"City of Culture & Arts, Food, Pampering,... " a Bangkok Travel Page by rebeccadv

Lots to do.
* Don't miss the weekend market so time your trip so that you are in Bangkok on a Saturday or Sunday.

* Grand Palace (photo above, and more photos in the Bangkok Pics travelogue) is a must, to get a sampling of different Thai architecture and a bit of History.

* Massages are always wonderful (from the inexpensive ones off the street to the 5* ones at the Oriental and the likes--that are still much cheaper than in the US and most of Europe

* Great food!!! Wonderful fresh fruit!!!(though Philippine mangoes are better than theirs)

* For a day trip, if you have not been to Angkor, then go on the tour to Ayutthaya and take the bus there with river cruise back. Shangri-La Hotel currently runs the best one. See more pictures in my Ayutthaya travelogue...

Traffic and air pollution are worse in Bangkok than in Manila but the traffic did not put a damper on any of my excursions to temples and shopping, plus the streets of Bangkok are cleaner too. Their subway system—BTS (pronounced B-T-Et)—is easy to use, has convenient stops (most sites were a short walk or short taxi ride from a station), is very clean, and inexpensive. A 3 day tourist pass for for less than US$10 will get you 3 nights and 4 days of unlimited trips on the BTS, and comes with a useful guide book that tells you how to get to the sites using the subway and the riverway. For the sites accessible by the river taxi, take the BTS to the station at Chao Phraya (the “King of Rivers”) where river taxis take you to stops along the river, where sites are a short walk from there.

Also must do Wat Arun, a Khmer style temple it is something different from the glitzy golden ones. The prangs (towers) and walls are decorated with bits of porcelain. Very charming and looks more impresive close up. Nice at dawn (Arun comes from Aruna--the Indian God of Dawn) and dusk.

Another must (pics didn't fit on this page) is the Vimanmek Mansion--have a look on my Bangkok Pics travelogue.