Part I, Bangkok city
We start the year of well with a full month traveling through Thailand.
We planned to visit the following areas in our 28 day stay.
- Bangkok
- Kanchanaburi
- Erawan National Park
- Ayutthaya
- Khao yai national park
- Chang Mai
- Pai
- Suratthani
- Koh Sok
- Khao Lak
- Khao Sumai
- Ao Nang
- Than bok Khorani
- Koh Lantra
- Koh Jum
After the festivities of New Year’s Eve, birthdays and ritual visits to family and Sauna we departed from Schiphol airport in the Netherlands on our way to Thailand with a short transfer at Dubai airport.
We arrived in the early morning in a smog filled Bangkok. We had agreed for a pickup to the hotel ( as a security measure, because this was our first time), but we never found the guy, or he never showed… instead we jump on the airport bus to the hart of the city.
After an hour of inching itself through Bangkok’s morning gridlock we arrived on Khao San road exit. Being a bit groggy of our jet lagged ,sleep deprived journey, we decided to first to go to the hotel, but not before we had a nice fresh shake to come into the vibe of Bangkok’s street life.
The Hotel, New Siam II, lays on the corner of Soi Ram Buttri, a hip chilled street filled with streetcars, bars and restaurants, surrounding the Wat Chana Songkhram Ratchawora Mahawihan Buddhist complex and temples.
On the other side of the hotel lays the Thanon Phra Athit road, a busy road.
Closely there is the Thanon Somdet Phra pin klaus bridge one of the main hobs into the City… these last two are busy roads and noisy day and night.. next to the Hotel is the military training school, where the young man have to exercise at a quarter past five in the morning, chanting there songs to stay in rhythm. Al these things did not help for our nights rest, but hey! It’s Bangkok…
In the afternoon we strolled the streets around our hotel and the lively Khao San road.
The next morning we took the boat to China town, but not before we walked along the monk complex and a cool down swim in the pool of the hotel.
China town was like China, overfull alleys, with a lot of food and plastic merchandise, it is the biggest Chinese community in Thailand.
We nibbled some food from various street stalls, had a coffee in a very funky coffee place and eventually escaped back to the riverfront to return to our more quiet area. On the way back we stopped at the Thonburi dock and walked to the Thonburi station, to get our bearings for next days early train adventure to Kanchanaburi.
Thereafter we returned to our room for a short siesta, before we threw ourself back into Bangkok’s night life..
Next morning, after a very rough sleep, or no sleep at all, we boarded the ferry to Thonburi (7 minutes trip) and had breakfast at a little food court, the coffee was good but pricey ( felt like Europe). Then it was a hop on the Songteaw to the station.