Bangkok, Thailand
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The Temple of Dawn, viewed from a Chao Phraya River taxi. Click here for more Bangkok photos
June 1-4, 2009
Bangkok, alas, is not one of my favorite cities. Our trip thus far had come off without a hitch, but at four weeks in we were due for difficulties. And Bangkok brought them in spades. We baked in our airless oven of a hostel room, had endless trouble making our way around the city, I had begun coughing all night due to a bout of bronchitis I somehow picked up but would not be diagnosed until a week later, and to top it all off, I broke my shoe. Basically anything that could go wrong did go wrong, to the point where we eventually gave up in defeat.
Bangkok, alas, is not one of my favorite cities. Our trip thus far had come off without a hitch, but at four weeks in we were due for difficulties. And Bangkok brought them in spades. We baked in our airless oven of a hostel room, had endless trouble making our way around the city, I had begun coughing all night due to a bout of bronchitis I somehow picked up but would not be diagnosed until a week later, and to top it all off, I broke my shoe. Basically anything that could go wrong did go wrong, to the point where we eventually gave up in defeat.
Thai flags fluttering near Khaosan Road
Due to all our troubles I have very few fond memories of Bangkok, but one stands out: riding a river taxi. Known as the "Venice of the East," the older section of Bangkok is criss-crossed by rivers and canals, and the extremely efficient river taxis are an excellent way to navigate the wide Chao Phraya River. The long, low boats are crewed by a pilot forward and a deckhand aft. Loading and unloading passengers has been honed to a fine art: the boat comes charging up to the floating dock, looking like it's going to blow right by, the pilot swings the stern toward the dock and the crew jumps off, secures a line, everyone scampers on and off the high stern, the crew grabs the line and jumps back on and the whole process takes literally 10 seconds. The deckhand communicates everything to the pilot with piercing whistle tweets. The midsection a few steps down from the stern is full of bolted plastic seats and everyone coolly sits in them just like they're on a bus, paying their fares to a ticket lady who makes her rounds after every stop. You have to be careful where you sit, however: some Thai schoolgirls too close to the front of our boat were doused with spray.
We went quite a ways down the river, from Rama VIII Bridge to Oriental Pier, and got great views of the Bangkok waterfront and the Temple of Dawn, perhaps the most distinctive and recognizable landmark in the city. Much more exciting than an ordinary cab ride.
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