Tuesday, September 25, 2007

STROLLING AROUND BANGKOK

RIVER, PALACES, TEMPLES AND HOTELS - FEBRUARY 1997

This post is the last from the February 1997 trip to Bangkok, and shows pictures taken during a long stroll in town.



"CHAO PHRAYA, the River of the Kings, runs for 372 km from north to south through the central plains to Bangkok and the Gulf of Thailand. The first picture shows an embarkation point for the ferry that runs up and down the river"


"HOTEL - From the Sheraton, a nice view of the strange form of what I thought was going to be a hotel. Couldn't confirm..."


"PORTUGAL - The entrance to the Noble House, the Portuguese Embassy in Thailand"


"THE ORIENTAL - Still the best hotel in Bangkok"







"THE VINMANMEK ROYAL MANSION, located on Ratchawithi Road, is the world's largest building made entirely of golden teak. It was removed from Ko Sichang in the Chonburi province, rebuilt in the Dusit Palace in 1900 by order of King Rama V. Most of the building is now used as museums, showing Queen Sirikit's collection of handicrafts created by rural people and art objects including King Bhumibol's photography, portraits, ancient cloth, clocks, and royal carriages. It's a wonderful building and a nice place to visit"


"PARLIAMENT BUILDING"




"WAT BENCHAMABOPHIT - Back to the temple, fourteen years later"




"WAT SAKET (THE GOLDEN MOUNT) - The towering gold chedi of Wat Saket, an artificial hill constructed under King Rama III (1824-51), was once the highest point in Bangkok. The temple complex at the bottom of the hill dates back to the Ayutthaya era"


"VIEW - There is a nice view from the top of the Golden Mount"




"HYATT AND WTC - At one of the busiest corners of Bangkok, where one can find the Hyatt Hotel and the World Trade Centre Bangkok, you may also find a small and busy shrine..."


"MERIDIEN HOTEL - I started this series of Bangkok posts with pictures from a nice Hotel that was demolished and saw it's gardens occupied by a shopping mall. Now, to end, I show a photo of the Meridien Hotel after a fire burnt some of the floors... Strange things happened to hotels in Bangkok!"

29 comments:

Olivier said...

Contrasme surprenant entre la tour immense avec cette architecture moderne et le temple (que j'adore, il est vraiment tres beau).
C'est un coin du monde qui est sublime, merci de nous l'avoir fait visiter.

Contrasme surprising between the immense tower with this modern architecture and the temple (which I adore, it is really very beautiful).
It is a corner of the world which is sublime, thanks for having made us visit it.

Andrea said...

Beautiful pictures.

Thanks for visiting my blog. :)

Anonymous said...

Olivier,
Merci. C'est vrai que Bangkok est un coin sublime...

Andrea,
Thanks!

Alex said...

What a nice trip you did Andrea! The Vinmanmeck Royal mansion built in teak is quite amazing!, and so are it's garden. I wish I could have seen this beautiful building.
Tons of trees though to realize such a palace!

Anonymous said...

Alex, I don't know if Andrea made a nice trip; but I had a great time...

Anonymous said...

Lovely set. The old and also the new. Fantastic. Keep travelling!
I'm watching the world thru ur eyes...

Gopal, India

Anonymous said...

Thanks eye. One day I hope I will also visit India and post about...

Anonymous said...

I would love to visit Bangkok oneday. Your pics are very cool!

teeth bleaching

Anonymous said...

Thanks Jane! Great market there! ;))

Cergie said...

Tiens, je suis arrivée là et c'est là que je m'arrête....
Quel contraste entre les immeubles anciens et modernes quoiqe quelque part l'architecture moderne est à l'image du pays. Je me souviens lorsque nous étions en Chine, la forme des terrassesa vec ces toits faisant pagodes. C'est dans les déatils que sont les différences, égalemnt sur les largezurs de rues, la manière de traiter les "extérieurs" c'est à dire les jardins.

Ici, on a à la fois l'impression d'espace et d'étroitesse. De grandes places et les anciens immeubles, pres qu'à être étouffés entourés par les nouveaux.

Et ce ciel gris, comme un ciel de mousson....

Anonymous said...

Merci Cergie.
C'est vrai qu'à Bangkok les contrastes sont immenses! L'ancien et le moderne, mais aussi le splendide et le sale, la richesse et la pauvreté… Mais, dix ans passés, c’a peut-être beaucoup changé... sauf le ciel!

Olivier said...

de retour de NYC, vraiment toujours la plus belle ville du monde

Anonymous said...

NYC, je suis d'accord... Et on vous a vu à la webcam de Times Square!

suramya said...

I wish I had seen this before I left to bangkok, your photos tell me that I didn't do enough sight seeing. well hope to remedy that soon. I love thailand.

Anonymous said...

Suramya,
sorry for that; but you'll have chances to get back there, no doubt!

Lara said...

I always thought you had a wonderful idea to put all the photos and stories together!

Anonymous said...

Lara,
Thanks. The problem is that it takes so much time! Except for the 70s, that is already closed, the 80s are in 1985, and the 90s still in 1997. Not to mention Blogtrotter, which is now "only" 21 months delayed...

Gaëlle said...

Elle font rêver toutes ces belles photos... J'adore celle du "Wat Saket"

Anonymous said...

Merci Ga�lle! C'est int�ressant comme les photos de Bangkok provoquent toujours des �motions...

david santos said...

I passed here for seeing your work that is very good and desiring a good weekend

Anonymous said...

Obrigado! Igualmente.

Noushy Syah said...

Thanks for dropping by to my blog, I appreciate it...would explore your traveling blog!!

Been to Bangkok and part of Thailand,I love the architectures and the food!! Yummy! I enjoyed their food very much though it's a bit hot for me...

Have a good Day! Do come again to my blog...

Anonymous said...

Noushy syah,
Thanks for your visit and comment! I agree with you on Thai food; actually the only time I left some food behind because I was not able to eat it was in Bangkok: shrimps marinated: HOT, HOT, HOT...
I'll sure visit your lovely blog!

Raghu Ram Prasad said...

really wonderful...., i came back to see you...i am out of station for a short period...sorry

Anonymous said...

Raghu,
Glad to see you here! Hope to see you back blogging and commenting soon. Take care!

Raghu Ram Prasad said...

Nice bangkong...nice photographs lovely one

GMG said...

Raghu,
Great that you liked!

Bangkok Hotels, Thailand said...

When I first visit Bangkok I found that I can see Temples everywhere, especially during the tour of the Chao Phraya River. I've saw the real lifes of people living on both sides of the river, It's a heart warming experience for me. One things to remember: when visiting temples, show respect to the Buddha, and the monks. Take off your shoes before entering into the hall and don't wear shorts or tank tops in temples.

Trotter said...

Bangkok Hotels,
Useful information, though it seems a spam message!!