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Published: September 20th 2011
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Sawatdii everyone! I am in Bangkok a.k.a. the big mango or the city of angels. Add to that: the city of lady boys, ping-pong shows, night markets and the best streetfood anywhere.
I arrived at the ultra modern, it's futuristic, Suvarnabhumi (pronounce suvanapoom) airport, close to midnight 3 days ago. The weather is sweltering and humid as is usual here but not as stifling as during our visit in June 2010.
My hostel
Sunflower Place is on a quiet soi (lane) off Silom road. The area is all business during the day (banks and office buildings) and all party at night (go go bars, massage parlors, night market). Advertised as a hostel but it's actually more like a small hotel, there are private rooms and there is none of the drunk party atmosphere so common to hostels. Spic and span, spacious and cheery staff. Plus they had a copy of the Lonely Planet SEA that I "borrowed".
Here are a few blog worthy highlights of the past few days:
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A not so leisurely stroll in Chinatown - Following
Frommer's Bangkok day by day guide , I set out early on my first day. Being on Chicago time I was feeling full of energy. I would need every
ounce of it by day's end. Chinatown was a short train + boat ride from Silom. Going up the
Chao Phraya by boat, catching a glimpse of the Wats(temples) in the distance was a good reintroduction to Bangkok. The walk was well detailed and the map realiably accurate but no reading ahead can prepare you for the sensory overload. I love Chinatowns everywhere, the hustle and bustle, the colorful scenes, the strange cheap food. This one takes the cake (or should it be moon cake?). An uber Chinatown if there was one. What makes it different is it's still an authentic market experience. While it is a tourist attraction serious business is done here. It is still Bangkok's center for wholesale of produce and seemingly any merchandise imaginable. It may sound like an exageration but I passed through blocks and blocks of stalls selling anything from flowers, fruits (so many to name all fresh),vegetable (fresh and pickled), mushrooms, meat and fish, cloth, garment supplies (buttons, beads), housewares, school supplies, rice, spices, gold, tiarras, etc, etc.
Sampeng is a narrow (no more than 4 ft) lane, it is the most interesting and oldest part of Chinatown. This is where the Chinese enclave
started. Parts of it are like straight out of a movie set. You know like in those movies where the villains chase the hero through labyrinthine alleys chock full of stalls, people and carts everywhere, all moving very slowly.
To describe it as chaotic though would be missing the point. If you find a corner, stop and observe, there is a sense of purpose, even order, to everything going on. Shoppers and merchants cheerfully haggle, food is lovingly prepared on makeshift carts, people shuffle through making way for dollies and even motorbikes. And if you get sick of it all there are of hidden shrines/temples tucked away in side alleys that provide a welcome respite.
Eating here is a foodies dream. While walking about, I snacked on fried shrimp, freshly squeezed pomegranate, dried plums. After 2 hours of walking I stopped by a noodle shop and enjoyed a steaming bowl all for about a dollar. For those who want to try something exotic, expensive and unethical, there are many restaurants featuring shark's fin and bird's nest soup.
The last attraction on the walk was Wat Traimit, recently completed to house the golden Buddha. A 15 ft, 5 ton, reputedly pure
gold( though how pure is debated) and from as early as the 13th century. What's most interesting is that until the 1950s everyone thought it was just another plaster Buddha. That was until it chipped while being moved and revealed the gold underneath. Never judge a Buddha by it's cover.
Whew! I'm tired just writing about it.
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Damnoen Saduak Floating Market What started as a traditional way for merchants to sell during the time when Bangkok was the Venice of the east and had more canals, has become a most photographed, cliched tourist trap. There are several floating markets but this one was included in the day tour to Kanchanaburi. Those looking for an authentic cultural experience will be disapointed. However that does not mean major fun cannot be had here. Approach it as an exotic amusement ride.
Tourists are hearded into wooden motor boats that can ride up to 8, plus the oarsman. The buses all get in at around the same time and by 9:30 the canals were congested with more tourist boats than vendors. We laughed a lot while bargaining and mocking the merchandise. There comes a point when haggling just becomes a game and next thing
you know you are going home with a mounted bat and some anatomically inspired ashtray. At the end of it all, just like at Six Flags, you get a commemorative plate with yor photo.
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Bridge Over River Kwae (not Kwai) During WWII the Japanese decided to build a railway to connect Bangkok with Burma. Using POWs and conscripted locals they accomplished the task in 16 months with an estimated 100,000 casualties. We were sweating buckets touring the site in midday and could just imagine the hardships of those who died in building the railway and bridge. It's a bit of an odd scene actually, smiling tourist mugging for photos, stalls selling t-shirts and knick-knacks and the oddest museum I've ever see: the "Jewelry and War Museum". The site is managed by a private firm and is a perfect example of how privatization is ruining historical sites everywhere.
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Tiger Temple Yet more controversy. Sometimes billed as tiger farm or tiger sanctuary, to me it's neither. It started out when some cubs were donated to the monastery (cubs are orphaned when their parents fall victim to poachers). The monks raised them and next you know they have more than 20. Which sounds
swell except these are monks and not tiger experts. The result is that these cats are practicaly domesticated and have no chance of being reintroduced to the wild. It's an expensive undertaking and the way to pay for it is to let tourists strike a pose with the tigers. It's one of those dilemma that face concious travellers: abstain and miss ot on the fun or partake and perpetuate a dubious practice. I view it this way: if I were a tiger I'd rather end up being taken care of by a monk rather than in restaurant somewhere in China. Plus where else can you actually sit,pet and if you want, sniff a tiger (they don't smell by the way).
That's it for now. Today was devoted to relaxing and making arrangements for Cambodia.I will return to Bangkok in about 4 weeks and hope to discover even more about this fantastic city. This place has so much to offer the traveller. Whatever floats your boat you can surely find it here.
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Tony
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So tranquil
I love the monk with the tiger. Great pics. You look like you have found contentment.