Head photo courtesy of Bankok.com
39 Moo 6 Bangna-Trad Rd. Km.8
Bangkaew, Bangplee,
Samutprakarn,
Bangkok 10540,
Thailand
Phone: 2-105-1000
Facebook (mostly in Thai)
Website
I spent one of my transit days in Bangkok at this shopping mall after a lady at reception in my hotel told me that, "if you like shopping, you have to go there".
The shopping mall is massive, and you will need a big amount of time to visit all the shops you are interested in advance, and those that will captivate your attention. Despite the size, the mall does not feel overwhelmingly big or unmanageable.The place is very spacious, trendy, luminous, with ample corridors, fancy toilets, shiny and squeaky clean. It has harmony and style, and mix of fashion, home and, electronics, electric and health shops, stunning jewellers and jewel stands, gym, cinema, Ikea and what is not.
That day, I had a simple plan, that turned out better than expected:
1/ Finding a Thai place to eat. To my surprise there is a Food Walk, like a outdoors food hall around the building, with a considerable number of restaurants with different world cuisines. I did choose an authentic Thai restaurant, though, very cheap and yummy, and I was enchanted by the conversation of the lady owner, the yummy dishes that the chef cooked for me, and the pop arty cool decoration on the walls.
2/ Visiting some of my medium priced favourite brands to check my fav products, like Yves Rocher, Body Shop, Zara, New, Mango, and places of that sort. These and many more were all there.
3/ Checking out the shops in general. I was gladly surprised at finding a mix of medium brands and very posh ones, designer shops included, elegantly blended together without a sense of mismatch.
3/ Looking for a beauty salon and a massage salon. I was gladly surprised at finding an humongous number (I mean, many...) of beauty salons, some of them very exclusive, offering treatments that were affordable for foreigners but very posh, as they use the latest technologies and the poshest of the poshest of products. The parlours of some of them were fabulous. There were also several hair and nail salons, and several Thai massage places. I had a great experience at the place I visited for manicure-pedicure, and at the massage place where I had my foot massage done.
Everyone I found in the shopping mall and I asked for help (directions, prices, or whatever) was mega-lovely! Really, they treated me like a queen (despite me wearing unflattering backpacker clothing), with the kindness and class that Thai people are known for.
There is a taxi stop (metered taxis, thank Gosh!) at one of the exits of the building, which comes handy to return to your hotel or to the airport. Most of them do not speak English or just several words, so have your hotel card at hand - in Thai!
The Free Shuttle Bus from the BTS Sky train Udomsuk station stops at one of the sides of the mall, and you can get from/to the airport from here, easily at a fraction of the price you will pay if you take a taxi. The shuttle passes by many hotels in the area, so check at your hotel if you can benefit from it.
The day flew by fast and I had to leave in a hurry because I was late for my airport transfer. My only regret at leaving the shopping mall was not having gone there earlier in the day, and not having an extra day to continue my bangnaning! I take note. Next time I visit Bangkok, I will expend a bit of time at this shopping mall, this is a promise I make to myself, as I have visited the city and Thailand several times and I'm done with sightseeing.
Most recommended, especially if you are lady.
391, Fitzgerald St
North Perth Western Australia 6006
The North Perth Plaza has almost everything you might need to do you weekly shopping and help you relax in between errands.
The place is medium sized, small enough to move around easily and get things done fast, but big enough to find almost everything you need during your visit. Indoors, there is a decently-sized Coles, a chemist, an Italian continental deli, a corner cafe, a newsagent, two hair salons (a men's, and a unisex's), a beauty salon, a nail salon, a traditional Chinese massage shop, an office supplies shop, and a travel agent. Outdoors there is a bakery, a bottle shop, an Italian pizzeria, a posh deli cafe, a barber, and and dry-cleaning service.
Most businesses are very small in size, but there is a sort of community spirit around, and people are very serviceable and extremely friendly except for some exceptions.
The North Perth Plaza is not the sort of shopping mall you go to have a shopping spree or to pamper yourself with something posh, or a foodies joint. This is a place you go to keep you house running and to have some body-fix emergencies done at decent prices.
The place would need a make-over, but, being realistic, if it had it done, it would lose its charm, and prices would go up. Let it be as it is - a family-style, budget-friendly, all-ages favourite, men-friendly shopping mall.
The toilets are very small, but are usually kept clean. I would certainly refurbish this area before touching anything else.
There mall has two parking areas: a large one facing the bottle-shop, and a tiny one facing the chemist. Isn't that handy?
The North Perth Plaza is in a killer location and has everything you need.. even if you don't find it here. If you don't find something there, you will find it across the car-park or across the street. If you don't like the food around, you can cross the street again or go to the Angove St cafe strip, which is at a 5 minutes walk.
The North Perth Plaza is one of those old-fashioned places that has a charm you don't find in better equipped more modern malls, and better prices as well.
647-649 Hay St
Perth Western Australia 6000
(08) 9261 6666
http://www.londoncourt.com.au
Have you ever noticed that Perth has a wonderful Tudor spirit? Yes, Yes Yes. The city is full of buildings and building details that are neo-16th century, hidden in front of your very royal nose.
London Court is one of those places where you truly feel transported in time (no need of drugs), to feel you are walking an old European alley. You could even forget that you are in Australia and think that this is, indeed, London, if it was not for the very Australian shops and the Australian elements on display.
The court has a wonderful mock Tudor style, with its unmistakable architecture and arches, tiled floor, several floor stories with their narrow stairs to the upper shops and workshops, cute little windows, heraldic blazons, gargoyles, iron pikes, shop plaques, pending banners, and two charming knights, perennially armed and standing, tall and proud, awaiting the photo and loving gaze of any passer-by.
T
he thing about London Court is that, despite its "fakeness", it does not feel unauthentic, not even a movie set, and that is what makes the place so special. Some places have magic power, that inexplicable something that, no matter what you build on them or transform them into, makes them special. The place where London Court stands does have it. You just have to feel in your body, the change in energy before entering the Court and when you exit the other end gate. That is what makes London Court what it is, and gives it the atmosphere it has.
The court itself is s a mini-Universe of fine and cheap jewellers, shoe shops, gift and souvenir shops, antiques, workshops and small cafés piled one on each other with order and cosiness. The renting of the shopping space has become extremely expensive in the last five years and some of my fav places have gone forever, and the ones standing have high prices. Still, you can enjoy some window shopping, shop till you drop, or delight yourself at the micro-climate of the alley in the hot summer months. The shops are not cheap, but walking around is.
You must walk the place slowly, preferably in the early hours of the morning or at dusk, when the shops are still open but there are not many visitors around and you become part of the setting, and the visit is more enjoyable.
Magic wand needed and an extra-tall staircase to kiss the white knights into frogs and take them to my secret pond.
683-703 Hay St. Mall
Perth Western Australia 6000
(08) 9476 7676
http://www.enex100.com/
Hours:
Mon-Thu 7:00 - 21:00
Fri 7:00 - 22:00
Sat 7:00 - 19:00
Sun 11:00 - 18:00
Enex100 has, a priory, anything to make it the next big thing in the city and a super-duper area for shopping: nice Australian designers and up-market shops, terrific location, a supermarket and a food hall. Still, the place lacks personality. In fact, this mall doesn't feel like a mall, but like a parochial airport duty free. The layout is unwelcoming and it feels like a passage area, which is what it has become for many people.
Some of the individual shops are great, but be prepared to pay for the brand you fancy. Some others are too popular, like Nine West or JB-fi, or Woolies. This is a pastiche of a shopping mall that mixes the expensive with a Woollies and a food court. It sounds weird, to me. And it feels weird. If you want an expensive classy area for shops, just build one, instead of mixing in the same pot things that are never going to coexist harmoniously.
It is also my experience that the shop attendants of some of the shops there will give you the look or ignore you if you're wearing your working clothes or are in your jeans. Unfortunately, Enex100 is also a meadow for some cows, and it stinks of manure,
The food court is too expensive. They are offering food-hall sort of food, which is, my dearest wanted-to-be posh, fast food, even if it is displayed in fancy pots, served in fancy dishes and you seat in a contemporary-style decorated area. Is you hunger clouding your ability to see?
In an out.
Excess of corridor space.
100 seconds to get me out of here.
