May 23 – June 15, 2018
We love Bangkok so much we decided to stay another month! We wanted to experience a different neighborhood so we went to Thong Lo. It is just 2 BTS stops from Asok and considered an up and coming expat area. Wandering through the area you can find industrial areas and inexpensive food carts mixed with posh high rise condos and expensive restaurants. Our building was a new 25 story high rise building called Rhythm 26-28 with a gym and public area on the top floor with beautiful floor to ceiling windows exposing spanning views over Bangkok and a large pool on the 6th floor with a great kiddie pool. The rooftop views were so amazing that I was motivated to go to the gym and run on the treadmill! Our 27 sq meter 1 bedroom apartment was on the 10th floor overlooking a beautiful small gated community with large trees and lots of birds. It was so peaceful waking up to the sound of singing birds that I would forget that we were in such a big city.
One of the reasons I love Bangkok is because there are so many things to do with the baby. In addition to taking John to one of the many playgrounds, I joined BAMBI which is an expat mother’s group organized by volunteers who setup playgroups at international schools, hotels, or restaurants. John and I went to 3 playgroups a week and had so much fun. Not only did we meet new friends and play with different toys but we also explored different parts of Bangkok together on foot and train. It was the best feeling to watch how excited he got when we arrived, he would scream “Yeah! Kids!”
Nearby our apartment we found some great food. A few of my favorites were an amazing homemade noodle shop serving a soup with pork, crab and shrimp wonton. There was also a small food court around the corner serving a handful of different cuisines. I loved the crispy pork with basil and marinated pork skewers (which were only 10 baht per stick). The baby loved the skewers too and ate this for quite a few dinners. For dessert, mango with sticky rice or lychee from the local fruit vendor.
Exploring Thong Lo gave me the opportunity to experience a side of Bangkok that is in the midst of a major conversion and enjoy the fantastic amenities within one of the many new condos. Although I was spoiled there I still missed Asok, especially Terminal 21 food court.