Racing through Bangkok… Taxi free.

Our second Day in Bangkok was my only full day, Katy having been before. So, we decided to tick off most of the Bangkok highlights in one high speed tour.

In the morning we headed out on a tour with a local guide and a few others from our group. Fortunately, given the previous evening’s adventures, our tour leader, Wen Pen (she told us pronunciation not spelling, so I could be way off on that) took us around by train and boat, not taxi.

Our little tour took us to see the Grand Palace and Wat Pho, which houses the Reclining Budha. Surprisingly, the Reclining Budha is only the third largest in Thailand, but it is the “most beautiful”.

Despite the third place ranking, it is pretty impressive at 15 meters high and 45 long.

Katy at Wat Pho.

The Grand Palace was also nice, but would have been better without the thousands of people. If I’m being picky, a few degrees cooler would have been nice. In the Grand Palace we had to wear shoes and cover our legs to the ankles, so we were way over dressed for the weather. There is a lot to see at the Grand Palace, but one thing that struck me was a building that blended European (French) and Thai architecture.

Grand Palace architecture.

After lunch at a local restaurant that Wen Pen recommended, most people went back to the hotel to rest. As we were leaving Bangkok early the next morning, we were off to the races instead. In a couple of hours we visited the Golden Mount, less golden and moutainous than I expected; the Giant Swing which doesn’t have a swing connected; Democracy Monument, twice; and a return to Khao San Road. Khao San Road is backpacker central which makes for some cheap shopping and good people watching.

Khoa San Road

After all that we made it back to the hotel just in time to have a quick shower before joining the rest of the Gap Adventures travellers for a final dinner together. For dinner we took a cruise down the Chao Phraya River. While it was fine, it’s not what I would pick for a final dinner. It’s a bit cheesy and the music and entertainment made it difficult to speak to most of our group. Fortunately, after dinner we all reconvened in the lobby for a drink to say our goodbyes.

It’s been another great trip and, as we’ve come to expect, those travelling with us were half the fun. It was another diverse, but relaxed group that was up for different experiences and easy to travel with. It’s a safe bet that we will continue to be regular Gap Adventures travelers in the future.

Our merry band. From left to right. Back row: Katy, me, Eddie, Russell. Front row: Mary, Trisha, Marjorie, Maggi, and Shanta.

The end of the tour means were off to the beach in Ao Nang for some sun and relaxation.