Date: Oct 29-Nov 5th, 2022
I had option of working anywhere for a month, earlier the plan was to go Ukraine however, because of the war situation changed the plans to visit Thailand instead. First week plan to work from Bangkok and roam around the city.
First impressions of Bangkok is that its a very clean city. I barely found any dirt on the roads, temples and even the slum areas are clean as you can see in the pictures. Also people are very healthy and not fat at all. This can be explained that the food they consume is high in protein and they dont eat lot of simple carbs. Do not see lot of beggars/homeless people compared to India. No wonder lot of tourists choose this as a destination because of the above reasons. I kind of expected people in the city to smoke a lot however, barely I see any one smoking. Apparently people here more content what they have than achieving lofty goals just to accumulate more wealth and in the process destroy everything. As Bangkok is on the beach side you can see lot of canals which gave me an impression like Amsterdam without the bicycles part.
Indians definitely can learn alot from Thai people on health, hygene, cleanliness, hard working, building trust and living simple lives. Average thai women are better in shape and looking than the Indian counter parts. And the attitude of thai women is far better than Indian women.
Transportation: There are several ways to commute within the city. Buses with AC, non-AC buses, also very clean, are frequently used. Apart from that, city has a metro line, open taxis aka Tuk Tuk, bike taxis and one can use Grab app as well. Tuk Tuks are amazing, they have lot of power and sounded like Ferraris :)
Culture/Religion: Majority of them are buddhists and there is a good mix of Hinduism as well. There are temples with hindu gods like Ganesha, Indra, Vishnu, etc. The temples are quite clean and you can see in the morning people, particularly older ones, visiting to do prayers. Also you can see that King Rama and his heirs ruled for several centuries in Thailand. Majority of the temples are simple and are made of brick and mortar with a layer of various glass on top of the structures. Silk is elaborately used, gold plating is used on the buddhas. Red and golden colours predominantly used in clothing and decorations in the temples. Since the temples/forts are not made of stone or lime it does not provide beautiful art form. If you see one temple you have seen them all, I would suggest visit Grand Palace, Golden Mount, Victory Monument and Authayya What Chattanarayam temple.
Grand Palace
The place is where king lived and has lot of temples inside and around it.
Made a day trip to Ayutthava, it takes at least 1 1/2 hours one way to get there. What Chattanarayam temple is a UNESCO preserved heritage site so better go and see once. Ayuttava name is same as Ayodhya In India and King Rama has ruled this area as well.
Wat Chaiwatthanaram:
Food: Much of food consists of meat in Thailand. Major foods are of fried rice, or fried noodles or noodle soup or satay items with either chicken, sea food or pork. Surprisingly I have not noticed much of beef in Thailand curries. There are lot of food streets where people just gather and eat, you can walk for a minute and eat at several places at once. I thoroughly enjoyed the street food and they are inexpensive.
Fruits: Wherever I go, I just get lot of fruits. Tried smaller bananas, oranges, pineapple, mangostein, asian apple and grapes which all tasted good. They also have mangoes and jackfruit but they are not seasonal fruit so skipped them. If you get a chance definitely try them instead of trying juices or shakes. Price wise they are little bit expensive than in India but who cares.
Markets: Bangkok is known for its markets where you can get almost anything you want and cheap, its so easy to get lost in them. You can get all kinds of stuff in there like clothes, utensils, furniture, etc. I particularly liked some wooden utensils and porcelain items but cannot bring them :(. I visited Chatuchak market and you can see photos it here:
China town: Another market with lots of street food, Jwellery stores and other stores. Also a good place to hang out and see the lights at the night.
Golden Mount temple is another quiet place to visit and have the view of the city
I stayed in Khaoson, should have stayed in some other place as there are lot of tourists and could not interact with lot of locals here. I should make a point from now onwards not stay where the tourists are there but somehow keep forgetting about this. The streets are full of Halloween party goers and you can see lot of restaurants on both sides of the street.
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