Thursday, August 26, 2010

Jatujak Market, Part 4: Things For Sale #1

This container of artificial traditional food was just 3.5" (10cm) across

As I mentioned in Part 1 of this series you can find almost anything for sale at the Jatujak Weekend Market, if you know where to look and/or who to ask; but unless you're looking for the truly bizarre or illegal - why bother? As a casual visitor you're guaranteed to find more things of interest out in plain view than you'll be able to bargain for, buy or carry away.

Oh, sure - there are plenty of stalls full of live baby hedgehogs, Siamese fighting fish, intricately carved furniture adorned with mother of pearl and aquarium tables such as the one below, but although you can get larger items shipped home by established businesses there on the premises they're a bit clumsy to pack into your check-through baggage.

There were a dozen different styles of these in one area

The fun for me has usually come from the unexpected: seeing the small bundles of pre-measured and prepared cooking spices, the temple ceremony bowls, the painstakingly done miniature foods like the ones in today's header photo, the pressed flower greeting cards of hand-made paper and the wind chime shops that are always such a welcome oasis of breeze created by their fans that make the chimes sing. I like to linger a while inside while pretending I'm actually interested in purchasing a set ("No, thank you, I'm still just looking - but these are lovely! Let me listen to them a few more minutes before I try to decide") while I mop my brow and cool off a bit. It's a safe bet I'm not the only damp farang who's pulled a similar routine, and luckily they're gracious about it.

Here today are just a few of the divers items I've seen on walks through this huge market:

Thai dish spice packets - light and easy to pack - are great as gifts

A corner shop, filled with instruments that the owner demonstrated

Many stalls had tropical fish bagged and out on display up front

Enough rubber slippers to shoe an entire university
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6 comments:

  1. AnonymousAugust 26, 2010 at 7:41 PM

    I like the fish.. and that aquarium with the light cube in the center is new to me. The full glass top probably lets it function as a table too. clever and useful for small spaces.

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  2. khunbaobaoAugust 27, 2010 at 5:30 AM

    Yes, they were all intended as tables. The photo of the man sitting on one at the top shows better if you click on the image and enlarge it. I liked the idea but would worry about leakage, myself - especially on a porous surface, like a carpet.

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  3. DimiAugust 31, 2010 at 4:05 PM

    Hey there, my vacation time comes to its end and it's good catching up with your blog.
    Thanks for all this JJ series which brings back to me some delighful memories of the crazy place (even if I'd taken the habit to use the JJ mall as a sanctuary - sometimes the aircon can be spoiling).

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  4. khunbaobaoAugust 31, 2010 at 6:19 PM

    Dimi, welcome back! I hope you had a good vacation. There's still more JJ Market to come.

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  5. UnknownMarch 9, 2014 at 3:11 AM

    The coffee table aquarium, where can i buy it?

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  6. khunbaobaoMarch 12, 2014 at 9:36 AM

    Other than JJ market I'd say check with some better aquarium shops. I haven't seen them anywhere other than Chatuchak, but a quick search on Amazon came up with several companies that sell them online. Good luck with your quest!

    ReplyDelete

Just to save time: I'm not an expert on Thailand in any way, shape or form; I do this for the satisfaction I get from sharing with others. Constructive comments, criticism, suggestions and feedback are always welcome.