Golden Sitting Buddha and other Bangkok, Thailand Things to Do Tips

This amazing solid gold 5.5 ton Buddha was covered by a thick layer of mud until the mud cracked to reveal to sheen of gold when it was moved one day. Kind of symbolic that beneath all the external mud, there is an internal gold waiting to be discovered.

The temple is located near busy Bangkok Chinatown next to a school compound.

Amused to see that you can drop donation for good luck in various boxes labelled those who are born on Mondays, Tuesdays, etc and for those who do not know which days of the week they are born.

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Phone: 623 1226
Address: Thanon Yaowarat
Directions: Near Hualamphong Station

This another beautiful Buddhist temple made with a lot of marble. As in any typical temple, you need to remove your shoes. So you can certainly feel the marble under your feet, a little cold, a little enlightening.

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Address: Si Ayutthaya Road, Bangkok
Directions: Near Chitralada Palace

In this large complex, there are many temples, wats and beautiful tiled decor and statues to take picture of. Local Thais can be seen praying with food offerings and flowers, lotuses.

The most celebrated Buddha statue is the Emerald Buddha. There is a queue of tourists to enter the hall to sit for awhile and admire this small but exquisite Buddha with all the surrounding royal paraphenelia.

Better to respectfully dress when visiting this and all Thai temples. Sleeveless, eye catching shorts, exposed belly buttons, etc are best saved for other occasions.

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Phone: 02-224-1833
Address: Maharaj Pier, Chao Phraya, Bangkok
Website: http://www.discoverthailand.com/

Taking a taxi, you can get a ride down this main road to see the imposing Thai Parliament. This is the road and scene where major rallies and demonstrations have taken place in the Thai history.

Imagine the tanks rolling down this road at the start of the recent military coup. On other days, the road to the Parliament could be decorated for a royal anniversary or a major sporting event or celebration. Usually just jammed with traffic trying to get to one place to another on weekdays.

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Wat Pho is one of the must-see Buddhist temple in Bangkok. It is one of the largest and oldest. The reclining Buddha is about 46 meters in length and 15 meters in height.

Notice on the soles of the Buddha are 108 auspicious signs engraved with in-laid mother of pearl.

As in all Buddhist temples, remember to take off your shoes.

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Phone: 02-221-991
Address: Tha Tien Pier, Chao Phraya River, Bangkok
Directions: The entrance to Wat Pho is on Chetuphon road. Entrance is 20B. It's open every day, opening hours are from 08.00am to 5.00pm, with a break from 12.00pm to 1.00pm.
Website: http://www.discoverthailand.com/

Highly recommended to recharge yourself.

From bustling and hectic Silom Road, you can use pedestrian underbridge to Lumphini Park.

A green lung. It has lakes and you can stroll or jog around the parks. There are small sports facilities like weigh lifting, swimming, basketball courts throughout the park.

Many locals also used this park to cut across from one place to another to catch the sky train, metro or the local buses.

It has been a gathering place of not too recent political dissent. On quieter days, it is a great place as a green park. It is open late but at night, better stay to the city lights.

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Address: Alongside Ratchadamri Road / Rama IV Road
Directions: A short walk from either Ratchadamri or Sala Daeng skytrain stations.

This has become the must-visit place to shop, shop and shop in Bangkok.

It is outside of downtown Bangkok and unfortunately open only on weekends. Better to go in the morning when it is not so hot and before the afternoon downpours.

Located next to a park and a bus station that has buses plying to the Cambodian border, Chatuchak has many small stalls that sell anything you want - wood handicraft, books, pets, flowers, old coins. There is a map to guide you to which section you want to go based on the products sold.

It is easy to reach by bus and faster by BTS sky train stopping at Mo Chit or Metro at Chatuchak Station. Happy shopping.

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Address: Mo Chit Station, Bangkok
Directions: Simply take the Skytrain to the end terminal called Morchit which is exactly where the market is located.
Website: http://www.discoverthailand.com

Remember the song, "I beg your pardon, I never promise your a rose garden..."

Well, in Bangkok, the classic tourist destination for decades has been the Rose Garden just outside Bangkok. You can stay there or go there as part of a day tour including the Floating Market, etc.

It is a Thai cultural village with demonstrations of silk from silk worms, foot massage by elephants on tourists (Elephant massaging your tummy with their foot, almost), Thai boxing, cock fighting, finger nail dance. What else can you ask for.

On Loy Krathong festival, you can place a candle float down the river in the Rose Garden.

Nice place to go when in Bangkok.

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Located at Silom Road (Thanon Silom), opposite of Narai Hotel is the famous Sri Mariamman temple. It shows the religious tolerance in the Thai society.

There are many flower stalls outside the temple. And many tourists freely enter the temple compound to take a closer look at ceremonies or taking photographs of the statues of Hindu Gods and Goddesses.

There is a sizeable number of Indian tailors and Indian shops in the neighborhood.

It is just unexpected sight after seeing so many Buddhist temples in Bangkok that suddenly a Hindu temple appears from nowhere. As usual, show proper respect as there always devotees offering their prayers while your cameras click away.

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Address: Thanon Silom
Directions: Chong Nonsi Skytrain station

Almost all first timers to Bangkok wishes to visit the Floating market.

It is best arranged through a tour agent. Most of the floating markets are about 2 hours or so from Bangkok downtown as most of Bangkok old canals have been filled up and replaced by roads and highways.

Some considered this floating markets as tourist traps as their continued presence is due to tourist demand of seeing local Thais wearing conical hats selling their vegetables, fruits and even preparing dishes in their boats along the river canals. It is a colorful scene like what one would have seen in one of the James Bond movie's boat chase through a Thai floating market.

Still it is a great trip to get out of the city and travel by boat to this "floating market disneyland" and a taste of old Thai market and river village life.

(Today, one can still see the authentic floating market in the Mekong delta in Vietnam).

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Directions: About 2 hours by car outside Bangkok city center