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:

A shopper's paradise - Chatuchak market

If you ever find yourself in Bangkok on a weekend, visiting Chatuchak weekend market is something I would recommend strongly. But only if you have plenty of space in your luggage. The market is only open on the weekends and there are more than 8000 market stalls here selling anything from souvenirs and clothes to food, textiles, furniture and even pets.

Section 2, the place to shop for wearable, cheap and hip clothes

The puppy section. They are so cute that you really want to take one home with you.

Whatever you may be looking for, you can find it at Chatuchak and if your bargaining skills are good, it can be very cheap. We did not really intend to buy a lot, the plan was just to stroll around and take a look at this piece of shopping heaven. After two hours of looking around, I found some really nice handbags which I just had to have and then we found some nice things for Matthias as well. In the end we left with a quite large plastic bag full of bargains.

Shopping at Chatuchak might not be as comfortable as shopping in the malls of central Bangkok, but it definitely pays off to go here and seek out the stands where the product are not sold in bulk. We found a number of stalls where they only had one or two pieces of the same item.
The downside of the market; it is hot and can be crowded. We went early in the day to avoid the masses and it worked quite well, especially when we visited the stalls further away from the main road.

It is easy to get to Chatuchak market, just take the BTS to Mochit station (end of the Sukhumvit line) and you will see the market from the station. If you don't actually see the market, just follow the masses and you will get there! It is possible to get there by MRT and get off at Chatuchak Park.

Ayutthaya - yet another city of ruins

After the visit in Sukhothai, we felt that the ruins of Ayutthaya, the kingdom succeeding Sukhothai, was the logical next stop. Since it is located between Bangkok and Phitsanulok (well, a lot closer to Bangkok, but still on our route), this was a convenient stop over.

We went by train again, trying the 3rd class this time. Travelling third class in Thailand is really cheap, we payed 130 Baht (about 3 euro) per person for a five hour ride. It is an adventure to travel with the locals, but the fun ends just about when your back starts aching from the hard wooden seats. The difference to 2nd class is huge (and the price different is not big). It was a nice experience, but really not the best decision. Since trains always seem to run late in Thailand, our 4,5 h trainride turned out to last for almost six hours.

The biggest difference between Sukhothai and Ayutthaya is that the latter still is a functioning city and not just monuments from times long past. The ruins in Ayutthaya are a bit more ragged than the ones in Sukhothai.
For those of you interested in a brief history lesson:
The Ayutthaya Kingdom existed between 1350 and 1767, when the city of Ayutthaya was destroyed by the Burmese army. This was the 24th Burmese attempt to capture the city, which was the home to about 1 million people at the time.

Ayutthaya Historical Park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991.

The city was hit pretty badly by the flood in November and December and you can still see some traces of the destruction caused. Most of the temple ruins however are fine to visit.
We spent two days exploring the city and the ruins by bike and here are some of the highlights:

This little fellow and his brothers and sisters were playing among the ruins

Evening light over Ayutthaya Historical Park

One of the most photographed sites in Ayutthaya

The ruins of Sukhothai

On our way back south, we had a stop over in Phitsanoluk to see the ruins of the old capital of the Thai empire (well, one of them...), Sukhothai.
Phitsanoluk is a typical Thai town, not very fancy, has a couple of temples and not many tourists. Most people who come here, visit the town on their way to Sukhothai, located about 50 km northeast of Phitsanulok. We stayed the night in Phitsanulok and took the local bus to Old Sukhothai and Sukhothai Historical Park the next morning. The bus ride took about an hour, cost us 39 Baht each and there was only one other tourist on the bus, Thomas from Germany. Once we arrived in (New) Sukhothai, we had to find transport to the Historical Park or Old Sukhothai. The tuk-tuk fare cost 200 Baht, quite a lot for 12 km. We decided to wait for the normal bus to take us, but gave up after 30 minutes wait since nobody at the bus station could tell us when the next bus was scheduled to depart. So we ended up taking the tuk-tuk anyway.

Sukhothai Historical Park is certainly impressive with heaps and heaps of temple ruins and Buddha statues everywhere. Amazing that the Sukhothai kings built such an extensive capital, since the kingdom only lasted for 140 years before it became annexed by the kings of Ayutthaya.

We hired bikes to go around the park together with Thomas from the bus. This proved to be a good idea since we could see the temples outside of the old city walls as well. Even though it was quite hot and very humid, the ride was not too hard since the area is mainly flat and bicycle-friendly.

With all the temples and Buddha statues, it is easy to get lost...





Easy rider

Chiang Mai - Temples as far as the eye can see

After so many days on the beach, we decided that we need some culture and headed straight from Koh Samet via Bangkok up to Chiang Mai. Once more, we tried our friend the night train and were not disappointed. The train was on time and everything went well, no elephants in sight.

Right on our first day here, we ran into Thomas and Tony, whom we met on Seraya, Indonesia back in October. The world really is small!

Thomas, Matthias and Tony at Doi Suthep

You can do loads and loads of things in and around Chiang Mai, but since I had caught a cold on the way here from Koh Samet and had to spend quite a lot of time in bed trying to get well, we opted for the temples, markets and handicrafts. And Chiang Mai with surroundings sure have lots and lots of all three of them!
In this city, you have temples everywhere you look. It is just incredible, one more beautifully built than the other. As a tourist, you can literally spend hours and hours just exploring the temples.

Other main tourist attractions are the Saturday and Sunday Walking Streets, where you have an entire street blocked off from traffic and a wonderful market to stroll through. These markets open in the afternoon and go on until midnight, but after six or seven, they get so crowded that it is difficult to really enjoy shopping here. But the things on offer are very very nice and the food stalls are just brilliant. If you ever visit Chiang Mai on a weekend, these markets are definitely worth a visit!

Koh Samet - back to the beach

After having celebrated Cissi's birthday and having enjoyed a weekend in Bangkok together with Joe and Tom, two friends of mine from Salzburg, we decided to join Tom for a couple of days trip to Koh Samet. This beautiful island is reachable from Bangkok within a few hours by local bus and boat. 

Tom, who used to live in Thailand for some years and is fluent in speaking Thai, took the lead in interacting with the locals during our trip to the island, as well as throughout our stay.
So great, as soon as the locals hear his Thai, they were much more welcoming and friendly compared than they were to other tourists (which does not mean that they were unfriendly, but hey, you know, routines in daily life make you bored, especially if you live on an island).

We accomodated ourselves in a three appartment bungalow, ours and Tom's separated by an appartment rented by a Farang (Westener, in our case British) and his approximately 30 years younger girlfirend and their baby! You see that quite often and, I know, it's a shame, get used to it...
Anyway, when we came to our bungalow the first evening after dinner and a few drinks, both were drunk, slamming doors and shouting at each other. After some time the mother left, leaving the baby behind (!!!) which understandably made it scream all night. And all the father was capable to do to handle the situation was to shout: "stop screaming, go to sleep!"
Some people should really think first before they start a family!!!

However, after having written about things that were not so nice,  I have to write about the good parts as well. And there were a lot!
First of all, the island is very scenic, with the brightest, finest and cleanest sand beach we have encountered so far since Seraya in Indonesia! 
Second, good food served on the beach (especially Som Tam, green papaya salad with chilli) makes your day, especially when combined with a cold afternoon beer! ;-)
And third, most important, it was amazing to spend the days at Koh Samet with Tom, whom I haven't seen for at least three years. We took the chance to talk about us, friends and life in general. Really great!
We enjoyed it so much!

Tom, thanks for a really great time on the island!!!

Birthday weekend in Bangkok

We left the paradise on Koh Tao to spend my birthday in the Asian City of Angels, Bangkok.
After the very laid back weeks of island life, the pulsating city was quite a shock. After all, Bangkok is really intense. You have people, houses, cars and motorbikes everywhere.

We stayed in Sathorn in central Bangkok, away from the hords of backpackers in Banglamphu. The hotel we stayed in was still under construction and unfortunately the rooftop pool had proven not to be waterproof, so no lazy afternoons in the sun for us.

My birthday was spent sightseeing the main attractions like the Grand Palace, Wat Pho, Wat Arun and a boat trip on Chao Praya river.

View from the river

Wat Arun

Wats inside of the Grand Palace

The Grand Palace

Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho

Wat Pho temple grounds

View from Wat Arun

Some stairs to climb!

We had planned to have birthday drinks in the Moon Bar in Vertigo. But their dress code is quite strict (long trousers and closed shoes for men) and Matthias did not feel that trekking trousers were the proper kind, we had to postpone our visit. That is one of the downsides of living out of a backpack... You really miss your wardrobe at home sometimes (but only sometimes...)

The following day, we met up with Joe, a friend of Matthias who was staying in Bangkok over the weekend as well, and went shopping for "rooftop bar approved" clothing. Luckily our shopping tour did not take long and the afternoon was spent chilling in the Khao San Road and in the Lumpini Park.

Before dinner, the three of us had cocktails up in the Bangkok sky at the Moon Bar, located on the 61st floor of the luxury hotel Banyan Tree. The view is truly breathtaking, the sea of lights that is Bangkok at night spreads out at your feet and the city just seem to go on forever!
Even if the prices are ridiculous, at least 350 Baht for a cocktail (which is a lot in Thailand), this place is so worth a visit.

The next day was the start of the Chinese New Year celebrations, but we were set to leave for Koh Samet so we didn't really see much of the celebrations. But a group of men performing the Lion Dance stopped at the entrance of our hotel, so I did get a couple of pictures of it.

The Lion Dance