Saw a few more in the Ari / Suttisan area (Suttisan Rd. connects Ari with Sutthisan MRT)
JJ House on soi 11 I believe it was. Couldn't see the room but it was 5000 and very new and very clean. Close to the main road, washers and dryers in the lobby. Nice sized balconies of the "second half a room/kitchen" variety.
Soi 21 (I think) there's a very nice place called "6 + 1" The girl didn't even know why, but this is also a nice place, for 5400 I think it was. About 2 years old, big open space in the middle, all the rooms open up into this interior space..seemed quiet and the rooms were nice...30 sq I think...they were spacious. The bathrooms here were particularly nice and it was about 3pm and there was lots of sunlight coming through. Girl said it was "nanachat" with plenty farang around. I'm looking at this one, but I still want to get well below 5000 baht, believe it or not.
Which brings me to "family condo" a few sois up. Big complex, concrete looking like hell, stained to no end...people milling about everywhere...but something really charming about it....settled, as these are condos not apartments. Owners and/or long term renters. Different vibe. Smallish dirtyish pool, but okay. 27 sq met. room for 3,500 baht. Thought I was in like flynn until the 'friend of the landlord' who met us there couldn't open the door. Never saw the room. A nieghbor pulled us aside to whisper that she had a key and this guy was a dope who the landlord doesn't actually trust...wtf...come back later...well we had other fish to fry, and the drama (I won't even start to describe it all)put me off (what happened in 5 minutes....imagine living there) but THAT's the kind of place I'm talking about. It really is a deal, and you're in the communty (
there's a community??)
We saw a few others that were of the unliveable variety. Lots of apartments down there though.
Another soi on the West side of Phanonyothin right behind Saphan Kwai has a slew of places as well in the 4000 baht range. Nothing that struck our fancy though. Worth a check, however, if you're looking for 150 USD lodgings.
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I should have taken notes and brought a camera, but in the end I'm looking for an apartment, only secondarily feeding award winning content into this oh so exciting thread on ajarn.
As fullfilling as that is...
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Well I found my very own Thai Shoebox Gem deep in the Ari subsois. Gularb (Rose) Apartment is
back there somewhere behind the oh-so-wonderful (old) Villa market (there's a swanky new more crappy less well stocked Villa right at Ari BTS) about one-third of the way up towards Buffalo Bridge. 20 baht motosai to the train. 10 to main Rd. and Villa. 3rd floor, Bigger WC than I have now (nothing beautiful though) strong A/C, big new bed, old but functional warbrode, table and chair, tiny balcony really only for drying clothes/potted plants but with full length sliding doors and another window on the other wall (it's a corner room) so plenty of light/breeze. Very nice staff and a chilled-out non-threatening, non-insane, non-ghetto atmosphere (this being the absolute key to the whole 'Gem' thing) laundry downstairs and small shop for eggs, snacks, and beers. Strange old sticker on the door reading "a day without war". ok. it's way back there so there's no somtam or curry shop a hop skip or jump away, and you really need the motosai to get there, those sois ain't made for walkin'. but this makes it quiet. only three channels of UBC- HBO, Cinemax, and ESPN, but at least it ain't AXN, Chic, and CNBC.
3,500 baht a month.
All it needs is some good lamp lighting. I swear with the right lighting you can turn any dump into an elegantly cozy space.