Last month, I went on a work trip to Thailand (and Brazil, and Australia, but those are different posts), where I had the chance to experience a bit of Bangkok for my first time. I meandered through morning and night markets and Hindu temples, ate loads of papaya salad and coconut desserts, explored a red light district, and sat (and sat, and sat) in hours upon hours of traffic alongside rickshaws, motorcycles, pedestrians, and buses.
Famous as a party destination and red light district, Patpong night market is a wonder to behold, and definitely not PG-13. There are neon lights, loud music, tourists galore, and strip clubs and pole dancing ladies everywhere. This is not exactly my kind of nightlife, so we just found a bar with outdoor seating and people watched. Its like the Vegas of Thailand. There’s also stalls selling all sorts of tourist stuff.
Chao Phraya River Cruise
One of our nights out we took a Manohra Dinner Cruise along the Chao Phraya River. Our boat departed from the Anantara Riverside hotel. The hotel is beautiful, and the cruise was a really fun way to see the city at night, including Wat Arun, the Temple of Dawn, the Grand Palace, the Asiatique ferris wheel, and various other temples. It was also the only time I saw a lot of the sights, since I didn’t have any other time away from meetings.
Bangkok is a really incredible city, and my only regret is not seeing more of it. Good news that I’ll be back in March.
thecloudsarelowerhere 