Holy moly, this was a crazy two days of trains, boats and buses; visiting temples, a royal palace, markets and canals. We enjoyed an overnight in Bangkok and saw about as much as you could in less than 48 hours. It was fast paced, hot, humid, congested and we wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. This was Bangkok.

Before we describe our day, how about a few facts about Thailand and Bangkok? Thailand is about the size of Washington, Oregon and California combined, and is home to 69 million persons, made up of Chinese, Malay, Mon, Khmer, Burmese, Lao and Indian descent. About 93% are Buddhist, with Islam, Christianity and Hinduism making up the remainder. Often called the “Detroit of Asia” due to the amount of automobile manufacturing, the country’s other primary industries are agriculture, electronics and food processing.

Bangkok has a population of 5.5M, and is the capital of Thailand’s government; a unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy where the King serves as head of state, and the Prime Minister is head of government. It has a bicameral legislature (National Assembly) and is characterized by a strong, often influential, role of the military in its political affairs.

The port for Bangkok is Laem Chabang, so we decided to join a Princess tour for this overnight excursion, knowing that Bangkok was 2 hours away from the port. This decision would prove fortuitous. After our bus ride to the city, our first stop was the Grand Palace compound and the Emerald Buddha Temple. There were no photos allowed in the temple but we’ve provided one below.

The buildings were very impressive, with ornate and detailed design, and until 1925 was the home of the Kings of Siam and their government. Rather than being a single structure, the Grand Palace is made up of numerous buildings, halls, pavilions set around open lawns, gardens and courtyards. Its asymmetry and eclectic styles are due to its organic development, with additions and rebuilding being made by successive reigning kings over 200 years of history. Surrounded by 4 walls, the complex sits on the banks of the Chao Phraya River.

After the tour of the complex, and waiting nearly an hour for another passenger to get checked out by medical personnel, we walked to the river, where we boarded a boat to take us across the Chao Phraya River to a very late lunch at the Supatra River House. It was a nice buffet of traditional Thai food and we gobbled it up.

After lunch, we boarded a traditional Pradit boat for a scenic tour of this very busy river. There were ferries, barges, and sightseeing boats all along, and our small wooden boat zoomed along just a foot above the water. It was exciting and a little terrifying!

Back on land, we reboarded our buses for a short drive past the current Royal Palace and a stop at a world-renowned gem shop. We arrived to our hotel, the 4-star Ramada on the River, by Wyndam, at 5:00pm, and we were greeted by the hotel staff with small pastries and infused waters. This is a lovely hotel, with amazing views of the river, a large pool, spacious rooms and a ridiculously large buffet restaurant. Our meal was delicious, with salads, Thai dishes, pasta, crab, oysters, giant prawns, sushi and sashimi, and desserts. Afterwards, the tour company provided a shuttle to go to the “night market” but we opted instead to sit on the hotel’s expansive patio the river and enjoy the view of a multitude of colorful dinner and party boats traversing the river. There was live entertainment and it was a pleasant finish to the day.

Next day: Bangkok