Bangkok Day 3 : Asiatique The Riverfront

Day 3 @ 17 June 2013

Asiatique The RiverFront

Asiatique,

If you haven't been here before..it is a nice to walk around as the environment is slightly western.

Furthermore, it is very easy to go here by public transport.

Stop at BTS Saphan Taksin, take Exit 2 as per below picture:

Signboards in english

As you walk down the stairs from exit 2, just follow the crowds as most of them will take the Free Shuttle Ferry to Asiatique

Go to Sathorn Pier

Bangkok Day 2 : 1 Hour Foot Massage + Tesco Shopping + Terminal 21

Day 2 @ 16 June 2013

The moment we woke up, our poor leg soar due to the long walking we had the previous day.

We decided to go for a foot massage nearby our place.

Lek Massage House

 From Ibis Siam, our hotel.. Turn right and go all the way down until you see "Lek Massage House" whcih is only 5-6min Walking distance.

The Price is cheap too !!

 The nicest part was, you do not even need to bargain for the price as it is already dirt cheap.
We did our 1 hour foot massage which cost us THB 250 @ RM 25 !!  And if you're interested in doing the Thai Massage :

1 Hour = THB 250 @ RM 25
2 Hour = THB 450 @ RM 45

You can't even get such cheap price in Malaysia ! After enjoying our relaxing 1 hour foot massage, we head to Tesco which is also another 5min walking distance.
Once you come out from "Lek Massage", turn right again and walk all the way down until you reach Tesco !
We just love groceries shopping any country we go...it is just so exciting seeing their local brands in the market !

Choosing what to buy. Too many choices

Jayyden with our trolley

Bangkok Day 1 : Chatuchak Weekend Market

Day 1 @ 15 June 2013

The moment we landed in Don Mueang airport, it was already 12.40pm..
And by the time we reach our hotel; it was nearly 2+pm.
Not to waste anymore time, both of us quickly chuck our luggage bags and zoom straight to Chatuchak Weekend Market which also now known as "JJ Market"

The BTS Ticket Machine to purchase your train ticket

The Amount for each destination

Bought our BTS ticket to JJ market

We waited for our BTS to Mo Chit Station

The BTS is in time and within 10-15min ride, we reach Mo Chit Station to start our shopping in JJ Market. It is famously know by both locals & tourist and it's only open during the weekend from Friday to Sunday. In order not to missed it, do come during the weekends...EARLY in the morning around 10am when the weather is still not so hot.

Bangkok Hotel : Ibis Bangkok Siam

Day 1 @ 15 June 2013

Ibis Bangkok Siam

Ibis Bangkok Siam..... Have you heard of this before? Yes ! There is many Ibis Hotel, but if you want a budget hotel which is strategically located directly in front of "National Stadium BTS", 5 min walking distance to MBK Shopping Center and another 10min walking distance to Siam Paragon...
Then you should really book Ibis Bangkok Siam@ Rama 1, Wangmai, Pathumwan, Bangkok 10330, Thailand.

The Front Hotel. Mercure is a slightly high class than Ibis. Yet i rather choose Ibis for the price :P

Not trying to highly promote this hotel, but yet..sharing is caring.. Normally, i used to book at the hostel just beside Ibis Siam, which is Lub D Siam since i want to save time traveling around by BTS..

Lub D siam, the hostel i previously stay is just beside Ibis Siam

But when i got to know that IBIS Siam is newly open end of 2012, that is when i know i should book this hotel when there is still promotion !
We manage to book a "Standard Twin Room with Breakfast" for RM 543 Nett @ 4D3N which consider affordable as we only need to pay RM 267 nett each for our 4D3N stay.

RM 534 nett for 4D3N

Bangkok : How to take Bus from Don Mueang airport to nearest BTS Station

Day 1 @ 15 June 2013

One thing i am thankful of staying in Malaysia is because we manage to purchase Air Asia's dirt cheap ticket :)

With RM 352.40 nett of return ticket to Bangkok, both me & my best buddies; Yen venturing the City together. Which also means, she will be my model of our trip as you will be seeing her pictures more than me. Haha.

The last when i travel to Bangkok, Air Asia's plane landed in "Suvarnabhumi International Airport" which is totally convenience for us taking BTS straight to Bangkok City & not getting stuck in the bad road traffic.

I previously stayed in Lub D Siam which is directly in front of BTS National Stadium. From "Suvarnabhumi International Airport" --> Take the express airport train & stop at the last station which is "BTS Phaya Thai"(7 stations from Airport) ---> Take the subway BTS from "BTS Phaya Thai Station"& stop at "BTS National Station"( 3 Stations from BTS Phaya Thai)

But since starting after middle of 2012, all flights to Bangkok's airport has change from "Suvarnabhumi International Airport" to "Don Mueang International Airport" which is not as convenience as Suvarnabhumi since there is no BTS connection from Don Mueang to the City.
It is either getting transportation by bus or taxi. We of course took bus since it is a cheaper :)

The moment our plane touches Don Mueang, the airport was not as crowded as Suvarnabhumi which is a plus point. Less crowd at the immigration counter.

Yen with the deserted Don Mueang..few steps before having our passport cop

Budget 4D3N Bangkok June 2013

When my friends asked me where will i be going next?

And if i am to say "Bangkok"

The only replied you will get is "What ! Again? Don't you ever feel bored of it?"

Frankly speaking, i am never bored of Bangkok.

I just loved Bangkok. Ok, maybe i should say..I love THAILAND :)

I love the food. I love the people. I love the place. I love their culture. I love the locals. I just loved everything..Or maybe i am easy to love & be pleased on something.. even their 7-eleven or Tesco for groceries shopping..i falls in love checking it out..


So i'm lucky again as i manage to grab cheap tickets to Bangkok.

RM 352.40 nett return Air Asia to Bangkok

With RM 352.40 nett return flight tickets which include Insurance, Return SkyBus from KL Central --> LCCT --> KL Central.

As for this round for our June 2013's trip, i decided to book "Ibis Siam" instead of "Lub D Siam" since Ibis Siam just launch their hotel in year 2012. Hence it is still relatively new; which also means Ibis Siam will have promotions to attract more customer.

We're lucky as we manage to book for our 4D3N accommodation at Ibis Siam for RM 534 nett, Twin Room including Breakfast. Which cost us around RM 267 nett for 1 pax.

Taipei Day 3 : Hello Kitty Sweets Taipei

Day 3

Frankly speaking, i am not a freak fan of Hello Kitty. But we decided to tried it here in Taipei since the reviews of this place is very good. In order to secure a place for yourself here, you have to either come early or do a booking a day earlier. Oh! And did i mention, that each customer is given 45 minutes to 1 hour to dine since the queue were long? Hmmm...

Hence, we decided to come here first thing in the morning when the shop's open at 11.30am.
From "Zhongxiao FuXing" station, Exit 3 (opposite Sogo) and walk towards Omega shop ; which is a couple of steps. Turn right into the first alley. Within 5 minutes, you see the Hello Kitty Sweets Shop.

When we reach there, we were just in time as we were the 1st customer line up..And few minutes later, there a small family and a couple lining up behind us.. While we're still awaiting for our seats number, we took pictures of the cute little cat.

Took a pic while waiting for our turn for seats

Cute decoration

Sweets

Taipei Day 2 : Jiufen (九份) & Shilin Night Market (士林夜市)

Day 2

The breathtaking scenery of Jiufen (九份)

Today is the day whereby we will go slightly outskirt from Taipei city itself.

We'll be going to Jiufen (九份), which used to be a prosperous gold mining town on top of the mountain. It is a small town in North Taiwan built into the side of the hills; slightly inland from the Pasific Ocean coastline. The main area of the town is easily to covered on foot by two pedestrian streets which is  

: a) Jishan Street (基山街 )
: b) Shuchi (Shuqi) Street (豎崎路)
 
The scenery here is totally breathtaking. If you're staying longer in Taipei, staying overnight here in Jiufen (九份) is amazing ! Imagine, the moment you woke up, the only scenery you saw was the breathtaking picture as above with the cold morning breeze. What an amazing day to start with !

From Taipei Main Station, take the north train to RuiFang Station which cost NT$49 (RM 5.09) one way. We did not buy return ticket as we did not want our journey to be tight down by the time.

The railway

They even have female zone :)

At last reach RuiFang Station

The many signboards to lead you towards your destination.

Arrow to show you where is the bus stop to jiufen

 From RuiFang Station, walk towards the mainroad and turn left and walk slightly further up until you pass a police station. The busstop heading towards Jiufen & Jinguashi is located a little past the police station. The bus trip is roughly around 15 minutes, and the fare is NT$ 21  (RM 2.18) during weekday, NT$ 15 (RM 1.50) during weekends or holidays.. If you're still unsure where the bus stop is, try asking the locals for direction.

Taipei Day 1 : Ximending Shopping & CityInn Plus Ximending.

Day 1

Taipei, at last the day has reach for our speed 4D3N trip.
Frankly speaking, Taipei itself always amaze me with their food, their culture & the places to visit.
There are various marvelous places to visit in Taiwan itself..
If only i have a week or two, i will surely backpack the whole taipei itself..hopping from one place to other; enjoying the amazing scenery.
But as for now...
Focus on Taipei itself is all i could do. :)

The moment we landed in Taoyuan International Airport, it was already 2.40pm.
The moment we check out from the airport, 7-eleven is the first place that we visited in the airport as we are dreadfully hungry ! Did i mention i have plane sickness ? Most of the time while i'm on plane, i will be sleeping soundly until the plane touches the ground ! That is why i do not buy any seat arrangement with friends in the plane as it will be a waste of money since i will be snoring all the way until i reach my destination. Haha. Nevertheless, 7-11 in taipei is totally different of what we have in Malaysia ! You can really spend time scanning around the various food & drinks sold there ! I am very easy to be delighted. Give me various food & great places for photography..i will be very happy me. :)

After we have a quick lunch at 7-eleven, we bought a bus ticket from airport to Ximending which cost TWD 140 (RM 14) one way.

Our Bus ticket to Ximending, Platform No.7

Platform 7.

Inside our bus which is very comfortable.

The bus is extremely comfortable & clean.
We bought the ticket at the ticket counter at the airport itself.
This particular bus stop in Ximen Station.
Since we're staying in CityInn Plus Ximending, it is just 3 minutes walking distance from Ximen Station, Exit 3.
And only around 5-7minutes walk to the famous Ximending Shopping Heaven.

Our Hotel

We manage to book the cheapest basic room which is Double Sharing room (1 single bed) for RM 365.50 nett for 1 pax (4D3N).

Our Room 205.

Queen Size Bed

Budget 4D3N Taipei Nov 2012

Taipei 101 Tower

Taipei, a place that never fail to surprise me.
Frankly speaking, i am no shopaholic myself but has truthfully drawn into shopping when i'm here.
The handmade stuff that sold here at the flea market @ Red Building's Ximending area attracts me the most ! Nevertheless, will explain more in details later.

It was a brief 4D3N budget trip here since we manage to get cheap return tickets.

Return Flights tickets   = RM 731.40 nett
Accommodations          = RM 365.50 nett (1 pax, twin sharing room)
Currency Exchange      = RM 600.00 nett (include transport,food,shopping)
Total                             = RM 1,696.90 nett
 
I have been traveling to various different Asian Country and with currency exchange of RM500 for each trip except Seoul (include transportation, food, light shopping) which is just enough for me as i am not a shopaholic.
But for this round in Taipei, on our 3rd day we have to search high and low for Bank .. Yes, you heard me right....B.A.N.K....
In Taipei, there is no currency exchange shop as such in Midvalley or Sungai Wang..
You can only exchange your money in their bank..
Not only that, when you're in the bank... you're require to take number for your turn to exchange money.
When your turn comes, you need to fill up a form stating how much you want to exchange ...
Thankfully, there is not many people in the bank so the process is quite fast.

Beside bank, you can also exchange your money in your hotel...provided your hotel has such service, but you need to pay extra more than in bank... And since we're very stingy & the bank was just 15min walking distance from our hotel... We decided to exchange it in bank instead... Haha...
Moral of the story, if you're in Taipei..bring extra money or you will be ending up searching high & low for nearest banks.