A market in Thailand presents a "death-defying" challenge right on the railway tracks.

Someone once said: To fully understand life in any place, visit its markets! Because markets are always the places that clearly show the cultural characteristics, habits, and daily rhythm of the local people.

Maeklong Market is the epitome of the bustling atmosphere of Bangkok, a shopping paradise in Southeast Asia. Located at the terminal station of the Maeklong Railway, one of the world's slowest railways with trains traveling at an average speed of only about 30 km/h, the typical image when visiting Maeklong is the rows of stalls lining both sides of the tracks. Without seeing a train pass by, many visitors might mistake it for simply an impromptu market set up on a defunct railway line.

The vendors at Maeklong Market are very quick and disciplined. Three minutes before a train arrives, a bell rings, and the stall owners quickly cover their goods along the tracks and clear away the items displayed on the tracks to make way for the train. After the train passes, they resume their business as usual. Each day, the vendors perform this procedure eight times, corresponding to the eight trains that pass through.

The Maeklong Railway Market has become a popular tourist attraction due to its unusual location and its continued existence despite the railway line still being operational.

Tra My