Blogs

It’s January and for the 14th January in a row, I hopped on a plane to Bangkok. It’s always a flurry of activity the few weeks before a departure because I’m not only getting ready for a holiday, I am going to do what keeps my business alive, what provides me with a job and income.  I am going to SE Asia to seek out the newest or most interesting and unique items I can to bring back to the shelves of the Green Gecko.This year’s itinerary took us through Dubai.  A place I’ve never been. So of course it called...

2/24/2013 When I'm in Bangkok I try to find a spare hour to wonder around the flower market.  It's about 5 blocks long and 2 blocks wide of shops and street vendors selling only flowers.  Surrounded by millions of blossoms; being in the middle of it is almost fairy tale-like. When I was there a few days ago it was late afternoon and the flowers were arriving by the truck-load for the evening market.  Truck after truck full of flowers.  Petite roses to orchids, to lotus, to long stem roses that standing came up to my chest. Bangkok, by global terms,...

On arriving in Bangkok I usually have one thing on my mind; some sleep is usually needed after the long trip from Canada; but first, FOOD.  It’s hard to go anywhere in Bangkok and not be surrounded by the aromas of various food.  Thai’s are fantastic at cooking up amazing dishes in a flash.  Bangkok is well known for it’s Street Food.  Which generally refers to vendors with carts that each specialize in one item or dish.  A typical street food stall selling noodle soup with chicken. One of my favorite places to eat in Bangkok is not quite street...

3/24/2012 One of the artists whose work I feature called me "You know how I said I'd stop by this week? I just got an order for painted glasses.  How about I paint them in the shop?"  Wow, great idea!  My first 'Artist-in-Residence' at The Green Gecko.  Sounds exciting!Lesley McDougall is the creator of Mehndi Glass: "a unique collection of hand painted glassware, jewelry and glass art inspired by the ancient art of Mehndi".When Lesley first introduced me to her Mehndi inspired glass art I felt an instant connection.  Mehndi is common in India; where I have spent time traveling as well as...

I admit it. It's stereotypical. I'm a woman and I love to shop for clothes!In my last post I wrote about shopping at Chatuchuk Market in Bangkok.  For clothes, I visit another market which sells only wholesale clothing.  It's housed in a 6 story building and you'll find everything from t-shirts with knock-off logos to Thai silk suits.It takes countless days to navigate all of the alleys and see what is available. You can't start out too late, most stalls are open approx. 3am-3pm.  Vendors who sell in other markets and centres come here to buy clothing in the early morning...