Thailand Street Food - Go for It!

Travelers to Thailand will find that during their holiday they can eat some of the worlds best food while spending very little. They can do this by staying away from the expensive tourist restaurants and eating from the delicious variety of street food available to them.
In my experience, one of the best reasons to spend time in Thailand is the food. One of the best and cheapest ways to eat in Thailand is at one of its endless street vendors. All over one will find all kinds of street food from simple sliced fruit to Pad Thai Noodles, delicious Thai fried chicken and many others.
It is easy to get overwhelmed with the large variety of food available and scared by some of the common myths about street food. First and foremost in peoples mind is the notion that street food is not safe. While sanitation can be an issue but with a quick once over of the vendor will tell you all you need to know. Most street vendors in Thailand are very clean and do their best to offer clean and delicious food. When looking them over you will quickly see that most have facilities for washing and cleaning their dishes and utensils. Most will also not use their hands but use gloves or tongs to pick up the food.
Personally, I have never gotten sick eating street food and it makes up most of my primary diet while I am in Thailand due to its low cost. One of the great hidden Bangkok destinations is the Khlong Toei market. Khlong Toei Market is a vibrant food market that comes alive at night and is the major supplier of all kinds of meat, vegetable, poultry and seafood to the street food and restaurant industry found on every sidewalk of Bangkok. It is hard to imagine and is like any open farmers market in a western country five times the size on steroids. It is not uncommon to see giant blue prawns, entire pigs or even wheel barrels full of pig's heads and tails being carted down the alleys.
Of course if you are hungry there is plenty of prepared food to be had such as freshly made Pad Thai, spring rolls, pork, chicken and soups galore. You can order any Thai dish that you want to be prepared fresh and will rarely cost you over a dollar. At these prices you can splurge and try a lot of different things so jump in and just do it! Enjoy.

I have been an avid traveler all of my life and have visited many countries and continents. My hobbies include travel, computers and flying as I hold a US Private Pilots license for 20 years. I have lived in and explored Asia for the past twelve years and spent the last three years living and teaching in the mystical and wonderful land of Thailand. I am well versed and comfortable living among different cultures and enjoy becoming a 'local' in foreign lands as much as possible.