Day II in Bangkok, my sister and I were up and ready to go early. We hired a car to take us to the Dumnoen Saduak floating markets outside of Bangkok. We knew ahead of time that these markets cater to tourists but we also heard that it was a must see. I definitely wanted to check it out since I remember my mother telling me about bartering on the river by boat for goods when she lived there some 34 years ago. I wanted to see it firsthand even if tourism had made its changes to its authenticity. When we arrived we hired a boat to take us to the center of all the action. The market consists of numerous channels that dump into each other. On the way to the center you can see wooden walkways on each side of the river and people’s huts that they live in. The terrain in this area is lush and green. When you enter the center you have shop fronts on each side of the river selling souvenirs while the people in the boats are selling mostly food and drink items. Soon we were surrounded by boats offering numerous things for sale. I started with a fresh coconut to drink. I eventually bought spring rolls, peeled grapefruit, candied bananas, and I even landed myself a beer. Each boat that passed you by offered something different to try. I enjoyed trying everything that looked interesting which was made possible by the small portions. After finishing the markets my sister and I headed back to Bangkok and walked around the city until we were easily persuaded to experience Thai massage. Believe me that it didn’t take much persuasion to get us to agree to have a go at it. I love massages and you can’t beat it with an hour and a half massage costing somewhere between 12-15 dollars. From that point on we were hooked and pretty much had a Thai massage every chance we could. We finished our day by having an early evening to get ready to catch our flight to the north the next morning. Experiencing the floating market earlier that day was a lot of fun and if given the chance I would definitely do it again.   

On the way to the market center

Dumnoen Saduak floating market

Spring Rolls

My sister and I

Trying the local grapefruit

Thai woman selling coconuts and onions

Mangosteen…I wish I could find these in the states

How excited am I to have fried rice again?

You can find more photos from this trip at www.ariagiovanni.com

My sister and I arrived in Bangkok right before midnight. After we cleared immigration, collected our bags, and cleared customs we had a car waiting to take us to the Shangri-La hotel Bangkok. A shower and a bed was just what we needed to get ready to go go go once morning arrived. Our hotel was situated on the Chao Phraya River and in the morning we hopped on a boat going upriver to the Grand Palace. It was surprising to me how many wats you pass along the way not only while traveling on the river but also in general while out and about in the city. Religion is an important part of the Thai people’s lives with Buddhism being the predominate religion in Bangkok. We arrived a few blocks from the palace and took about 3 hours to tour the grounds. Every building is ornately decorated in jewels, gold, and bright colors. Afterwards, we grabbed a tuk tuk and went to visit a few Buddhist temples across town. The fare is low in exchange for stopping at a few “shops” along the way. The drivers of the tuk tuk’s get gas tickets in exchange for bringing tourists to shop whether they buy anything or not. Since we were not pressed for time this was not a problem. After a long hike up to the temple and back it was nice to purchase at the adjacent temple a frozen towel which is a washcloth soaked in water and then frozen. It is your saving grace when you are hot and overheated to cool down with a frozen towel…there is nothing like it. My sister and I then parted from our driver and tried to find a few Mosques that were on the map. Well, after getting lost in the windy roads of town we decided to just visit the one close to our hotel instead. The only good thing about us getting lost was that we happened to come upon a man selling chicken satay from a little cart. I must say it was the best satay I had during my whole trip and my sister would agree. We then headed back up towards our hotel and went for a walk in the local street markets. It was interesting to check out and try some of the local foods, fruits, and sweets. We ended our first day back at our hotel taking a dip in the pool and having a simple dinner on the water. Too tired to do anything else we made it an early evening and got some well needed sleep. 

Waiting in the airport with my sister on the way to Bangkok

House on the Chao Phraya River

Restoration of murals at the Grand Palace

Hanging out at the Grand Palace

The Emerald Buddha

Buddhist monks

In the back of a tuk tuk with my sister

Purple water lily

Buddha figure at Buddhist temple

Outdoor markets

Trying the local fare

Notice the fried chicken head at the bottom left…and no, I did not try it!

View of the Chao Phraya river from my room in Bangkok

My sis and I at dinner

You can find more photos from this trip at www.ariagiovanni.com