SHOPPING, MONKEYS & JEWELLERY

Shopping, Monkeys & Jewellery

After spending a month in Thailand and taking part in various activities, I will share some of my favourite activities. Some days spent travelling can be spending hours on a boat, bus, or plane, so it is important on the days you are not travelling you make the most of your time in Thailand. A good way to make sure you are making the most of your trip is to try new activities, food and make new memories. Of course, you can also make the most out of your trip by relaxing by the pool or at the beach, but when you have the opportunity to try new adventures and activities you should!

 

SHOPPING IN BANGKOK

Bangkok is known for its vibrant culture, grand temples, and the lively atmosphere of the city. However, Bangkok is also known for its diverse shopping from luxury malls to markets. When in Bangkok you should take advantage of the fabulous shopping scene. The shopping can range from small local markets to large luxury brands – the shopping can be for everyone.

There are huge malls with local vendors that sell a large variety of products that ranges from clothes, shoes, bags, accessories, skincare, food and so much more. There is also one well known mall called MBK Centre, that has numerous of floors, and each floor sells completely different products. These floors include supermarket’s & convenience stores, IT mobile & gadgets, dining & restaurants, home solutions, entertainment, souvenir shop, services – including banks, fashion & beauty, and gold & jewellery. These floors help you have an efficient shopping experience, as you can decide what you would like to browse or buy and you can easily find the products by floor. The MBK Centre is also known for the large variety of counterfeit brand products including Nike, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Rolex, and many more international brands.

There are also malls in Bangkok that are filled with normal brand stores that are widely recognised by consumers. These stores include Zara, Lululemon, Alo, Sephora, Uniqlo and many more. These malls are also large with multiple floors with a wide variety of shops. There are also malls that have a luxury brand section that can include Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Bottega Veneta, and many more. These popular malls include shopping for a wide variety of consumers ranging from lower to higher end brands. If you have forgotten to pack anything these malls would be a great place to buy your forgotten items. Some of the most popular malls are IconSiam and CentralwOrld. These malls are huge and you could spend hours here- this would be a great place to spend some time if it is raining.

Bangkok is also known as a place to purchase vintage designer products including bags, clothing and accessories. These vintage items would be found in specialised malls, stores, or boutiques and here you can find archival pieces from brands including Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Dior.

 

MONKEY HILL IN PHUKET

When visiting Phuket Old Town, i decided to visit a popular tourist spot which is not to miss. Phuket Old Town is also a must see when you are visiting Thailand. The old town is known for its brightly coloured old buildings, amazing street art, temples, the great food scene and Thalang Road - which is the Main Street that is home to numerous shops and restaurants. The old town is a perfect location to spend a day or evening exploring followed by a lovely meal. However, if you would also like to visit Monkey Hill I would recommend visiting in the morning before it gets overly populated by other tourists and before the sunsets as you would not want to visit the hill in the dark.

Monkey Hill is also known as Khoa Toh Sae- this is a hill that is home to over 400 macaques monkeys. This hill also is a viewpoint that gives scenic views of the town. Monkey Hill is a popular spot for locals to exercise, and for tourists to observe the monkeys. The hill is around a 6 Kilometre trek. you can either walk up the hill or there are locals with tuk-tuks that offer to bring tourists up and down the hill- as with the heat this can be an intense walk.

Throughout the walk you may see a few monkeys on the way up the hill, and when you reach the top of the viewpoint you will be surprised with how many monkeys are freely walking around. At the top of the viewpoint there is also a local vendor that is sells drinks and snacks. However, I would not recommend you buy and drinks or snacks as these will appeal to the monkeys and your items may be snatched. The experience of seeing wild monkeys was unbelievable, the monkeys roam about the hill freely and i recommend you do not disturb them. I had heard stories from other travellers that they were bit by these monkeys and even had some of their personal items snatched. It is an experience not to miss and it is incredible to see these animals in real life, but you should also be extremely careful as you do not want to disturb these wild monkeys as you do not know how they will react.

My tips for visiting :

·      Keep personal belongings safe – zipped in your bag.

·      Bring water to stay hydrated on your hike – keep it hidden from monkeys as they will try to steal.

·      Do not disturb the monkeys.

·      Stay calm if a monkey comes close.

·      Wear comfortable shoes.

·      Always wear SPF.

CHARM BAR IN KOH SAMUI

Another great activity I did was jewellery design and making at Charm Bar in Koh Samui. Charm Bar is a small local vendor which has 2 locations in Koh Samui – one in Ark Bar and the other in Chaweng Walking Arcade. At Charm Bar you can design earrings, necklaces, bags, and bracelets. You pick what you would like to design, for example a bracelet you would then pick what chain you would like to use, then pick your charms and then the ladies working at Charm Bar give you a demonstration on how you attach the charms to your bracelet.

I came across Charm Bar on Instagram at the beginning of my trip when I was in Phuket and could not wait to get to Koh Samui to visit Charm Bar. When visiting I first had a look at all the items you could design, I picked to design a necklace for myself and also for my mum. I thought that this was the perfect gift to give to my mum as it was personalised and thoughtful. I designed us both matching necklaces by picking the chain, charms, sitting down and putting the necklace together. This was a lovely experience as I got to be creative and choose charms to match both me and my mum perfectly. The ladies at Charm Bar are so kind, friendly, and helpful as they were helping me decide which charms matched well and they also were great help when putting the whole necklace together. This was one of my favourite activities as I got to create and design a piece of jewellery my mum and I can keep forever, and it is a great souvenir of my trip to Koh Samui.

Charm Bar was such a lovely activity and I would recommend visiting if you would also like to design your own piece either for yourself or a loved one. This is a great way to express your creativity, while also relaxing and getting a break from the busy streets and the humid heat. To design my necklaces, I did not need to book an appointment, at Charm Bar you can just walk in and create! The ladies also offer a service where you can pick your own chain, charms and your own design and then you can leave, then come back in 20-30 minutes and they have put your piece together for you – if it is not your ideal activity to piece the jewellery together yourself but you still want to design your own item this is a great option.

Charm Bar is also a very affordable price for the experience and for your own designed piece. I genuinely think that the prices should be much higher as what they offer is fantastic, you get both an item to take away and an experience, and the price is so reasonable! The necklaces are 799 THB which is £18.86 and this price includes 6 free charms to add to your necklace. This is a fantastic price for your experience, necklace and free charms. The total for this experience was £37.72. I would recommend you visit Charm Bar if this activity sounds like something you would be interested in, for yourself or even to create a gift for a loved one. It was an excellent experience, and I would love to visit Charm Bar again to create even more beautiful pieces.