Good Bye Bangkok.. Hello Chiang Mai...

The ancient wall surrounding Old Town Chiang Mai.

We left for Chiang Mai at 10.30am...

or at least that was the plan but the taxi didnt turn up until 10.45am

... and then we got trapped around the University because the bloody graduation was still going on (apparently the King makes an appearance) - not good when your flight gate closes at 12pm and it takes about an hour(ish) to the airport.

Chiang Mai

Having arrived and checked in and nicely wheeled my trolley over some poor backpackers foot.. I think we managed the ultimate walk around Old Town Chiang Mai and Downtown Chiang Mai,

The pace is much calmer than Bangkok and it feels more like a holiday resort.. the prices are also double Bangkok too..

Pira Singh (main temple).

Stack of cow pats with a mini Buddah on.

(Not really.. apparently it's the grave of the guy who built Chiang Mai).

• Thapae Gate
• Ratchadamnoen Road (Street Market)
• 3 Kings Monument
• Chiang Mai Art Museum
• Pira Singh (main huge temple)
• Silver Temple (Srisuohan)
• Wua Lai Road Saturday Street Market

..finally arriving 4 hours later (with a very sore arse and legs from all the walking) at Changklan Road - otherwise known as the Night Bazzar.

Changklan Road (Night Bazzar)

• Red coconut lemon grass curry at 'Lemongrass'
• Far too many temples to mention...

..I think I'm about templed out.. where's the bar?

The little white pig dog (part 2)...

There really was a little pig dog .. see...

The little white pig dog

Floating Markets.

Ok so it was an early start.. way too early by my standards (more than one 6 o'clock in the day?).. and after 1 and a half hour drive from Bangkok, we arrived in Damnoensaduak.

Damnoensaduak

• Floating Markets

..great little boat ride down the river and into the markets where you can buy every kind of taky souvenire you can imagine.. along with some dodgy food - the coconut drinks are nice though, they chop the tops off and hand you a straw.

...then another 1 hour drive until we reached..

Bridge over the river Kwai.

Kanchanaburi

• Bridge over the river Kwai
• Kanchanaburi Allied War Museum
• Kanchanaburi Cemetary

Famous for the film 'The Bridge Over the River Kwai'. You can walk over the bridge and step out on to podiums over the river - good job too because trains still use the tracks!, there's also the Kanchanaburi Allied War Museum and the cemetary. Thousands of prisoners of war from Britain, France etc., died building the bridge under terrible conditions - hard to imagine when the place looks so beautiful.

...2 hrs later and we were back in Bangkok...

Dusit Zoo & Park (The photo doesn't really do it justice).

Ratchadamnoen

• Anatasamakhom Throne Hall
• Dusit Zoo & Park

Little did we know it was graduation day for the University and the park was heaving with people dressed in cap and gown, a lot more colourful than the UK version, the park is also home to the worlds only male Albino Barking Deer (or as I like to call it, the little white pig dog).

...tuk tuk to Khaosan Rd..

Khaosan

• Back to Khaosan Road for more food (Villa Cha Cha) - well do you blame us when it only cost 1.50p for beer and a full Thai meal!!
• While we were at it, we went for another foot massage and decided since it was only 3.00p to have our backs done too :-)

Be careful what you do in the back of a tuk tuk!

Tour of Bangkok City

I won't bore you with the full details, but let's just say - I think we covered it!


Ampitheatre


Khosan
(Around the corner from our hotel)

• Phrasumain Fortress & Ampitheatre, Santichaiprakarn Park & Rama VIII Bridge
• Taxi boat to Thawang Rd

Tuk tuk.



Steps (lots of) leading to the Golden Mount.



Temples inside the Grand Palace.

Rattanakosin

• Wat Po (a temple)
• Tuk tuk ride around the city (including the Golden Mount & Wat Indrawihan "lucky Buddah"*) not for the faint hearted, and you're likely to get ripped off - but not the Pretl's - we got a tour and said good bye to an angry tuk tuk driver who wanted to show us his jewellery and tailor shop.. (only cost 40p!).
• Grand Palace & Emerald Buddah (Wat Phra Kaew) and caught the changing of the guards (bit camp if you ask me).
• Sil Pa Korn University
• Military Buildings (Sanam Luang Royal Grounds)
• Taxi boat from Na PhraLan Rd to Ratchawong Rd)

China town.


Chinatown (Yaowarat)

• Ratchawong Road, Sampenf Lane (which is the heart of China town - stinks like wet dogs and they probably sell the meat from them too!!) narrow alley big enough for just 2 people which used to be the old opium dens, Charoen Krunf Road & Yaowarat Rd.
• Club 25 cocktails on the 25th floor of the Grand Chinese Princess hotel - revolving restaurant and lounge which overlooks the whole of Bangkok City
• Taxi boat to Centralo Pier & Somdet Phra Chao Taksin Bridge
• Sky train to Siam (passing Lumphini Park & Royal Bangkok Sports Club)
  

Siam Centre.


Bangkok Arts & Cultural Centre.

Jim Thompson's House.



Crazy talking birds.

Samyan

• Siam Centre.. ultra modern shopping centre full of every high end retailer you can think of - Gucci, Prada, D&G, Jimmy Choo (managed to hide that one from Bev) etc., you wont find H&M in here!) Felt like we'd stepped in to Tokyo!
• Soi 2 - funky streets off the Siam Centre - we even stopped for a vanilla milkshake at Hard Rock Bangkok!
• Bangkok Arts & Cultural Centre
  Jim Thompsons House (we went down the wrong street and found some talking birds outside the Samyan Kitchen!! .. even managed to get them to say hello before we left!!..) (Yes we tried fuck.. but they just didnt get it.. lol!!)
• Skytrain and water taxi back to hotel

View from the river taxi.

*By the way there's no such thing as a lucky Buddah!

You may notice a theme forming here.. our advice for Bangkok is forget taxis, unless you really need them and jump up and down the river on the riverboat taxis (very very cheap) amd it links to the sky train - covering pretty much the whole of Bangkok (think london underground on water).

The Nicest Thai Food in the World...

Khaosan Road.

So after departing a dreary Manchester airport and a short stop over in Abu Dhabi, we finally made it to Bangkok...

Aside from the heat hitting you like a ton of bricks (and the hairy taxi ride into the city), the place stinks like rotting eggs. However the lovely Thai food on Kraisri road (the next road along from the famous Khaosan Road - backpackers road) made up for it!!

• The nicest food on Kraisri Road (Pad Thai & Chicken fried rice to be exact)..
• Khaosan Road
• Foot massage on Jakra Pong Road (1.50p for half an hour!! - bargain, and a great just before bed, and after a few singha's - beer :-) )

Oh.. and elephants walking around the streets - feed them peanuts and they will cross their legs and take a bow!


Elephants in the street.

City of Angels

Bangkok has the longest place name in the world.

Krungthepmahanakhonbowonrattananakosinmahintaraayutthayamahadilkpopnopparatratchathaniburiromudomratchaniwetmahasathanamonpimanavatansathirsakkathatityavsnukamprasit.

Or in English..

Great city of angels, city of immortals, magnificent jewelled city of the God Indra, seat of the King of Ayutthaya, city of gleaming temples, city of the kings most excellent palace and dominions, home of Vishnu and all the Gods.

known locally as 'The City of Angels'.