Back to Bangkok
After our adventure in Khao Sok we were back on the overnight train to Bangkok, this time in 1st class (just so we could compare 😉). It was a lot more private than 2nd class and we probably both got a better nights sleep.
1st class is a little cabin with 2 beds and a sink
We arrived at about 10am so after dropping our bags we set out to explore a new area of Bangkok - we had forgotten how hot it was here! First of all was some brunch - just outside our hostel was a nice man with the ubiquitous motorbike kitchen. We got some amazing noodle soup for 40 baht (about 90p). Sadly we scoffed it before we took a photo.
We then wandered to Lumphini park, which is a nice green area in the otherwise very urban Bangkok, and were very surprised when we nearly walked into a massive water monitor - we saw the warning sign after the real thing. We were glad to steer clear as they can apparently be rather vicious. On the way out of the park we got a drink from robotic vending machine which does coffees and soft drinks with full customisation (e.g. % sweetness) and was much more exciting than you would expect. No idea why we don't have any in the UK yet.
We ended up pretty tired and since we were back in the city, we made use of the urban comforts and got a Thai McDonalds delivered to our hotel for tea and watched a film.
The next day we visited Bangkok's huge Chinatown - its has a long history and is a sprawling network of alleys. We started a walking route in a quiet area with a Portuguese/Chinese church and headed towards the busier markets, past the area where car parts are traded. We saw dozens of workshops that are basically jumble sales - something quite a few people we know would have loved!
As we got to the busier market areas we were blown away by the volume of plastic tat you can buy and made sure we had our pockets zipped up. Lauryn's Granma would have loved the assortment and we spotted quite a few old Christmas presents!
After fighting our way through all the markets we walked back down the main road (Yaowarat Rd) which was amazing - just like you would imagine a crazy asian city to be.
One of the most famous sights in Chinatown is the Golden Buddha temple - which at first glance looks similar to many Buddhist temples, except this Buddha is made from solid gold, and worth $250 million in scrap value alone... they still charge an entrance fee.
Assume they don't use brasso?
After an air-conditioned rest in our room we walked to a nearby pier to catch the ferry to Asiatique, a night time dining and market area on the Chao Phraya river. It was a bit more touristy than we expected, but we found a dim sum tea house which was a bit of an upgrade on the street food we have been eating. Using the excuse as a birthday treat for Dan, we tucked into some very fancily presented dim sum with some silver needle tea, a tea infused gin and coconut milk cocktail, and a Chang. We requested the tea to be brought with our food, which seemed to be lost in translation - but a blessing in disguise as they were happy to fill up the teapot so we made sure to definitely get our money's worth (4 refills).
We had a fairly early bus to Cambodia coming up, so for our final day in Bangkok didn't achieve a great deal apart from visiting a huge mall to stock up on a few things like suncream and to stick to the air con. It being Bangkok, the mall had an enormous food court which we made full use of.
Chicken Pad Thai and some duck rice
We got a Grab to the backpacker district we stayed in last time we were in Bangkok, as our coach to Siem Reap was leaving from there in the morning. This time we were staying at the KC Cafe & Guesthouse, where we had eaten a few times last visit, and made friends with the staff. It's been one of our favourite places in Thailand with the best things Thailand has to offer, smily people and amazing food! For our final meal in Thailand for now, we had Tung Tong, green curry, and a papaya salad topped with crispy pork belly. The waiter who friended us on Facebook spoke great English, except for inserting random French or German words into each sentence - much like the Franglais/German all-in-one menu. In any case, better than our Thai!
We had a good rest and in the morning walked just round the corner to meet our coach to Siem Reap.
