living like kings
Coming straight from Cambodia, we got to Bangkok and scrambled to the exit to find us a cab. Jasper, my travel buddy from the Philippines, booked one via Grab and after a scuffle or two of finding the right meeting place, we were off to Prince Palace Hotel, our 5-star hotel that we got for 20 USD a night!
It was such a lucky deal to find a 5-star hotel that was dirt cheap. Sure, it was quite old but the facilities and the room we were staying in were definitely of a higher caliber and it seems like we have been upgraded a lot from our capsule pods in Singapore. We had a nice city view from the top floor with very comfortable beds and a bathtub to boot! The swimming pool was way bigger than the one we had in Cambodia and it also gave us a nice view of Bangkok.
We were a bit pressed for time though since we already arrived in the afternoon so we were in and out of the hotel quite quickly and started to our journey to visit the best temples in Bangkok, our first stop: Wat Saket.
temple-hopping in bangkok
The walk to Wat Saket was not too long but not too short either. It was a good time to absorb much of the city’s atmosphere. Definitely very different from the provincial Siem Reap. We walked along the river, spotting an iguana crawling and going into someone’s home. Maybe not so different from Siem Reap after all?
Wat Saket turned out to be that one temple high above the hill that we had to climb. I had initially wanted to back out but Jasper was the one who convinced me to go this time around which was pretty ironic considering he was half-dead after that hike to Phnom Bakheng, a temple perched on top of a mountain in Angkor Park.
There were a lot of stairs but it was worth it as the Buddhist temples in Thailand were really intricate and made with so much reverence. It was our first time seeing Thai culture and it seemed like they spared no expense at making them as grand as possible. Wat Saket itself was known as the Golden Mount. The way down was much easier and we were soon off to the next temple Wat Ratchanatdaram.
This temple’s unique trait was its symmetrical center. It was all white and gold which was a prevalent color in the temples, having arched gates and golden roofs extending in all four directions forming a square.
We also stopped by Wat Thepthidaram and Wat Suthat. The former being the first time we saw these unique thin white stupa and the latter having the famous red torii gate-like swing. We also saw Wat Ratchabophit, it had a giant golden stupa surrounded by a dome with a blue roof. All of these temples were very huge in size and area but our last stop, Wat Pho, makes them all pale in comparison.
the temple of the reclining buddha
Wat Pho was one of the few temples aside from Wat Saket that required an entrance fee. The temple grounds were a mix of royalty and spirituality. It was one of the most lavished temples I have seen so far. There was a lot to see and we were quickly overwhelmed on where to go first so we started to just walk around aimlessly.
Being one of the most popular temples in Thailand, it was pretty crazy that it was empty. We saw a lot of these tiny pyramid like structures with antennas pointing upwards, along with stupas and temples housing different idols. There were a lot of art and sculptures scattered all around the temple.
The main sight here was the giant reclining Buddha. I had seen one before in Myanmar and that one was much bigger but this Buddha also didn’t disappoint as it was enshrined in a very large temple. It’s walls had art depicting the heavens and there in lied the Buddha.
The body extended all the way down the hall, the Buddha’s feet also had inscriptures on them, similar to Yangon’s reclining Buddha as well.
We stopped by at the final temple inside the Wat Pho complex. It was housing a giant golden meditating Buddha. We had to take our shoes off before going in the temple. Inside the temple, the monks sat on an elevated platform as they chanted while we, the lay people, sat on the carpet as it’s quite customary in Theravada Buddhism. I took the time to meditate here, letting myself drown in the chorus of chants.
When we decided that it was time to go back, the whole complex was completely empty. Seemed like everyone had already went home so we found ourselves just walking in the silence on the way out.
sunset at the temple of dawn
My final itinerary of the day was to have dinner somewhere near the river to watch the sunset with a view of Wat Arun.
We were supposed to visit both Wat Arun and Wat Pho but there wasn’t enough time so I decided to just go there again the next day.
We were having troubles finding a place to eat so we instead went to ViVi the Coffeeplace. I remember reading about this cafe and that it had pretty nice views of Wat Arun. I ordered a fruit shake while we just chilled and watched as the sunset behind the clouds.
Unfortunately, no sunset again today but it was still pretty nice and to think we were in Cambodia just a while ago. It was now time for dinner so we started to look around for food and found a restaurant not too far from the cafe that had a rooftop.
I ordered my favorite Thai food, green curry. I was quite excited to taste an authentic one. The overall ambience was perfect, a nice aerial view of the river and Wat Arun, the live music, the refreshing breeze and the onset of dusk made for one of the best meals one could wish for.
Albeit the price was a bit expensive, I would say it was worth it for one night. The green curry was a bit more spicy than the ones I’m used to having in Japan but it had that classic taste that I really love.
Satisfied with a fulfilling day, Jasper booked us a Grab to go back to the hotel. Upon arrival, we were off to the pool which was very cold under the night sky but that Bangkok skyline made me feel like a rich guy on vacation. I was just genuinely extremely happy and internalizing it all as I floated on the water. After swimming, I made good use of our bath tub and took a hot bath before plopping on the super dope mattress.
wat arun
Waking up after such a rejuvenating night at a high-class hotel gave me the much needed rest I needed to take on a brand new day. We called a Grab to Wat Arun since we had missed it yesterday and the ride was pretty smooth.
We had to take a ferry to the other side of the river to reach it. I saw some posters and statue of the Ganesha, the elephant-headed god, on the way too.
Wat Arun is one of the most iconic symbols of Bangkok and its sheer size and intricate design proves that it deserves that title. The main and central temple towered above us in the form of a pyramid like stupa. The whole temple was predominantly white but upon closer inspection, each tile, each corner and each layer of the entire area had a wide array of designs and imprints. It was still so early in the morning and we were once again lucky enough to have the whole temple all to ourselves, not even the monks were around yet.
the royal grand prix
We took the ferry back to the other side of the river to make our way to the Royal Grand Palace and the supposed Emerald Buddha in Wat Phra Kaew. A short walk turned into a long detour as they changed the entrance and we had to go on through a lot of twists and turns, even doubting if we were heading in the right direction a couple of times.
We finally got to the entrance and we were able to go in to take a peek but only a peek since the entrance fees were too expensive for us at 500 THB (15 USD). I ended up just making use of the royal toilets and we used their wi-fi to book a cab all the way to Wat Ben, the marble temple.
I chose to skip the other temples as we had already had enough temples for the past 2 days and we still wanted to go to the Maeklong Railway and the Amphawan Floating Markets.
Booking a cab has always been no problem, but getting to the meeting place always seemed to work against us. We had trouble finding the exit of the palace and we were under a time pressure as our cab could leave us if we made him wait for too long.
We were going around in circles and being told by the guards to go from one place to the next and the language barrier was’t helping at all. We somehow found our way out to the meeting place but the taxi wasn’t there anymore. Fearing the worse and resigning to our fate, I sat down and pondered what the possible course of actions were next. Jasper was very bummed to have missed the ride as it was already paid with his card and we were stuck for a while contemplating if we should just take another cab. A pink cab at the distance was grabbing our attention every once in a while and Jasper was thinking that it could possibly be the cab that we booked and went over to check.
Turns out it really was the cab and the driver had patiently waited for us all this time, talk about lucky!
Wat Ben was the final stop in Bangkok. It was known as the Marble Temple and the outside gardens and bridges made for nice photos. The inside provided a lot of opportunities for symmetrical shots as well. After doing about two rounds around the temple, it was time to go to the Maeklong Railway Market.
journey to the west
Unfortunately, we didn’t have any access to the internet so we set off on a journey to find a cafe. It was Sunday and it seemed like most of the restaurants were closed so we had to venture further and further under the searing heat. This took such a long time and without much to go on, we were like lost sheep.
We were just using my offline Google Maps to test out each potential location and after some trial and error we finally found a cafe with wi-fi. We ordered some brunch and drinks and booked a cab straight to Maeklong as we probably already missed the minivan and had no idea what today’s schedule was anymore.
Plus we were so far from the minivan terminal and too pooped to try and find it. The trip to Maeklong was pretty long and it was a good time to wind down and just let the scenery of the country side unfold.
Arriving at the Maeklong Railway Market, we were greeted with a strong heat wave. This place was way hotter than the city. The markets were quite busy despite the sun baring down on everyone. It seems like we had already missed the famous train crossing. Maeklong is known as one of the most dangerous markets in the world since a train runs right in the middle of it. The markets were built on and around the train tracks and the vendors would supposedly scramble to remove their stuff as the train comes at specific times.
Since it was quite hot and it doesn’t seem like the train would be coming back anytime soon, we opted to go to Amphawa to see the floating markets next. We asked around to find the Songthaew, a public transportation in the form of a jeep. We had to wait a long time until ours was full before our driver decided to go on.
ampahawa floating market
Our songthaew went on for a while but I honestly didn’t know when to get off, I kept my eye on the maps and when we did pass the supposed market, I prompted the driver to stop but the old lady, who was one of first passengers waiting with us, told me that this wasn’t the floating markets yet. I guess being foreigners gave it away that we were heading there.
Amphawa was much more lively than Maeklong, maybe too much as the crowds were pretty overwhelming and I had no idea where to start or where to go. I knew that we definitely were going to ride the boat to cruise around so when I saw a lone boat at the other side of the river, I took the chance to ask about the rates.
The guy gave us an exorbitant rate at 500 THB (15 USD) to which I was quite tempted to take but Jasper convinced me otherwise and we went back to the other side of the river to a boat that had much more tourists going in.
The price was literally 10 times cheaper than what we were quoted with at 50 THB (1.50 USD) so I was glad we went with this local tour.
The boat tour was actually more than what we bargained for in terms of the length. It took us to so many places around the river but they were honestly nothing special after seeing Bangkok’s main temples.
Some temples had really cool features like a golden crocodile as a temple guardian, while the others were just alright.
On one of the stops, I was able to try some local leaf-wrapped banana that filled me up pretty well.
The only spot I was interested in was Wat Bang Kung, a temple built inside a tree. Whether we were going there or not remained a mystery for me as our guides couldn’t even speak English but it turned out to be the final stop of the day.
After the eventful day, it was time to find a way back to Bangkok. We had to find a way to the mini-van terminals but were left with not much choice between a motorcycle driver and a tuktuk. A tour guide that was helping another group helped us out but his directions didn’t prove to be of much help.
The motorcycle was much more expensive than the tuktuk so in the end we came crawling back to him after turning him down once. He took us to the terminal where we paid a few more bahts for a ride to Bangkok. After a couple of hours, we were dropped in Mo Chi Vit.
blessings in disguise
We were once again in the middle of nowhere with no wi-fi. My idea was once again to try and find a cafe and I saw that there were a couple of them nearby.
We somehow ended up in the middle of a night market instead which was all fine and dandy but turns out most of the cafes were just stalls and had no wi-fi.
Suddenly, out in the corner of my eye, I saw a familiar symbol that seemed to attract my attention. A friggin’ cannabis popshop in the middle of the market.
No way. Up until this time I thought it was illegal in Thailand but I was told that they had recently made it legal. They were selling edibles and I bought their chocolate bars, trying out plenty of their free samples as well. I even saw cannabis shops all the way in Chiang Rai!
Jasper and I wandered around for a long time, him leading the way for the latter half which took us to who knows where. We were supposed to head into the nearby mall when I saw some motorcycles parked outside but they had some sort of ID’s on that made me think they could be public transportation.
Lady Luck was on my side as it turns out they were! Here’s me, saving the day again as I started to feel the effects of the edibles even more.
Next thing I know, I’m sitting on a motorcycle feeling the wind on my face and watching the lights of Bangkok blur around me. It was an amazing night ride. When we got to the hotel, I was so relaxed but still wanted to make the most of the night so we jumped right in the swimming pool again.
With the water completely refreshing my body and mind, we ordered with GrabFood and I once again had green curry for the second day in a row.
