The khlongs of Bangkok

Since we spent nine days in Bangkok, we had a lot of time for sightseeing and decided take a longtail boat to explore the western side of the Chao Phraya river. Originally, the city was located on this side of the river and was called Thonburi.
Thonburi actually was the capital of Thailand for a couple of years before King Rama I made the decision to build a new city on the opposite riverside because it was easier to protect this area against the Burmese.

Thonburi is still much less developed than the modern Bangkok and you can still find the traditional waterways called khlongs here.

All guidebooks tell you to prepare for a very fast ride which will get you soaked and we looked forward to that adrenalin rush. Only to discover that our boatman clearly had not read these travelguides, his idea of a khlong ride was very different from ours and it took us at least ten minutes just to cross the river to the Thonburi side. But once we came into the more remote parts of Thonburi, he finally got the speed up. The trip took an hour and a half and was really worthwhile.

On weekends, a visit to the floating market of Taling Chan is included in the price. This market is only open Saturday and Sunday, but is worth a visit. The food you get here is wonderful and it is quite the adventure to see the dishes being prepared in the boats on the canal.

High up in the sky

Bangkok has some really impressive rooftop bars offering beautiful views together with very expensive, but very good, drinks (or food if you feel like spoiling yourself).

Since we went to the Moon Bar at Vertigo (Banyan Tree Hotel) for my birthday, we decided to try Sky Bar at Sirocco (Lebua at State Tower) this time.
Sky Bar was featured in the movie Hangover 2 (which I still haven't seen...) and they actually have something called Hangovetini on the menu. Not the best name for a cocktail, but I guess it works for them.

In comparison to the Moon Bar, the Sky Bar is a bit more expensive. Drinks here are 450 Baht excl. 10% service charge whereas you pay 350 Baht excl. service charge at the Moon Bar. I found the Moon Bar cosier since they actually have sofas and tables where the Sky Bar only offers its guests standing room. It felt like the Moon Bar was a bit bigger as well, but I can't say for sure. The views from both bars are truly spectacular, so there is not a huge difference there, except that you have got better views of the Chao Phraya river from the Sky Bar.

Here are some pictures from our visit to the Sky Bar: