A shopaholic's guide to Jatuchak market

Jatuchak is the grandfather of all markets in Thailand. In case, you didn't know, Bangkok is a heaven for knockout prices for apparels, home decor items, "exotic" asian stuff, pseudo asian stuff... Basically, Jatuchak is your one stop market to satiate all your shopping needs, especially if you have to get lotsa cheap skate but very pseudo-Chinese ornaments or gifts to. "Wholesale", you will learn, will be the key word of the day. Despite all the hype about the crowds, the weather, sanitation and the pickpocketers, the one big thing you should look out for in Jatuchak market and basically whole of Bangkok is the merciless stall holder him/herself. Be armed and prepared to deal with "The Stallholder". Generally, if prices are already indicated, you might wanna just pass over the haggling and just hand over the money for your purchase. Otherwise, if you've got plenty of time on hand, able to withstand the tortuous weather, haven't yet died of dehydration, or not squashed to death by the huge crowds of shoppers, feel free to haggle another 60% off. If prices aren't indicated by writing, it is a must to bargain. Bargaining is an essential tool for all tourist. Here is a stall holder's perspective of a likely target to rip off. "Ah, a tourist! I'll double the offer price.", "Ooo, he's a westerner/Caucasian! I'll jack up the price by another 100%!" When to end your bargain or call it all off before it turns into a nasty bloodfest? When your stall holder gives you a very nasty face. Let's get this straight. Nasty and pathetic is not the same. Pissed is the word actually. Nasty is just being politically correct. Thailand actually deserves it's title of "land of all smiles". However, as budding businessmen and women see their profits slashed once and again by a hotblooded and someone who they think is dumb, "tourist", nobody can keep the smile on their face. That's when "nasty" sets in. Jatuchak, itself, is so monstrous in size that it is literally impossible to finish walking through it in 1 day. Since it is a weekend market, needless to say, it only opens on weekend. Take the train to Mo Chit which is the last station right at the end of the line and just follow the crowd. They will take you to the market. To beat the crowd, I would suggest that u make your way there early. In the morning, the weather is more merciful and the crowd is easy to handle, by noon, you'd wish you were soakin in the hot tub in your hotel. Many Thai travellogues will recommend that you buy Nancy Chandler's market map of Bangkok, which is unneccessary, since free maps of Jatuchak are dispensed in the market itself. The market is separated into many segments, namely clothes, handicrafts and souvenirs, furniture, plants, pets and miscellaneous. The clothes segment itself, is separated into jeans, both old and new, army wear and trendy fashion wear. It takes up about one-fifth of Jatuchak's mammoth space and here is where you can find cheap old and worn out levis (less than US$3), birkenstock (less than US$7), tee shirts (price varies). Vintage lovers will have a field day in the jeans segment, but if you're lookin for genuine levis, you might wanna try somewhere else instead. As for furniture, I would like to just provide a warning. For those seeking out Zen and minimalist styled furniture ie lampshades, chairs, you might wanna take note. Although these furniture with clean lines and simple style yield a bomb back home, guess what? They cost a bomb there too. I was stunned when I enquired that the price of a designer looking chair there cost maybe 20% less than one in Singapore. 20% in savings is pathetic when you compare the price of living in both countries. A rule of thumb I go by, is I'll buy an item in Bangkok, only if it costs less than half the offer price in Singapore. My point is, the Thais know their stuff. Whatever the case, you might just wanna settle for some ethnic thai tables with traditional carvings on them instead of 1 white lamp shade. As for plants and pets, I haven't had the time nor interest to explore that section. Then comes handicrafts and souvenirs. Here comes our favourite word "wholesale". Chopsticks and aromatic candles make ideal cheapskate presents to loot home. Buying in bulk obviously means increased savings and in our case an additional reason to bring down the price even lower. Ideally, by 6, you ought to be so tired, you just wanna take a tuk tuk back to your hotel and sleep it off. But tuk tuks from Jatuchak back to your hotel are expensive and some might not even want to give you a ride because of the traffic jam. I myself experienced a red traffic light which refused to budged green for 45 mins. Though it was a good nap. When it comes to savings and knockout prices, Jatuchak might not be your ideal shopping location. Pratunam is a better shopping place for cheap clothes. But when it comes to variety, nothing comes close to Jatuchak. And if ever you want to buy up the whole of Thailand, I'd say, you'd might wanna start right from Jatuchak.

Published on 2/10/03