Bangkok Journals

Bangkok, city of gold, temples and sex

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An October 1997 trip to Bangkok by jurgen

Wat Phra Kaeo Photo - Grand Palace, Bangkok, Thailand

Quote: Forget about the bad things you always hear about Bangkok. It's a beautiful city.. worth a visit.

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Bangkok, city of gold, temples and sex

Overview

Quote:

When I told my relatives I was going to visit Bangkok, they all started to make jokes about sex tourism and so on. This is really frustrating, it is a fact that Bangkok (and Pattaya) are major sex destinations. Many frustrated American and European men go there to enjoy themselves with young Thai girls. I hope the world will do something about this abuse of small children and I hope that we will start to appreciate Bangkok for its other beauty. Because after having visited Bangkok for a few days I really doubt whether there is another city in the world with so much religious buildings as this one. On every streetcorner, in every house, everywhere you look you will find a temple small or big. Mo...Read More

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Bang Pa-In Summer Palace

Attraction | "Bang Pa-In Palace"

Quote:

When visiting Ayutthaya you might as well visit the Bang Pa In Palace, a few kilometers south of Ayutthaya. The big palace complex was first constructed in the 17th century. First by King Prasat Thong. Later on after the fall of Ayutthaya it was rebuilt (1872-188) as a modern palace by King Chulalongkorn. Today the palace is occasionally used by the king for official banquets. The complex is built in several European and Asian styles making it a kind of open air museum.

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on October 3, 2000

Bang Pa-In Summer Palace
Highway 32
Bang Pa-In, Thailand 13160
+66 35 261 044, +66

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Ayutthaya Historical Park

Attraction | "Ayutthaya"

Quote:

If you like the Indiana Jones movies, you will feel at home immediately in this massive ruined city. Yes...it could have been the decor for one of the movies. Ayutthaya used to be the capital of Siam between 1350 and 1767. It was a huge city with beautiful temples and it was bigger than London! But in 1767 it was totally destroyed by the Burmese. Thai people still hate the Burmese for this. All the gold that decorated it was stolen an can now be seen in Rangoon. What was left of Ayutthaya was an enormous ruin. Still, some temples have been renovated; some even with Burmese money. The ruins are very impressive and with some imagination give you a good impression of how the city looked like in the past...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on October 3, 2000

Ayutthaya Historical Park
86 Kilometers North Of Bangkok
Ayutthaya, Thailand 13000
+66 35 246 076-7

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Grand Palace

Attraction

Quote:

The name Grand Palace is indeed a very good name for this palace. Built in Central Bangkok, it is a huge complex of temples, palaces and other buildings. Here you will find Thailand's most important temples like the Wat Phra Kaeo (temple of the Emerald Buddha), a temple with beautiful mosaics on its walls. Inside this temple is the emerald buddha, created out of a single piece of jade. Very impressive are also the golden cedi's which can be seen from outside the walls of this complex. You have to pay a small fee to enter the complex and short pants or uncovered shoulders are not welcomed inside. But it is well worth the trouble. There is so much beauty inside this complex...it's shocking!

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on October 3, 2000

Grand Palace
Na Phra Lan Road Ko Rattanakosin District
Bangkok, Thailand 10500
+66 (2) 694 1222

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Bridge over River Kwai

Attraction | "Bridge over the River Kwai"

Quote:

About 100km west of Bangkok is Kanchanaburi. A high quality road leads to this town with its famous bridge. It's a bit weird when you realize how easy it is for us to reach this place, when in the WWII 1000s of prisoners of war died here of malaria and starvation building this bridge. We all know from the movie. The original bridge is no longer there, it was destroyed in the war. Still, looking at the new bridge is very impressive. To get a better impression of the hard conditions the POW's had to work in, I advise a boat trip along the railroad line. This will not only show you the bridge but also the other wooden structures along the hills in the forest. In the village of Kanchanaburi is also a wel...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on October 3, 2000

Bridge over River Kwai
Kanchanaburi
Bangkok, Thailand

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Rose Garden

Attraction

Quote:

The Rose Garden is not a garden with roses as the name would like to suggest but a large open-air museum about one hour from Bangkok (on the road to Nakhon Pathom). Inside you can take elephant rides or have a look at the elephant show. Join the crowds in the Thai boxing arena or cultural dances. Or just have a great meal in one of the restaurants. The Rose Garden is a good place to see a lot of Thai culture if you have little time in Thailand.

Member Rating 3 out of 5 on October 16, 2000

Rose Garden
Km 32 Phetkasem Road
Sampran, Thailand 73110
+66 34 322544-7; 322