Bangkok Cabbages and condoms small lights on trees - by Chic n Cheap Living

CnC Living Travel Log: Beating the heat in Bangkok (shopping, eating, and relaxing!)

April 16, 2013

Confession: I don’t like relaxing vacations (much to the dismay of my husband).

I like vacations packed with sightseeing, a dose of culture, and good local food.  I had grand plans to see all the sites I hadn’t seen in years like the Emerald Buddha and Grand Palace.  I had gathered lists of top restaurants, bars, and massage parlors because I wanted to try them ALL.  But unfortunately, the heat in Bangkok was oppressive, stifling, and practically unbearable.  It made my friends a little weary of doing any sightseeing. It made a brief visit to Chatuchak market very difficult.  Basically, I didn’t get to do a lot in Bangkok.

But we still took in a few good meals of local Thai cuisine (these pictures are from Cabbages and Condoms – strange name, but beautiful restaurant that also assists rural poor through environment education, health clinics, vegetable banks and more):
Bangkok-Cabbages-and-condoms-lights-on-trees-by-Chic-n-Cheap-Living Bangkok Cabbages and condoms dumplings - by Chic n Cheap LivingBangkok Cabbages and condoms pad thai - by Chic n Cheap LivingBangkok Cabbages and condoms small lights on trees - by Chic n Cheap Living

Shopped a bit indoors (be wary of fakes, but there are also a lot of inspired pieces too):
Bangkok-quilted-bags-by-Chic-n-Cheap-Living Bangkok shirts - by Chic n Cheap LivingBangkok spikey bags - by Chic n Cheap LivingBangkok bows - by Chic n Cheap LivingBangkok pink bags - by Chic n Cheap Living

And got a massage or two.  When you’re in Thailand and if you do nothing else, you must get a massage!    We paid 250 TBT (~$8 USD) for 1 hour Thai massages or head/neck/feet massages.  They were simply a-maaaaaz-ing!  We couldn’t find a few recommended massage parlors on Sunday and just headed into a small local, massage place by the train station – it was an awesome massage and necessary after we spent an hour walking and looking for the other massage parlors!

Bangkok spa peek- by Chic n Cheap Living

So, I didn’t get to see all of the sights this trip.  I did get to spend a lot of quality time with my friends, made some new friends, and got massages the few times we did go out.  Life is about appreciating what we have (opportunities to even go to Thailand in the first place!), making the best of your situation (hey we were in cool, air conditioned rooms!), and enjoying the moment (complete with a glass of Thai iced tea).

Oh and life is also about eating lots of mango with sticky rice.
Bangkok-Cabbages-and-condoms-mango-sticky-rixe-by-Chic-n-Cheap-Living

I’ll be back again Bangkok!

Bangkok royalty shrine - by Chic n Cheap Living Bangkok-tuk-tuk-by-Chic-n-Cheap-Living

I wrote this and received a gift as part of the Fruttare Friends #itsallgood Moments campaign – appreciate all of life’s moments.  But you know I like to write about travel and inspiration anyway!

little luxury list

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  • Emma (Fluff and Fripperies) April 16, 2013 at 04:39

    VERY strange restaurant name! But fabulous post, brings me back to when I visited!

  • ElsaD April 16, 2013 at 04:57

    Sounds awesome! Can’t wait to go to Thailand! xo,
    http://cafesocietyxxi.blogspot.de/

  • Sam April 16, 2013 at 08:23

    Hi dear, you and I have a similar traveling style, I love experiencing different cultures and bustling street markets. Thailand is so fascinating, I loved the vibe and electric atmosphere! Your beautiful images do great justice to the city!

    • Chic 'n Cheap Living April 16, 2013 at 10:59

      Sam, yes I do think we have similar interests when we travel! Did you catch my Chatuchak market post (linked in this post)? There were such fun sights there!

  • Cafe Fashionista April 16, 2013 at 08:26

    Oh, this post transported me. I just love the culture, the sights, the food…the shopping! You’ve captured the beauty of Bangkok in these images! 🙂

    • Chic 'n Cheap Living April 16, 2013 at 10:58

      Thank you for the sweet words darling. I do love Bangkok and hope my images did it justice!

  • Krysten April 16, 2013 at 09:09

    AMAZING. I wish I could climb into the pictures!

  • Kim April 16, 2013 at 09:44

    Beautiful photos! I can see how the heat could put a damper on aggressive sightseeing plans, but at least you got to enjoy some of the sights. That mango sticky rice looks amazing!

  • Stacey April 16, 2013 at 10:13

    Now I want to go to Bangkok! So much to see and do there it seems! XX

  • Alexa April 16, 2013 at 11:46

    Oh I’ve always wanted to go! Love your photos…all of the colors are amazing!

  • lisa April 16, 2013 at 11:55

    so many colorful faux chanel bags hahaha :p

    thailand looks so beautiful i want to go so badly i love thai food hehe!

    oh haha.. umm yah the gold and black lace chanel bag.. i don’t think i will ever ever let that go hahah.. it’s my favorite.. :p

  • mosamuse April 16, 2013 at 12:24

    love the fashions and the food! ive never been to bangkok but i would love to go. love ur travel posts!
    xo
    MOSAMUSE

    http://www.MOSAMUSE.com

  • Johanna April 16, 2013 at 15:11

    You really captured the essence. You and my husband would get along famously. He always has to be on the go on vacations.

  • Blond Duck April 16, 2013 at 21:31

    Those are too cute!

  • lyddiegal April 16, 2013 at 23:58

    sorry you didn’t get to explore as much as you’d like, but spending time with your friends, eating great food, and relaxing sounds like a pretty good vacation to me!

  • Kim April 17, 2013 at 03:35

    I’m so glad you guys still had a great time! The lighting in that restaurant is amazing. So beautiful and intricate. ok, I’ll take the fakes! HaHa Especially the first handbags. Massages are so wonderful. What a price!!!

  • Ashleigh April 17, 2013 at 11:41

    MANGO STICKY RICE!!! 🙂

    This post has me begging to visit again, your trip sounds pretty similar to mine… the heat is unbelievable. I did make it to the Emerald Buddha and while an amazing experience, the sun nearly did us in. Wasn’t the Chatuchak market just insane?! I loved that it went from little junk shop to almost boutique like set-ups. We even stumbled on a bar deep within the shops! So neat, can’t wait to make it back someday, so much more to do! It was a pleasure following along with your adventure on Instagram 🙂

    • Chic 'n Cheap Living April 17, 2013 at 21:25

      Mango sticky rice lovas!
      I’ll have to brave the heat next time and make it to the Emerald Buddha.
      Chatuchak was insane but I would totally do it again (and get there earlier). Yes I love how the stores varied!

      Thank you for bearing with my many Bangkok pictures on Instagram. Next up – San Diego!

  • Coco April 17, 2013 at 15:38

    Wow, that restaurant looks delightful! I would have got tons of massages, I love them!!
    xoxo
    Coco et La vie en rose
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  • Punctuation Mark April 18, 2013 at 01:20

    I’m like you… I need a little excitement in my vacation!!!

  • Elly @ Caribbean Living April 23, 2013 at 22:39

    Looks like a fab trip! I agree, I’m all about action packed hols, my husband always gets cross when I plan ‘too much running around’. Bangkok is pretty high up on our travel wishlist and this post has bumped it up further – the massages and Thai food sound amazing!!

    • Chic 'n Cheap Living April 24, 2013 at 05:46

      Yep, I’m definitely like you! Let me know if you need any more Bangkok suggestions!

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