Bangkok….City of Angels…..Not!

Bangkok’s gateway to Chinatown

The Thai’s call Bangkok “Krung Thep Maha Nakhon” or the City of Angels.  Like Los Angeles in the United States I think you would have to look long and hard to find an angel here.  Although, you can find pretty much of anything in this crossroads of the New Asia that you might want.

I came to Bangkok to meet my friend Barbara Weibel who writes the travel blog….Hole in The Donut Cultural Travel. We are spending a couple of days in the city before flying to Cambodia.

I will tell you up front that I have a love hate relationship with Bangkok!  If you remember last year when I was here I moaned and groaned about the heat and humidity…well that has not changed. But there are some things I find I like about the city, now that I have explored it a bit more.

This time I escaped the backpacker ghetto of Khao San and moved to the Silom area where thanks to my friend Barbara I learned about Lub D Hostel.  It’s a great place to hang out…clean, reasonable cost, modern design, and a great location near the Skytrain so you have easy access to the whole city. I will admit that I was a bit old compared to most of the guest at Lub D (20 to 30 years old) but they were kind and hospitable…no one muttered geezer under their breath and there were no wheelchairs pushed my way.  Perhaps it was because I walked in with a backpack on my back…Hey he is one of us! Any way, it is a very nice place to stay for the budget conscious traveler…young or old.

Bangkok’s ever crowded streets

Bangkok city proper is estimated to be 14.5 million people…with a total of 20 million in the megalopolis. Is that a scary word or what…Fritz Lang move over we have gone way past metropolis to MEGALOPOLIS. Plus the city gets 10 million tourists a year on top of the already insane number of residents…. Yikes!

Bangkok’s never ending traffic jams

So you can imagine that getting around Bangkok using the surface streets can be a nightmare with unbelievable traffic jams.  However, the savvy traveler is in luck because you can take a train from the airport for a little over a dollar that connects to the Skytrain for easy access to most of the inner city.  For those neighborhoods not on the Skytrain routes you can take the water bus…and I love the water bus!  The long narrow boats move up and down the Chad Praya River with regular stops along the way for only 15 bhat.  One gets great views of the city skyline, wat’s and palaces, grand hotels and all with a cool breeze and no traffic.

Water bus on the Chao Praya River in Bangkok

I assume that the more familiar one becomes with a city the more enjoyable it becomes. It is starting to happen for me……I have a great place to stay, I’m learning the public transportation system and I just found a great Jazz Club four blocks from the hostel.  Who could ask for anything more?