{"id":61,"date":"2007-12-31T12:00:29","date_gmt":"2007-12-31T19:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wp.jeffersonscher.com\/?p=61"},"modified":"2013-01-05T03:32:08","modified_gmt":"2013-01-05T11:32:08","slug":"there-is-a-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/2007\/12\/there-is-a-market\/","title":{"rendered":"There is a Market…"},"content":{"rendered":"

Before heading North to Ayutthaya, we snuck out of Bangkok under cover of darkness to the heavily touristed Damnoen Saduak “floating market.” We stopped along the highway for some serious shrimp paste and fishy snacks before rolling into the already busy market just at its 7\u00a0AM opening time. We rented three low boats, steered and powered by an oarsman at the rear. As we slipped up the canal, we quickly purchased some fried bananas and remarkably delicious coconut pancakes. Other vendors offered young coconuts for drinking, numerous fruits and vegetables, cooked foods, and every manner of trinkets, especially at shops along the banks of the canal. I picked up the mandatory market t-shirt at one of these stops. Occasionally a smelly diesel powered boat would charge by, detracting from the otherwise pleasant ambiance.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Along one of the canals we stopped to visit some makers of coconut sugar and sample their wares. And buy a whole bunch of tasty snacks. Probably the delicate squid-shaped shrimp-flavored puffs\/chips will not make it all the way home, which I regret because I would love to share them with you. The sesame peanuts will undoubtedly be shared around a bottle of something strong in the near future. Anyway, back in our boats we completed the circuit and returned to the dock for a breakfast of “boat noodles.” Each order contains a small tangle of thin rice noodles, bean sprouts, slices of fish cake, a dried shrimp or two, and some ground pork. The broth is magically flavored with toasted garlic and fish sauce, with your choice of “heat.” I ate two, and a few khanom krok while we waited. Very satisfying, and I was soon sleeping in the van.<\/p>\n

\n

\"CanalCanal congestion at Damnoen Saduak floating market<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"BoilingBoiling down coconut nectar, side canal near Damnoen Saduak floating market<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"HousesHouses lining the canal, Damnoen Saduak<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"CoconutCoconut pancake vendor, Damnoen Saduak floating market<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"DeliciousDelicious coconut pancakes, Damnoen Saduak floating market<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"FriedFried banana vendor at Damnoen Saduak floating market<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"MakingMaking boat noodles at Damnoen Saduak floating market<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"MakingMaking boat noodles at Damnoen Saduak floating market<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/div>

Enter passcode to show locked content for \"Northern trip, 2007-2008\": <\/p><\/form>\n

When we arrived in Nakhon Prathom, I was a bit groggy. The temple we visited, Phra Pathom Chedi, is reputed to be the tallest Buddhist monument in the world. Originally built in the 5th or 6th Century, presumably along more modest dimensions, it contains some of the Buddha’s ashes. Circling the bell-shaped chedi (stupa) in the hot morning sun, we found ourselves in a swarm of worshippers from near and far making offerings on this New Year’s Eve holiday. In front of the temple there is an extensive market featuring everything from purses and t-shirts to fried insects; I settled for a coconut and rejoined the group for another market walk and noodle soup meal.<\/p>\n

Off and On the Island<\/h3>\n

Built at the confluence of three rivers, Ayutthaya spills off the “island” at its center into nearby neighborhoods. Our first stop was at Wat Chai Wattanaram, located West of the island. As expected, the stucco covering the bricks was largely worn away and the buddha images were sadly decapitated. But the towering central prang<\/em>, built in the Khmer style, still stands and, despite signs to the contrary, its tall staircases provide the backdrop for hundreds of photos of smiling tourists.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Khmer<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Outer<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Decapitated<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Decapitated<\/a><\/p>\n

\"More<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/div>\n

We rolled into town and checked into the Ayothaya Hotel, offering clean rooms and strong air conditioning (and yet another spelling of the town’s name). For dinner we took down a large table at a riverside restaurant. As revelers passed in multi-story boats lit up for New Year’s Eve, we feasted on seafood. Four slim freshwater fish, deep fried crunchy, were arrived slathered in a sauce of red chillies mellowed to a kind of sweet-hot tapenade. Fishballs in green curry were followed by a larb of tender and moist minced catfish meat. We each got half of a huge river prawn, served with a dab of red curry sauce and its liver (“the best part”); very reminiscent of lobster. A cup of hot and sour soup with crab and mussels, stir-fried mixed vegetables with Thai oyster sauce, and fresh fruit rounded out the meal. During our de-briefing, the party boats rolled past again, their riders now quiet, perhaps feeling as full as we did and now simply wanting to roll into bed.<\/p>\n

\n

Menu<\/h3>\n

\"MildMild mixed vegetables<\/a><\/p>\n

\"CrunchyCrunchy freshwater fish<\/a><\/p>
<\/div>\n

\"GreenGreen curry fishballs<\/a><\/p>\n

\"LarbLarb of tender catfish<\/a><\/p>
<\/div>\n

\"RiverRiver prawns with red curry<\/a><\/p>\n

\"HotHot and sour seafood soup<\/a><\/p>
<\/div>\n

\"FruitFruit platter for dessert<\/a><\/p>
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n

My last errand of the evening was to pick up a bottle of the Thai rice whiskey Mekong for a future celebration. Fortunately the nearby Amporn Market was still open. That, two iced teas, and a roll of toilet paper should get me through the holiday until I can shop again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Before heading North to Ayutthaya, we snuck out of Bangkok under cover of darkness to the heavily touristed Damnoen Saduak “floating market.” We stopped along the highway for some serious shrimp paste and fishy snacks before rolling into the already busy market just at its 7\u00a0AM opening time. We rented three low boats, steered and […]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_editorskit_title_hidden":false,"_editorskit_reading_time":0,"_editorskit_is_block_options_detached":false,"_editorskit_block_options_position":"{}","footnotes":""},"categories":[5,4],"tags":[8,7],"class_list":["post-61","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-northern-thailand","category-northern-trip-2008","tag-ayutthaya","tag-floating-market","category-5-id","category-4-id","post-seq-1","post-parity-odd","meta-position-corners","fix"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61"}],"version-history":[{"count":29,"href":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1959,"href":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61\/revisions\/1959"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}