Rambuttri, Bangkok

9 Nov 2018

Since Nat has to work today, I have pretty much the whole day to myself. 

Googled and came across this Rambuttri lane next to Khaosan. It's described as being more charming than Khaosan. Decided to give it a go.

Rambuttri Lane

Following the directions, first I took the skytrain to Siam station. Seeing the motorbike taxis by the roadside, I was tempted to try but it started raining. So I asked a tuk-tuk driver. He quoted 150 baht to Rambuttri. But the internet said around 60 baht by a metered taxi. Could the taxis be actually cheaper than tuk-tuks?! Wouldn't know unless I tried. Flagged down a taxi and reached Rambuttri in 20 min. Taxi fare? 77 baht! (Later Nat told me that tuk-tuk drivers targeted tourists and were of course more expensive!)

Anyway, as soon as I walked into Rambuttri lane, I was greatly disappointed—very commercialized with lots of westernized bars and restaurants. Scantily dressed western girls roamed the area; retired western men sipping beer and looking lost in their own worlds; even the Thais who ran small businesses here seemed disgruntled. 

Oh well, at least I found a family style Thai restaurant and ordered my favorite and simple Thai dish—Phat Thai. Looking around, most of the western backpackers were eating toast with butter & jam, fruit salad with yogurt, and so on—foods that were familiar to their taste buds. 

Phat Thai

Back to my Phat Thai, it was sweet, salty, and sour—all in one. That's Thai food, an attack on the senses. And I consider Phat Thai as generally milder among the Thai foods that I've tried. It's my "safe food" in Thailand 😀