We’re in Bangkok. – Just a couple of tourists out exploring on their first day in town. We’re in a tuk tuk, deep inside a labyrinth of alleyways. The driver has just pulled over to park in a little tuk tuk-sized niche. This looks like a pretty rough area to us. Have we been “taken for a ride”? We’ve heard stories…
We started our morning innocently enough. (Details here). We just wanted to do some exploring. But somehow, we ended up riding through back-alleyways with a tuk tuk driver who didn’t speak english, (at least as far as we knew). He was supposed to be taking us to a great place to shop for clothes. We weren’t feeling real good about the situation.
After parking, the driver climbed out and motioned for us to follow him. He was heading toward what looked like the end of the alley. It looked like there was a busy street full of pedestrians, so we were all for that. When we came to the corner, the driver pointed up at some elegant-looking doors into what appeared to be a rather nice retail establishment. Hey, maybe he really WAS taking us to do some shopping(!)
The tuk tuk driver motioned for us to go in. He told us, in broken English, to take our time. He said he’d wait for us around the corner where his tuk tuk was parked. I had almost forgotten that our agreement was that he’d take us to a few places, wait for us, and ultimately take us back to our hotel.
International Fashion Center (IFC)
We went into the place, which was very nice inside. Definitely upscale. Upon entering, a dapper-looking fellow greeted us and asked if he could be of assistance. We said we’d just like to look around, or something like that. Hmmm… Something was odd about this clothing store. But everything sure was nice!
We had walked into the showroom of a place called “IFC,” — “International Fashion Center.” IFC specializes in custom-made suits, dresses, shirts, etc., and any accessories one might need to go with them. This wasn’t exactly what we had in mind as far as clothes shopping goes.
After a while the gentleman who had initially greeted us found us. We started talking. He explained what IFC is all about and what they have to offer. I told him I wasn’t in the market for any tailored clothes. (On the other hand, I’d been thinking of looking for a new shirt or two while in Bangkok. Maybe we should find out more).
After determining the kind of shirts I had in mind, taking all kinds of things in to account that I usually don’t even think of, our guy asked us how long we planned to be in Bangkok. I said just a couple of days. He said, “OK. Two days. I can have 300 shirts made for you and delivered to your hotel before you leave. How many would you like?”
As I said to myself many times while dealing with this salesperson, “This guy is GOOD.”
For the next hour or so, we shopped and talked fabrics. I asked a ton of questions, and actually learned a lot. After a while we moved up to the second floor. Pretty soon bolts of beautiful fabrics were laying all over place, and preliminary negotiations have commenced. By this time that dapper gentleman who had greeted us had become now our personal design consultant and new friend.
We’d pick out fabrics to try for shirts to, say, wear to a casual summer evening event back home. We’d pick out of couple of fabrics. Then our friend would pick something out, and every time, it would be the perfect fabric. It was kind of amazing.
When we had arrived at IFC, I was more than a little apprehensive. No one likes being taken for a ride, whether at a store or on a tuk tuk. Starting with the lady at the BTS Station, this whole situation had become highly questionable, to say the least. We’d been had. No doubt about it. But once I moved beyond that apprehension, and especially now, looking back, our time at IFC was really special.
Lucky
Our new “personal fashion design consultant” had an unusual name: “Lucky.” He had acquired that name as a result of circumstances related to the terrible tsunami that hit southern Thailand in 2004. More than 8,000 people lost their lives in that disaster.
Lucky told us he had owned a tailor shop not far from one of the beaches where the tsunami hit. He had gone to the wedding reception of a good friend the night before, and as result, decided to sleep in, (and sleep it off). On any other morning, he’d have opened the shop early.
With essentially no warning, the tsunami hit sometime around 9:00 AM. It completely washed away the tailor shop, but not with Lucky in it. He’s been known as “Lucky” ever since.
We finished our business at IFC. Somehow we managed to get away without buying whole new wardrobes for each of us. I had to go back for a fitting the next day. They’d deliver the shirts I had ordered to the hotel the day after that.
We had been in IFC a long time, but when we went outside our tuk tuk driver was still there, waiting for us. Our next destination was going to be a Thai restaurant for lunch, but I guess that tuk tuk ride and our time at IFC wore us out. We asked the driver to just take us straight back to the hotel, which he did. Despite our initial trepidation, he had actually been an excellent driver and a nice guy, so I gave him a little extra. Well, for that and for not cutting our throats back in that alley.
To be continued…
