Eating in Bangkok – Part 3 – Maeklong Railway Market

After the Damnoen Saduak Floating Markets, we arrived at the Maeklong Railway Market. Our tour guide mentioned the cheapest coconut juice could be purchased at the markets and led us to the shop. I’ve forgotten what it’s called but it’s a very colourful shop with bunches of bananas and balloons decorating the front. She was right as the coconuts were only 20 baht (about AUD 0.90 cents) each. Far cheaper than the city and most other places. I also couldn’t resist purchasing an iced Thai milk tea.

We were told that the train would be arriving at 2pm on the dot, and we would notice stall holders along the tracks start to pull back their things to allow the train through. We were told to stand behind the yellow line when this happened. But until then, we were free to wander through the markets as we pleased.

We mainly stuck to the railway track. It wasn’t the safest or easiest way to traverse the markets. I kept having to concentrate on where I was walking so I didn’t trip over the rail, metal rings, loose rocks or uneven concrete slabs. I was really glad I had worn closed in shoes.

We saw lots of fish being sold, other seafood, packaged snacks, candy, sauces and chutneys, dried and fresh fruit and vegetables.

We noticed most people were already waiting by the side of the train tracks in prime position. We walked as far down as we could on the tracks before we noticed there wasn’t much more standing room so we stood behind the yellow line with some other tourists. It wasn’t long before we saw the train arriving, and stall holders moving in their tables of items and collapsing their shade sails. We noticed most stall holders had tables on wheels on its own tracks, so all they had to do was pull the table in. Smart.

It was a tight squeeze!

The half portion of pad thai and the mango sticky rice from earlier at the Damnoen Saduak Markets seemed like a long time ago, and we were both hungry again. We sat down at a shop next to the cheap coconut juice shop, as it had a menu with photos and English printed on it. Typical of cheap Asian eateries, the tables and stools were plastic with a plastic table cloth covering each table, and a box of tissues and cutlery.

I chose a pork noodle soup which came with vermicelli noodles in a dark broth. The broth looked like it would be rich and salty, but it was light with lots of flavour.

Mr FPJ ordered another pad thai which tasted a lot nicer than the pad thai along the canal at the Damnoen floating markets.

We soon had to meet back at the mini-van to drive back into Bangkok. If we’d had more time, we would have liked to have explored the rest of the markets off the track.

The first drop off point from the tour was at Asiatique at the Riverside Night Markets so we decided to do some more exploring. The markets were very touristy with expensive price tags but we did enjoy the view of the boardwalk looking out across the harbour.

I purchased a matcha soft serve which I had to finish before we were allowed to enter the Heineken pop up bar on the board walk.

When we eventually made it back to our accommodation in Chidlom, we remembered that it was Christmas! Surprisingly, Bangkok delivers a huge Christmas lights and display spectacle. Bangkok’s shopping centres always put on a good display each year. A bonus is the shopping centres remain open on Christmas day as it’s not a public holiday.

More on Bangkok next…

If you want more random photos and updates about food, I’m on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Facebook: /foodpornjournal
Twitter: @foodpornjournal
Instagram: /foodpornjournal