RCR went for a shopping spree to the MBK centre where he checked out the electronics department. Blackberry, iPad, all for lower prices?

Yes, you can get it at the MBK… but you pay for the risk of ending up with a think that will stop working in three weeks and will be randomly lucky if they actually help you to fix it or replace your broken one.

Yesterday the Central World shopping complex has reopened after it got partially burned down when the government cracked down on the red shirt protests in May. Here’s a video of how the place looked just a couple of months ago:

All that has changed of course now. It has been renovated for 2.8 billion baht (approximately 91 million USD).

Buddhist monks took part in the opening ceremony to bless the building.

About 20 percent of the 3.2 million square-foot (300,000 square-meter) retail space is still being repaired and will reopen next year.

The company’s president and CEO, Kobchai Chirativat, said the renovation costs would all be covered by insurance, though not all claims have been settled yet.

Here is a video of the Amarin Plaza shopping mall in Bangkok. This shopping mall is located directly in front of the BTS station Chit Lom, in Bangkok’s main shopping district Rachaprasong. The shopping center has five floors full of high-end shops – so if you look for some cheap souvenirs, this is not the place to visit. You find fashion, furniture, home decor, jewelry, electronics, Thai handicrafts and more.

There is also the Amarin Tourist Information Center, where you can get lots of information and brochures that are of interest for Bangkok visitors. What’s more, the staff there will also give you advice and recommendations based on your individual preferences. And if you’re into Yoga, there is a branch of Absolute Yoga, one of Thailand’s most successful yoga companies.

And if you’re looking for high quality, competitively priced Thai handicrafts and souvenirs, the Naraiphand outlet is worth a visit.

On the second floor, there are lots of silk shops and small fashion boutique shops.

If you are there, also be sure to check out the Erawan shrine, one of the most important shrines in Bangkok. It might not look impressive, but to the Thais it is holy, and both Buddhists and Hindus from all over the world come to worship at this shrine and make a wish.

Patpong is one of the infamous redlight districts of Bangkok. Right next to it, is the night market – where some of Thailand’s “tourist bestsellers” are being sold – T-shirts, fake watches, fake brandname items, shoes, pirated copies of American TV shows and movies, and lots of little souvenirs.

Women – you can get the latest Louis Vuitton models here for cheap… of course they’re fakes, but you can get some high quality fakes, and it costs about as much as three people having coffee at starbucks…

Bargaining

Generally, the patpong night market is very overpriced, and if you bought something there without bargaining hard, chances are, you paid at least a third too much – if not more.

I once bought a bag there. Initial asking price: 1500 baht. After lots of bargaining, I bought for: 280 baht. This is an extreme example, but it makes a point: check different places to see how much an item is before you decide to buy.

See, many of the tourists who shop around there are a) drunken (after attenting one of the famous pingpong pussy shows) or b) clueless. And a place like that, it’s common to be overcharged.

Unfriendly Vendors

Compared to other places in Bangkok, then vendors here are less friendly and less polite. I guess there’s something about working in that place that isn’t exactly uplifting to the spirits.

When to go

Most of the vendors have set up their stalls around 7 PM, and then it goes into the night, but before 10 PM will already see some vendors leaving.

Getting There

You can

• hop on a taxi and say: Patpong
• take the BTS skytrain and get off at Saladaeng
• take the MRT (subway) and get off at Lumpini

Here’s a video, walking down the night market. It’s not the full length of the nightmarket (which is longer), but I figuered: enough is enough.

Here’s a video from Central World Bangkok – during the Chinese New Year they had this cool Chinese drummers thing going on.

Just some of the stores in Central World Bangkok are:

• · Adidas Originals,
• · AIS,
• · Apple Center,
• · Auntie Anne’s,
• · Bata,
• · Benetton,
• · Calvin Klein,
• · Chaps,
• · Clarks,
• · Daniel Hechtler,
• · Dapper,
• · DTAC,
• · Esprit,
• · FCUK,
• · Giordano,
• · Guess,
• · Guy Laroche,
• · Hush Puppies,
• · Kipling,
• · Lacoste,
• · Liz Claiborne,
• · Marks and Spencer,
• · Modernform,
• · Morgan,
• · Nokia,
• · Panasonic,
• · Pena,
• · Playboy,
• · Rolex,
• · Starbucks,
• · Swarovski,
• · Swatch
• · Tissot,
• · Toys “R” Us,

On December 31st you can go to Central World and check out the large Plaza in front of the shopping mall, there is always some action going on and people are celebrating, but it’s mostly Thai people celebrating Thai style (the NEW Thai style that is) – lots of dancers in short skirts and hot pants (but NO pole dance and prostitutes)…

Central World Bangkok is a HUGE shopping mal… and I suggest you get one of the maps that are available for free on the ground floor information desk, otherwise you could very well (and probably WILL) get lost.

Here some more videos from the Chinese drummers:

Here some other websites that have more infos about the Central World Plaza:

• the official Central World Plaza website
• Wikipedia
• Thaiwebsites.com

South East Asia’s largest shopping mall is located in Bangkok too – the CentralWorld shopping complex that is now completely opened after years of construction work.

Shopping in Bangkok can be an amazing experience. Whether you like modern, fancy luxury fashion-malls or the hustle and bustle of Jatujak market, the worlds biggest weekend market, or the traditional style of Thailands floating market – it’s all available for shoppers in Bangkok.