Around the world ....

First and foremost i was shocked to see how infrastructurally sound Thailand is as soon as i landed at the Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok ...

I just fell in love with the various coloured taxis which in a way have become a hallmark in Thailand ... No one who has ever visited this country seems to miss this very unique sight on the road ...

Time and again i've been told by enough number of people that i am an idiot to have missed the Chatuchak Weekend Market ... especially when i was in Bangkok over the weekend .....

But i did make up for it at the various Night Bazaar's ..... Personally i am not someone who is terribly fond of the sun .... so shopping at nights when the temperature is not soaring suited me best ....

Suan Lum Night Bazaar in Bangkok : I found clean, well-light shops that are laid out in strips, which covered the sidewalks. All the old favorites are here: Lovely dresses, silk scarves, T-shirts, pillow cases, toys, silver jewelry and colored gems.

There are also packaging services and bigger and more fragile products (as i discovered) , such as ceramics, furniture, carvings, and lamps (dont forget to take some home ... THEY ARE GORGEOUS ). Just because items in Suan Lum are more likely to be tagged doesn't mean that's the last price:There are fabulous imitations of high-end brands available ... You might just strike an unbelievable bargain if you buy 2 things instead of one ....especiallly on products such as Watches - sunglasses and bags .....

There was this place that sells music too. The shops sells these awesome covers of mainstream songs all the way to jazz/acoustics..

As in all open markets, try to bargain. I know they dont speak English , but they all have calculators with which they convey the price .... In Bahts ... Thai currency ...

Walk around the market before deciding to make a purchase, because you might get a better price at another shop. (Disclaimer: unless u are terribly good with directions you might just end up not finding the first shop you visited ...as what happened in my case ) ....

I guaranteeone thing " You will end up buying interesting things that you had not expected to buy before!!! "

I went there on a Friday night , and it was open till 3 AM .... i visited again on a Monday ... realized that the place is more active on Weekends ... it closed before 12 ....

On our way back...our cab driver said something about the Suan Lum Night Bazaar being closed permanently so that the government can build some fancy hotel there .... personally i hope not .... I loved being here ...

Panthip Plaza : If you are looking for anything electronic ... GO HERE!!!

Happy Shopping !!!!

Till next time
Sowmya CJ

Sanibel - Captiva Islands

March of 2007 was an extremely beautiful month (meaning that we were yet to see the temperatures rising to the 90s).We left Orlando and drove all the way to Fort Myers — 14 miles west of Fort Myers off the coast of Florida’s southwestern shore was where we were heading.

SANIBEL ISLAND

It’s one of the best places to go shelling in the United States. We passed the St. Petersburg sunshine skyway bridge... The drive was a very nice experience....

At the far eastern tip of the island you’ll find Sanibel’s sole lighthouse—a conical tower of wired steel meant to allow coastal winds to blow through.

I was here to find shells. Unfortunately I wasn’t alone. People come from miles around just to comb the island’s beaches. The beach is great for walking. The sand is white ..... But i guess thats because the shells turn into powder over time and they become one with the sand ...... Never realised that just searching for shells would be such a calming experience .....


I heard from a local that a lot of jewellery designers and fashion designers come to Sanibel because there are soo many combinations of colors to be found in these shells that they draw inspiration from them ....i guess one of nature's marvels ....

Overall incredibly calm, relaxing and very kid friendly island .....One one my favourite beach vacation spots ever ....

Next we drove over to to Captiva which is a typical beach town .... As we were driving through its quiet roads had this urge to just forget that there was a world outside and just like here for a month .... hmm someday hopefully

CAPTIVA ISLAND

More than 2 miles of pure white sand is the first thing i nooticed when we parked the car .. (there is a parking fee where a token is issued for you to park for 2-3 hours) .The island has a very natural atmosphere.

Captiva is north of Sanibel island which is connected to Fort Myers by a three-mile-long causeway. I saw a lot of Shell stores and a lot of people biking through the beach town ....Alos saw fishing on the T-dock (fishing equipment can be rented), nature center, kid’s games and an arcadeYou will never get to see any building more than 2 floors high .... its pretty quiet ....

Did not get to spend a lot of time here ... just an hour .... but it will be a place i will remember forever .... Would love to go and spend some more time here ...

CJ

MAGIC KINGDOM - DISNEYWORLD
Orlando Florida

I guess every child fantasizes about visiting DISNEY... this fantasy was especially big with me since it goes without mentioning that i am a cartoon freak ..... According to Shw(one of my best pals) ..i make any person feel that their life is as empty as a man's breasts if they havent read or watched any of the cartoons i watch or prince-swept-the-pricess-off-her-feet kinda stories ......

Soooo guess what seeing Mickey-Minnie, Donald-Daisy, Cinderalla, Snow White and every Disney character was like ..... pure unadulterated heaven .....

Got off to a great start ... hired a Wolkswagen Passat (red) and drove all the way from Fort Lauderdale to Orlando in 4 hours flat ....thats about 300 miles ... started fairly early ..about 6 in the morning on 31st December 2006...so was feeling all happy when we got to the hotel .....
Then when we started travelling towards Disney the traffic got choatic ...it was then that realisation sunk in as to how many people would be there to reel in 2007 .....More than a 100,000....
Parked the car and got into a waiting ferry to take us across to the main Disney area. The view from a distance itself was awesome .....

Got off along with thousands of people and started walking ... the first thing i saw was Walt Disney holding his favourite creation and at the backdrop the Cinderella castle ..it was every bit as beautiful as what i had imagined ...
Saw all the Disney princesses performing and MICKEY AND MINNIE (the cutest couple ever)...

Splash Mountain(my very first roller coaster): Got soaked. Was screaming my gut out ... got teased that i was being such a baby ... but i was terrified even of this 60 foot roller coaster ... ...but i faced my fear ....

After this entire experience we were hungry ...decided to get some dinner before the Fireworks before midnight ...
The castle was lit up at this point ...it looked lovely .... The food in Disney is bad if not anything else ... even the Chinese is bland ... left more than half of it on the plate ...went and got myself a cup of coffe from Starbucks ..found a few magnets embossed with Disney characters to put it on my fridge back home ... (memories of good times ... .. )
We then walked over to the castle ..the fireworks were about to begin ... didnt find a place close enough to the castle ...it was jam-packed .... Then the fireworks began ... what a show ...for 20 minutes before the midnight the sky just lit up to fireworks synchronized to some amazing music .....

IT WAS 2007 .... then the fireworks continued for another 15 minutes ...

It was then that i realised that my feet were hurting ....standing and walking the entire day .... Carried my shoes and walked all the way back to the ferry ...got into the car and went back to the hotel ...I dont even remember getting into bed .... was that exhausted .....

Every child dreams about visiting Disney .... at 23 years ...my dream was fulfilled ........

CJ