschooling and house cleaning, I was pretty weary. I even watched an episode of "King of the Hill" with Philip. Being from the South, he can relate and finds them pretty funny; I was not impressed. Then, we heard a car crunch past our house to turn around and the end of the yaek. We grabbed our gate key and ran outside to be waiting for them. Welcome to Bangkok, Mom and Dad/Grandma and Grandpa!
We all got into bed for a few hours of sleep before the children began to stir. The best place in Bangkok for souvenir shopping is the huge outdoor Jatujak Market which is only open on weekends. The last time my parents were here, we had also gone the first weekend they were here, as we had plans for the second weekend. Since they had not been in Thailand for very long, they didn't have any idea of what they wanted to buy and had returned to the States empty handed. This time, they were ready for some shopping. Philip offered to take my parents and all the children so that I could rest. This was not an offer to be refused! I helped everyone get out the door, then settled down for an uninterrupted nap.
Jatujak Market bills itself as "The World's Largest Weekend Market" boasting 15,000 booths spreading over 27 acres. Like all else in Bangkok, it is hot and crowded, but it sells an astonishing variety of products. This is one of our main stops for Christmas and birthday shopping. Clothes, dishes, toys, plants, artwork, pets, and food abound. Bargaining is encouraged, and most prices are reasonable. Additionally, it is only a fifteen minute bus ride away from our house. While I don't particularly enjoy the market, it is a staple of living in Bangkok and I have learned to shop there quite successfully.
The market consists of row upon row of cubby-hole shops with narrow cement walkways all covered with tin roofing. With crowds shoving by in every direction, it can get a bit claustrophobic. The first time I went, I was wondering if I would ever get out of the maze, when I found the first opening to a street. I could see sky and breathe open air again. With plenty of shops along pedestrian-only road through the market, it was awhile before I was ready to dive back into the clutter of covered shops again. This kind of shopping trip necessitates a refreshing snack. It was in the market that we sampled our first coconut ice cream, served in coconut shells and topped with the fresh fruit.
We've gotten a bit better at navigating the market and are able to reliably find certain shops. However, the shops do change, and we still discover new sections every so often. Once, we wandered through the "pet section," filled with exotic, unhappy looking animals in small cages. Signs instructed, "No photos." I am fairly certain that many of those animals were illegal. We hurried to get out of that area. Another area from which I've never made a purchase is the artisan section. Everything here, with the exception of a few cheap trinkets, is out of our price range. However, looking is free. Much of the artwork is lovely, and we have observed the artists as they work: painting, wood carving, mosaics. This trip, my dad was especially fascinated by an artist fashioning elaborate life-size sculptures from junk.
Happy with their finds, my parents, Philip, and the kids, returned home to find a rest Mommy and nearly all the "Christmas" gifts from the morning put away. Time for supper together and relaxing as a family before an early bedtime. The long awaited "Grandma and Grandpa Day" was as wonderful as anticipated, with thirteen more to follow.
No comments:
Post a Comment