Not-So-Ancient City in Bangkok

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I've been to Thailand countless times but for some reason I've never even heard of the Ancient City Samut Prakan (also known as Mueang Boran). And as an avid photographer, I'm even more amazed that I didn't seek this place out long ago. Located just south of Bangkok, near where the Chao Phraya river empties into the Gulf of Thailand, this park was built by a Thai millionaire over the course of the last 50 years. Over 300 acres of land in the shape of Thiailand that displays...get this...miniature temples, gardens, monuments, sculptures, palaces, floating markets and much more, all in their geographical location. The scale of the monuments will still keep you in awe as some are still quite majestic in size and completely accessible.



The price to get in is cheaper for Thai nationals (and I've never had an issue with this practice as the cost is relative to my western income) and about 700baht ($21USD) for foreigners. But since the cost to Thai's is still steep, you won't find the place crowded. In fact, we were surprised at how empty the park was! There are different modes of transportation to use to see the grounds. We opted to drive our car through the park, but others used the free bicycles or the inexpensive cabbies. If it's an unusually hot day (and when isn't it!) you might just opt for the air conditioned rental car!

As far as photography and the sparse visitor population, getting that good shot without people standing in the photos takes little patience. I found that I could just shutter away without the fear of photo bombers.

I can only say you'll be amazed at what you see and it's going to make you say to yourself, "Wow! It wasn't what I expected! This is cool!!".

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