Cath Kidston

I love the cute accessories at Cath Kidston Central Plaza, Salaya.

Hats

A variety of hats for men. women and children at Workshop, Central Rama 2, Bangkok.

At IKEA

Today at IKEA

We did a lbit of shopping today at IKEA  today. I bought some stuff needed at home,  accessories and food stuff of course. Every item is reasonably priced and uniquely designed. I chose the three in one canister above for storing tea bags and medicine.

Potpourri to make my home smell fresh the natural way.

I'm on a diet, so I bought these unsweetend oatmeal cookies and . . . . .

cereal crackers which go great with my green tea.

It was really nice shopping for Swedish things and food. I'll definitely be back for more shopping.

Here's JM outside IKEA before the heavy rain that evening.

And waiting for us to get done with everything under those giant IKEA buttons.

We had out first taste of Swedish food, reasonably priced and delicious at the IKEA restaurant. The first serving was not enough, we were back for more !

These floral frames are beautiful ! I'll definitely buy one on my next trip to IKEA.

JM took a break at a model living room at IKEA after a long and tiring walk at the megamall.

Hope to be back there soon !

Asiatique

Paradise at the Mall

The Mall is famous in Bangkok for its environmental theme. JM had his photo taken in a spot with waterfalls, foliages and crytal clear waters. Shopping was next in our itinerary.

We had a great time shopping and of course, growing kids get hungry all the time. A big snack at Mac Donald's satisfied his hunger pangs.

Handicrafts

After attending to some business in the city, we decided to visit IMPACT Muang Thong Thani to view an exhibit of Thai handicrafts from all over Thailand. Some were on display but mostly they were on sale. Elaborately designed wood carvings (photo above) caught my attention .

The art of designing bouquets using banana leaves and tiny aromatic flowers such as Jasmin and Ylang-Ylang was one of the highlights of the exhibition.

The photo above shows two clay pots and a ladle made of coconut shell. People from the north of Thailand drink water stored in these pots using the coco ladle.

The native booth above was used to demonstrate the ancient way of making cotton fiber from cotton plant and dying it.

Early Christmas

I have thought about this on the way to Sukhumvit Road aboard the BTS (Bangkok Transit System) Friday morning. I'm going to drop by this partricular area in central Bangkok all dressed up for the holiday season on Sunday . I will let my eyes feast on the beauty of this transformed Christmas wonderland. Living and working in a predominantly Buddhist country for many years now makes me wonder why everybody (every Thai person I mean) is excited about Christmas. Thai people do not know the real meaning of Christmas and simple enough, they associate this very important event in the life of a true Christian with Jingle Bells, Santa Claus, Christmas trees and every symbol of Christmas one can think of . . . except the birth of our Savior. They think that Christmas is special, even Hindus and Moslems living in this country do too. For me, I miss Christmas , the way we celebrate it at home, the true meaning of it. I miss grand family reunions, Misa de Gallo (nine days novena masses before Christmas), Christmas Eve dinner with family members, caroling and so many things that Christmas at home is made of. I try to make every Christmas spent in here in Thailand special and memorable , especially for my son JM. I knew we can't finish touring this transformed Christmas wonderland yesterday, so were coming back for more next Sunday!

My son JM at the foot of the giant Christmas tree. He looked like a dwarf in contrast to the size of the tree behind him.

This was taken at the wine section of the supermarket. The Christmas goodies looked so delicious and tempting, particularly the gingerhouse cake. We bought some yummy cakes and fancy breads and planned to come back before Christmas to buy the things we need for Christmas Eve dinner.

We went around Central World and found this Christmas tree decorated with gold and white ornaments. We had a great time looking at all the beautiful Christmas decorations around us. This was the main idea of dropping by, shopping was only second.

White Christmas bells adorned with flag inspired bows hangs beautifully above the giant Christmas tree.

Weekend Market

It's been ages since we visited Sanamluang 2 Weekend Market. It used to be a horticulturists paradise and it has now expanded into a shoppers haven where you can find all kinds of goods you can imagine. We dropped by for an unplanned visit Sunday afternoon and we had a great time looking around. Below are photos of things I found interesting :

Cute bins

Garden decorations

Home decorations

Stuffed Animals

We dropped by at Central Plaza Pinklao to buy some English language books for JM and we were surprised by the display of huge stuffed animals for Mother's Day in Thailand. JM at 11 years still loves stuffed animals and he finds these so adorable. He obliged to pose with some of his favorite cuties for souvenir shots.

Dreaming he would one day wear his very own cap and gown.

JM hiding under the ears of mommy rabbit.

With mommy panda and baby.

And last, but not the least with a huge, black Golden.