Bangkok, Thailand
Of the Asian countries, Thailand is one of the most popular destination for tourists. It boasts many things- white sand beaches, the floating markets, a rich history and it is a great place to go bargain shopping. Our plan was actually to go to Singapore and then take the train to Malaysia but luckily, our Thai friend found a very cheap airline ticket from Singapore to Bangkok (Air Asia). My first time to take the airline, I thought it was rather ok. The plane was big and there were only about 10 passengers and the stewardesses were quite nice. Its a low cost airline but it is really quite ok (really!). After our one day tour around Singapore, we (me and my friends) were just so sick of the CITY scene of singapore-it was just way too artificial, too few people and way too expensive. We had to literally forget that we were thirsty and feeling dehydrated because one bottle (320 ml) of water costs 1.5 SGD to 2 SGD. We were on a very tight budget and I think that singapore is just not the city to go to if you are on a "for students" kind of trip. So much for that...lets move on to Thailand =)
On this trip we stayed in Bangkok, the capital city of the country. Our Thai friend was very kind to let us stay in their place and of course budget the things and brought us around the city. On the first day of our tour, we took a van (rented van) to Ratchaburi and there they have a floating market. The Damnoen Saduak Floating Market is the most popular, most photographed destination in Thailand located at Damnoen Saduak District, Ratchaburi Province, about 105 kms from Bangkok.
Ayuthaya: Elephant ride and the ruins of the old capital
After taking our lunch, we then headed to the province of Ayuthaya. When we arrived, we saw a lot of buses (tour buses) and a lot of people were gathering and to our surprise, they are actually watching a baby elephant dance. There were other elephants on the show- about 4 or 6 and each of them had a trainor riding at its back or sometimes just standing on the side. I would say the elephants were rather cute inspite of their sizes. 
You could also see many tourists taking pictures with the elephants and you can even buy a basket of food (banana, carrots) which you could feed to the elephant and the elephant would take the food with its trunk and put it on its own mouth. What's more interesting is that they also have elephant-back riding. Sitting on the back of this huge mammal felt like I was some kind of royalty..
You could also see many tourists taking pictures with the elephants and you can even buy a basket of food (banana, carrots) which you could feed to the elephant and the elephant would take the food with its trunk and put it on its own mouth. What's more interesting is that they also have elephant-back riding. Sitting on the back of this huge mammal felt like I was some kind of royalty..
Just a few meters from the elephant ride area is the Ayutthaya Historical Park
Located approximately 85 km north of Bangkok, the city of Ayutthaya was the Thai capital from 1350 to 1767. During this period Thai culture flourished, and Ayuthaya became a centre for international commerce. And just at the back of the elephant show site is the Ayutthaya Historical Park. The admission/entrance fee to the site is about 50 baht. Ayutthaya historical park covers the ruins of the old city of Ayutthaya, Thailand, which was founded by King Ramathibodi I in 1350 and was the capital of the country until its destruction by the Burmese army in 1767.
The Grand Palace
On day 2, after a good night's sleep, we went to another very popular tourist destination in Bangkok-the Grand Palace. Good thing that we look like the local residents so we didn't have to pay any entrance fees. Local residents can go in without the need to pay a single cent but foreigners, however, need to pay the fee of about 300 baht. The sign that says local residents are free of charge are written in thai and the admission fee amount is written in english so there is no way a foreigner can sneak in without paying.
The Grand Palace (Thai: พระบรมมหาราชวัง, Phra Borom Maha Ratcha Wang) is a complex of buildings in Bangkok, Thailand. It served as the official residence of the Kings of Thailand from the 18th century onwards. Construction of the Palace began in 1782, during the reign of King Rama I, when he moved the capital across the river from Thonburi to Bangkok. The Palace has been constantly expanded and many additional structures were added over time. The present King of Thailand, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, however, resides at the Chitralada Palace (from Wikipedia).
More photos of Grand Palace on www.flickr.com/photos/caryl_r2003
The palace complex, like the rest of Ratanakosin Island, is laid out following the general outline of Ayutthaya palaces. The Outer Court, near where you enter the complex today, housed the government departments in which the king was directly involved, such as civil administration, including the army, and the treasury. The Temple of the Emerald Buddha takes up one corner of the complex next to the outer court. In the middle is the Central Court, where the residence of the king and the halls for conducting state business were located. You are allowed to look at the fronts of the buildings in the central court, but only two of the throne halls are open to the public, and only on weekdays. Behind the central court was the inner court. This was where the king's royal consorts and daughters lived. The inner court was like a small city entirely populated by women and boys under the age of puberty. Even though no royalty currently reside in the inner court, it is still completely closed off to the public. thailandforvisitors.com/central/bangkok/.../index.html
Chao Phraya River Cruise, BangkokThe palace complex, like the rest of Ratanakosin Island, is laid out following the general outline of Ayutthaya palaces. The Outer Court, near where you enter the complex today, housed the government departments in which the king was directly involved, such as civil administration, including the army, and the treasury. The Temple of the Emerald Buddha takes up one corner of the complex next to the outer court. In the middle is the Central Court, where the residence of the king and the halls for conducting state business were located. You are allowed to look at the fronts of the buildings in the central court, but only two of the throne halls are open to the public, and only on weekdays. Behind the central court was the inner court. This was where the king's royal consorts and daughters lived. The inner court was like a small city entirely populated by women and boys under the age of puberty. Even though no royalty currently reside in the inner court, it is still completely closed off to the public. thailandforvisitors.com/central/bangkok/.../index.html
Another great way to explore Bangkok is by taking the river cruise. Its best to take the cruise at night and eat dinner while enjoying the sites along the Chaopraya river. On this cruise, one can see the great Temple of dawn (Wat Arun), the Grand Palace ( Wat Prakaew) and Rama 8 Bridge. There are many companies that offer the river cruise but for us we took the cheaper one in River Hotel (I have to ask again) and spent about 400-500 baht for the cruise (food). It will start at about 6:30 so you have to be there on time and will be back to the hotel at about 9:00 pm.
SHopping!
Being an Asian myself, I am used to the so-called "bargains" but to me, nothing beats the bargains you can find in Thailand. I particularly emphasize shopping and bargains because usually in a country or city or place very popular for tourist, the prices are high for the souvenir items but this is NOT the case for thailand. The more you buy, the bigger the discount and the good thing is that the prices are the same whether you are a local or a foreigner. You can buy keychains at 100 baht (1 dozen), coin purse at 100 baht (1 dozen), bags for 50 baht (small cloth bags/pouches) and sling bags for 100 or 150 baht (depending on the design) and you can ask for a cheaper price when you buy more than 1 =)...definitely a great buy! You can check out the chatuchak weekend market although we haven't been there, my Thai friends recommend it although they said that it's a little expensive compared to Pratunam. PRATUNAM area is basically the shopping district. Our friend brought us to Platinum Fashion Mall. Check out this website for more on Shopping at Bangkokhttp://www.bangkok.com/pratunam/shopping.html
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