EVERYTHING IS FOR SALE: PATPONG NIGHT MARKET, BANGKOK
May 17 '04 (Updated May 09 '05)
The Bottom Line Want to buy a real good watch, cheap?
Bangkok is a shopper's paradise, Just about anything can be found and purchased in this city, provided one knows where to look for it. No more is this evident that in the Patpong Night Market. This maze of small stalls crammed into a few blocks in the southern end of the city is a bargain hunters dream.
The Patpong Night Market is located in the Silom and Patpong district of Bangkok in the southern part of the city, just east of the Chao Phraya River and south east of China town. The market is not a large area only a long a couple of blocks of Patpong 1 and Patpong 2 Streets and the immediate surrounding areas.
As the name implies the market is only open at night. As soon as the sun sets, the vendors appear and set up shop, literally. There are hundreds of small stall and sometimes just folding tables or mats with goods laid out on them.
Cash is king here and haggling is the name of the game. The vendors will offer a starting price, and expect you to counter it. A good opening counter bid is about a quarter of what was quoted. The seller will then probably express outrage at your offer, but that's just the signal for the real bargaining to begin. Eventually you'll agree on a price acceptable to both sides.
Vendors and dealers are aggressive and will easily undercut each other to get a sale so it pays to look around. If you can't bargain, don't like to, or are not into high-pressure sales pitches and crowds then Patpong is not for you.
Language is not really a problem here by the way. Few vendors have mastered more than a few words of English, or other languages although some may surprise you. All the vendors have pocket calculators though, they're one of the thousands of things for sale. They'll punch in their price, and then hand it to you for your counter offer.
Just about anything you could imagine is available here. Famous name leather handbags, designer brand jeans and other clothes are all on display. Of course they're all knock offs, and no one even attempts to suggest otherwise. The quality on some though is quite good.
Tacky T-shirts with colourful and/or risqué slogans on them are also plentiful here. In fact just about every article of clothing from hats to shoes can be found. Prices are unbelievable, if you can haggle well and are buying in volume. In fact I found, too late as it turned out, that it would have been cheaper to buy new T-shirts, underwear, socks and other stuff here than have it laundered at my hotel.
In to the latest CD, DVD or perhaps the hottest computer game or other software, then odds are it's here. Illegal pirated copies naturally, but you might not be able to tell from the packaging. Some of the movies on DVD here are still showing in theatres and won't "officially" be released for months. A word of caution though, not only can the quality be suspect, many countries have strict laws and penalties regarding the importation of pirated DVDs CDs and/or computer software and games.
One can load up on all the required souvenirs of Thailand here in one night. Silk shirts, scarves and/or ties, brass images of Buddha, scenic prints and just about anything else from the tacky to the truly unique.
It's not just Farangs (foreigners) who crowd into Patpong. Many of the things for sale would have little use, for the tourist. Cheap electronics, tablecloths, dishes, plastic house wares and almost everything under the sun, from irons to cutlery to padlocks is here and available for the right price.
No discussion of what's available in Patpong or Bangkok as a whole would be complete without talking about watches. Bangkok is known as the fake Rolex capital of the world, and five minutes strolling through the stalls here and you can see why.
Just about every possible design or make of designer watch is available here. Rolex, Omega, whatever your hearts desire is can be found. If you don't see what you want just ask, and someone will disappear and within a few minutes return with what you were looking for. Most of the sellers only display a fraction of their watches, and just show you a catalogue to browse through.
Of course they're fakes and no one pretends otherwise, especially the dealers. Mind some are really good fakes, and some dealers actually use that as their sales pitch. Some will probably fall apart by the time you get back to your hotel that night. Most though will last a while and keep good time. Besides they do look good on your wrist. It almost makes you wonder how many Rolex and Omegas you see on people's wrists these days are the real thing.
Finally there is even luggage for sale, and you're going to need it to drag all your newfound loot home. Probably the first thing you should buy in Patpong is a small backpack or shoulder bag, designer label knock off of course. Then you can spend the night filling it with your purchases. If you buy too much, and that's a real possibility, then you can always pick up another cheap suitcase here too.
When I said everything is available in Patpong I was not exaggerating, as there is another "consumer item" on offer here. Beside the stalls and shops, both streets are lined with dozens of bars and pubs with names like Kings Castle, Kings Camelot, and Rosie’s Bar. Despite the names these are not quaint pubs full of expats catching up on the old country. In them you can get more than a cold, if overpriced drink.
Patpong is one of Bangkok's famous red light districts. Almost all the bars along here have live entertainment, all of it of an extremely "adult" nature. Well some of Bangkok's other adult nightlife areas, such as Soi Cowboy and Nana Plaza have been tamed down in recent years by Government authorities, the same cannot be said about Patpong. That is if the descriptions of the shows on offer can be believed.
Standing out front of these bars, are some of the most aggressive touts I've seen. Come close to one of them and he'll grab you and start leading towards the bar entrance while describing in detail the attractions that wait within. For those who's command of English is limited to the "good show' and "cheap drinks" (an oxymoron here by the way), they have little cards printed in English and presumably other languages as well fully describing what's on the menu.
For those who haven't figured it out yet all the entertainment is highly sexual in nature. The tamest things on offer are simple strip shows, and/or go go dancers. From there things progress, or degenerate depending on your personal opinion, to live sex shows and the exhibitions that Bangkok is world famous or infamous for. I won't go into details here, but ping-pong balls, bottles, assorted fruit and candles appear to be involved, at least according to the menu.
While most of the "entertainment" appears geared towards males, more than one tout assured us the show was "good for ladies" as he shoved his printed card into my wife’s face. She was not amused. According to some other tourists we spoke to it's more than just shows available in some of the establishments. Like I said this is Patpong and everything is for sale, or at least to rent.
Patpong is of course not the only place one can find great bargains in Bangkok, just perhaps one of the most interesting. There is also the massive, Chatuchak Weekend Market, which as the name implies is only open on the weekends.
There are also plenty of modern clean air-conditioned malls, especially in and around Siam Square, and Asoke Plaza on Sukhumvit Road. Modern chain department stores such as Robinson’s offer a wide variety of goods for sale both local and from around the world. The atmosphere is a bit more antiseptic than Patpong though, and of course haggling over the price is not done here.
Sukhumvit Road itself, especially between the Nana and Asoke BTS stations has become another version of Patpong with vendors lining both sides of the streets every night. For the most part they are limited to small folding tables or even just a sheet on the ground piled with their goods. The stuff on display, and the prices are somewhat similar though to the Night Market.
Shopping in Bangkok is part of the experience of visiting. It can be hectic, crowded, and if you're in the right frame of mind, a lot of fun too. Just be sure of what you're letting yourself in for. The old saying "buyer be ware" could probably have first been coined in Patpong.
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