Bangkok – Ancient, Exotic, Hip

Bangkok is a paradox to most people. However, for frequent visitors who had learned to love the city since the day they were here declare that the city is everything what people say it is, plus some. This hybrid city had woven a strange tapestry of age-old temples sitting side by side with modern boutique hotels and cool galleries.

With such attractions as varied as the world-famous Thai cuisine, pristine vacation places and quaint temples and massive religious structures, Bangkok has no peer. The people are warm and beautiful, if a tad shy and modest to a fault. This is one place where a whole week is not enough to fill your eyes with incredible sites and sample incredible food.

The Grand Palace

All visitors don’t want their visit to be incomplete without seeing the Grand Palace, the city’s most famous landmark with its spectacular architecture. The palace is one showcase that displays the ingenuity, craftsmanship and the creative energy of the Thai people, a good source of their pride.

It used to be the official residence of the revered King of Thailand and his family for over 150 years. The monarch had moved to his new residence and left the palace with the Thai War Ministry and the government’s state departments. But it still is the spiritual heart of the Thai kingdom.

Old & New Cultures

Thailand’s disappearing water culture, the Ban Nam Peung Floating Market is one that you must not miss out. You can take a glimpse of it by way of the plantation cycle tours in Bang Kra Jao, a vast green area opposite Bangkok’s working port.

There are, of course, other attractions that are as varied as they come and can only happen in Bangkok. There are the Asiatique that features restaurants, a Ferris Wheel, a lively night market in historic warehouses, the Calypso Cabaret (a lady boy show), and the Joe Louis Thai Puppet Theater.

Food

If there’s another attraction that lures visitors to Bangkok, it’s the attraction to the world-famous Thai gastronomic adventures. Whereas in other countries, the most craved-for food is only available at some of the most exclusive (and expensive!) hotels and restaurants, Bangkok is right there in front of you: on the street you’re walking on.

In Thailand, the locals value the taste of their food more than the place it’s been prepared in or the people who served them. Like its most basic quality, taste is the only measurement they respect. And it had been so for years and years in the city.

Food places in the city include the popular Yaowarat (Bangkok’s Chinatown), one great place to start sampling some seriously tasty treats from street stalls to small hole-in-the-wall restaurants. The mix of Thai and Chinese dishes is your never-miss guide to a heavenly place for food.

Another place comparable is the street from Saphan Taskin and Bang Rak area where the old cooks can put some world-renowned chefs to shame.

In any event, your visit in Bangkok will always be memorable while chewing something you know little of but tastes like heaven, marveling at the temples and palaces around, and trying to decipher the Thai street names.