One Night In Bangkok

Today we made our way back to Bangkok. Tomorrow evening we head south by sleeper train. We are staying in the heart of Chinatown. I have to say Bangkok Chinatown is totally bonkers. The area consists of a maze of narrow alleys lined with shops rammed floor to ceiling with stock. They sell every kind of useless tat imaginable. The stock spills out into the alley making the passageway no me than a few feet wide. Motorbikes and trolleys whizz up and down meaning you have to keep your wits about you. Most of the restaurants have their "kitchen" literally on the pavement.

The biggest shock to me is just the shear volume of stock (mostly total tat) carried by the shops. For example one was filled with millions of plastic ducks. How many plastic ducks does the world need? All of this worries me on two counts. Firstly because most of what is on offer is just a total waste of resources and money. Surely the energy and resources used could be put to better use. Secondly the area really is a filthy blot on the landscape, Surely we humans can do better than to flea up or planet like this.