Excited and with a lot of energy to burn, Cathy and I set out to "where again?". We came to the city with a plan but ended up on an ad hoc more exciting stroll. Earlier the vendor gladly took her time in preparing my surprisingly sweet and strong iced coffee. I did not really care where we were going as long as we kept on moving (to drain all of the caffeine and burn all the sugar). That's exactly what happened that day in Bangkok.
We set out with 2 versions of Bangkok maps and an old edition of Lonely Planet. We planned on doing the floating market tour but skipped out on that. We agreed on visiting the grand palace first but signs are saying it's best we visit the palace after lunch. We rented a long tail boat instead, as suggested by one of the locals, that went through one of the Khlongs (canal). The ride was not too scenic but it provides you a window to how locals live their lives. BTW, Thais revere fishes so don't be surprised to see a lot of big fat fishes in the Khlong.
The tour ended in a market where we later had our lunch (prepared the authentic way). We had time to explore one of the art galleries and visit the post office to drop some postcards/cards before we had lunch. After which we entered the Grand Palace. I was overwhelmed by the structure - not just the size but the details. There were a lot of details. It was really "wow" grand. It looked like the palace was carefully planned and all details were carefully crafted - patterns and colors and touches of gold here and there, towers 10 times taller than me, big land area. The area also houses the temple where the emerald Buddha is found. A few meters outside the palace we found the temple of the sleeping Buddha, also one of the most visited attractions. After which we had enough temples for the day so we retired back to our hostel along Khao San. But Khao San was just starting to come to life when we got back, so the heck, we spent a few more hours walking around the area.
I have uploaded some photos here.
Some travel tips:
1) If you are the more adventurous type and would like to mingle with other travelers, stay in a hostel along Khao San or Rambuttri Road. Accommodation for backpackers is very cheap here.
2) Enjoy Thai food prepared the authentic way. In most of the streets and markets, make shift "eateries" are set up.
3) Locals are really friendly but carefully pick a someone to ask questions to.
4) Transportation is very cheap. If your tuktuk driver asks for more than 100 Bhat there's a big possibility that he's asking too much.
5) Shopping should be done during the latter part of your trip. You might get too caught up and end up spending all of your pocket money. Not good.
