A day on the river

I had a lovely day cruising on the ferries that ply the Chao Phraya river. The ferries run a long way and by combining them you get an almost three hour cruise for under two dollars. And while it isn't the Kerala back waters or the inland passage I do find all the life on and near the river fascinating.

The ferry at full speed.

A Cross river boat ready to depart.

Long tail boat passes Wat Arun.

Passengers packed in on one of the busier sections.

A stroll through Bangkok

I decided to go and see the royal barges museum a place where the boats for processions by and for the Thai royal family are kept. To get there I had to take a ferry across the Chao Praya river and then walk it from there. It was a nice walk through an interesting set of alleys and back roads and when I came to the museum it was closed! So I continued my walk and eventually ended back up at my hotel where I bought a newspaper with a lovely picture of one of the barges on the front page.
It turns out the reason they are not on view is that they are being used to train the crew that has to take them out for a procession next month.

Back in Bangkok

After three months traveling the highways and byways of South East Asia I got back to Bangkok. It seems busier then when I left and it is slightly cooler although that might well be because it rained during the night. I expect to be doing maintenance during the next few days, that is getting my laundry done sorting out my trekking gear and darning my socks, Ok not darning my socks, but you get my drift. Then all being well I will be flying to Kathmandu on Wednesday and getting ready for some serious trekking.

Travel costs in Thailand

I kept notes of all my expenses during the Thailand portion of the trip and averaged out spending 1200 Thai Baht or NZ $48 per day, this includes the cost of my visas for China and Vietnam which were 2600 Baht each.

The average cost for some of the major daily items is below.

Accommodation 495 Baht/Day

Food 305 Baht/Day

Transport 70 Baht/Day

Entry Fees 45 Baht/Day

Accommodation: I stayed mainly in air conditioned rooms some of them quite nice. If you stay in fan cooled rooms or bargain better then I do you can probably do it for half this price.

Food: Three meals a day and plenty of coffee but no alcohol. I normally ate in restaurants but you can save yourself a lot of money by eating in the food markets. Any alcoholic drinks will add significantly to the cost.

Transport: This is largely intercity transport as I tend to walk a great deal when I am at my destination. Preferring an hours walk over a five minute taxi ride.

Entry Fees: Depends really on the speed with which you visit museums, temples don't charge an entry fee but might ask for a donation.

Miscellaneous: I spend some money on Internet access, toiletries and a few post cards. The major expense were the two visas which I had arranged via a travel agent. You can get them a lot cheaper by going to the embassy and doing it yourself, but who wants to deal with embassy officials more than he has too?

Still in Chiang Mai

In spite of all my good plans I am still in Chiang Mai. But I promise, really, perhaps, maybe that I will move on tomorrow.
In the meantime the number of photos in my Thailand album keeps increasing and I might even make a start with labeling them. So just have a look in there from time to time and you might see something new popping up.

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The advertisement below was in this mornings Bangkok post, the sex change looks like a bargain to me. And although I could probably do with a tummy tuck I think I'll pass on that one as well.

Another Visa run

The same as for my China Visa, I have handed the friendly lady at the travel agent my passport, a photo and some money, and she promises me that my passport will be back on Saturday with a Vietnamese Visa stamped into it.
As always I remain a little wary of these kind of transactions but last time it worked flawless.

Chiang Mai

After lots of thought, and changing my mind about five times, I finally decided to keep on heading North, rather then go East, as I had initially planned.
So this morning I got on the bus to Chiang Mai and after a pleasant ride got here around half past three in the afternoon.
Not sure yet what I am going to do in the next few days but trying to get a visa for Vietnam and doing some cooking is on the agenda.

Sukothai

I have spent most of yesterday hiking and biking through Sukothai and surroundings. Of the three historical cities that I have visited on this trip this one is definitely the most impressive. The main area is a large and beautiful parkland where the largest and most scenic remains are, with a suspiciously amount of Buddha statues in good repair or more likely of a more recent vintage then the remainder of the city. Then when you hop on your bike there are countless smaller sites half lost in the jungle and where you can play out your Indiana Jones fantasies to your hearts content. And to liven things up I did see indeed a snake while wandering through the jungle. Luckily the snake saw me first and took of at great speed.

Any way below are a few more photos to bore everyone with and to get an idea of what it looks like.

Monsoon

Surprisingly it hasn't rained at all since my arrival in Thailand. Normally like a rain god the monsoon follows me around wherever I go. But this time it has been dry, it might have threatened a few times, but that's where it stayed. That is until an hour ago when, with a loud crashing of cymbals and flashing of lights, the skies opened up and it all poured out.
Funny but things like that make me a happy.

Status update.

Just a quick note. I have moved on from Phitsanulok and am now in Sukothai where I hope to do some more ruin hunting over the next few days.
The traveling goes smoothly and it's still pretty warm.

The Train to Phitsanulok

I spend most of the day on or near the train the ride from Lopburi to Phitsnulok is scheduled for just over four hours but when I got to the station it was already delayed by 45 minutes.

Never mind we got our luggage stowed,

waved goodbye to Lopburi,

and settled down enjoying the scenery.

The trip got longer as we frequently stopped on passing loops waiting for other trains to pass. It is one of those things that once your train gets delayed for more then a few minutes it makes more sense for the railway to keep on delaying the one train and keep the others running on time rather then delay every one else so you can make up time.
I do enjoy train travel there is always plenty to see and new and interesting things to eat.

This lady sells egg noodles and pork slices,

that in spite of the look on the child's face were actually rather nice.

Eventually we arrived in Phitsanulok around two hour behind schedule. I didn't see a single other tourist all day and doubt I'll see any here either.

Monkeys and Monasteries

Lopburi is famous for both it's ancient Monasteries and Palaces as well as the monkeys that roam the city streets. And not just one or two but hundreds of them! They hang of the overhead wires, climb over the roofs and hold up the traffic when they cross the road.

And while they look pretty cute they are also known to bite if they think you have something they want. Steal cameras of unwary tourists and poop on people while sitting on the edge of a buildings roof.
On the Monastery side of the equation Lopburi is older then Ayutthaia and the architecture reflects that although here there is a large Khmer influence as well.

And I see shades of Angkor Wat wherever I go.

Breakfast

Lopburi doesn't get anywhere the number of tourists Ayutthaia does and the ones that do come here tend to be Thai rather the European. S what to do if your request for toast and jam gets blank looks.? Obviously eat what the locals have. I must say the sight of tentacles on my plate did put me off a bit but hey these things happen.

The bus to Lopburi

I got up early had coffee and some breakfast and then got on the bus to my next destination, Lopburi.
The bus was the typical ramshackle affair that plies most of the back-roads of Asia, basically a truck frame with the springs removed and a bus body bolted on top. Not that they don't have nice buses in Thailand its just that they don't use them for what are essential local runs. Utility is more important then comfort with normally a large area in the back with the seats removed so that people can stow whatever produce they take to and from the market with relative ease.
Anyway the trip went smooth and I am now enjoying the comforts of an air-conditioned room at Noom's Guesthouse.

The heat.

It's amazing how while doing nothing more strenuous than listening to your iPod you can still work up a sweat.
Yesterday I walked half the day and sweated out about ten litres of water, or at least it felt like that. The biggest problem really is one that I have suffered before and had forgotten about. The sweat runs from my forehead into my eyes and by midday my vision goes all fuzzy. Nothing much I do seems to help so I try to keep cool and carry on.
In the evening my eyes look as if I bathed them in chilly but in the morning I am as good as new again.

Ayutthaia

Ayutthaia is a city and an island at the confluence of three rivers, I wont bother you with the names, but it did help to make it both an easy defensible position as well as a great location to tax traders moving up and down its waters.
During the 417 years, from the 14th to the 18th century, that the Thai royal court resided here they built a huge number of palaces, temples and mausoleums. Then in 1767 Burmese sacked the city and carried of a great deal of its wealth and the place was effectively abandoned.
Today the ruins remain and make for a hauntingly beautiful landscape.

A Buddha keeps watch over the ruins of Wat Mahathat

The triple Chedi of Prah Sisanpetch

The head of a Buddha statue covered by the roots of a Banyan tree

The modern day temple at Viharn Monkholbopit

It's obligatory big Buddha.

A small Chedi I came across wandering through a field across the river

Tony's place

I am currently staying at Tony's place. A warren of a joint with rooms everywhere and corridors seemingly leading nowhere. It looks like Tony's started out as a family home, and indeed I am staying in a nice room with teak floors and a four poster bed that looks like it was originally the master bedroom, then they bought the neighbors home and connected them together, built an extension, built some small bungalows, then connected them as well. You get the picture without a GPS you're lost in this place! However the downstairs restaurant is easy enough to find, the menu eclectic, the staff pleasant and the coffee good.
I think I'll have another coffee now.

On the move

Today I have started my approach to China in the best possible way. On foot! That is I walked from my hotel to the ferry, went about twenty minutes upriver then changed to the sky-train after three stops changed again this time to the subway which dropped me off at the railway station.
At the railway station they have some English speaking staff and it only took me a minute or so to get a ticket on the third class local to Ayuthaya. The train took two hours stopped at fifteen different stations and was a pleasant ride indeed.

Wandering and wondering.

Wandering through Bangkok inevitably includes the use of boats a lot of the city is still built along canals and the Chao Praya functions as a major thoroughfare. The photo below is Wat Arun as seen from one of the river ferries.

While Bangkok is obviously a Thai city there are still plenty of Chinese, with their own temples.

And their own food.

Durian for dessert anyone?

Just a note; The Birds nest restaurant also serves Shark-fin soup, and birds nests come in white and red varieties with white third grade costing around 200 Baht for a bowl, while Red first grade will go for over a thousand. Shark fin soup is closer 5000 Baht, about $200