Bangkok
I checked out of hotel in Pattaya to travel to Bangkok. Remember to travel in straight lines to reach Pattaya bus station. Buy ticket at counter to Bangkok bus station which takes a travel of 2 to 3 hours. Take taxi from bus station to your hotel directly as you don’t have other easy mode of transport from this point carrying luggages. Bangkok city has heavy traffic everywhere and no wonder it takes more than an hour to cover 10kms by road.
I stayed at a hotel close to 'Oriental Pier' to visit all the tourist spots in Bangkok by boat. Chao Phraya River is long and spread across the city making it easy for travel in traffic city. You can board the government boats at 10 to 25 Baht according to your distance. These boats will carry more passengers if you notice than other private boats which are expensive. Another alternate commute is the Corporation buses if you travel at shorter distances. These two are the budget friendly mode of transport in Bangkok as taxis are very expensive and meter runs high due to heavy traffic.
You can start by morning to avoid more crowds in the palace. The Grand Palace was established in 1782 and consists of not only the Royal Residence and Throne Halls, but also a number of government offices as well as the renowned ‘Temple of the Emerald Buddha’. You can buy entry ticket to the palace for 500Baht to visit the ancient ad colourful architecture. Dress code should be followed here and so wear full pant while visiting. You can collect the printed guide to the Grand Palace and move around the complex using the map on it. You can visit ‘Temple of the Emerald Buddha’ where they conduct prayers. You’ll get to see Canons and explosives displayed which are used during different war times. You can click some photos of the mansion where the Royal Family stays.
Once you finish your tour of Grand Place, at the exit gate, you’ll find a vehicle waiting to take passengers to the ‘Royal Theatre’ to watch KHON (Thai Masked Dance). This dance show ticket is included in the Grand Palace ticket. You need to make sure to catch the vehicle as per show timings printed on ticket. The dance show depicts a masked face dance enacting the story of the epic ‘Ramayana’ by the artists which is a very beautiful art performance.
While returning from the Royal Theatre, you can take a stop at ‘Wat Pho’ to visit the temple with a giant reclining Buddha. If not, you can get dropped at the exit gate of Grand Palace and take boat to return.
On your return boat, you can take a stop at ‘Wat Arun’ which is a Buddhist temple right on the river else you can click pictures from boat and continue your journey. This is a beautiful architecture too.
Safari World is a must-visit tourist attraction in Bangkok. It comprised of Marine Park (Animal shows are conducted here) and Safari Park (zoo visit in a closed bus where animals are let free). Watch your time not to miss the show timings. You can take ticket for this from your hotel travel desk or local travel agency at 1200 Baht (pick-up and drop at hotel + entry to Marine and Safari park + lunch buffet). Never try to travel on your own as it is in the far outskirts of city which cost 400-500 Baht to reach by taxi.
Marine Park is the place to watch the intelligence of animals. You’ve ‘Dolphin show’ which is mind-blowing as dolphins are considered the most intelligent animals and the show proves it. While walking around the park, you’ll see some fishes in the tanks, Pelicans, tiger, cute Prairie dog, Scarlet Ibis, Egg World (Storage space of eggs of various species including Dinosaur egg fossil). Watch the unseen ‘Orangutan Boxing Show’ which they call as ‘Muay Thai Show’. Other highlighted shows are Cowboy show, Star wars show (showing real stunts with explosives by super skilled actors), Elephant show, Sea lion show (Seal ions are again the intelligent animals like dolphin), Birds Show.
We should always keep an eye on timings not to miss the bus to visit the zoo. The zoo is well maintained and secured as they have let animals free in the place. It takes half-an-hour to finish this bus trip at 10 kmph speed for people to watch and click photos from the bus. No one is allowed to get down the bus at any condition as a safety measure. You’ll see birds and animal species here including wild animals. One can watch Camels, Ostrich, Lions, Tigers, Deer, etc. here. At the end of the journey, you’ll see the giant high voltage gates opening and closing automatically for the vehicle to pass through the gate like the gates in Jurassic Park movie.
The park covers a large area and it is not easy to walk around. There is nothing special about the park. If you are here by evening, you can take a walk and relax.
Food craving continues after eating so much in Pattaya. You’ll get all those here too by evening on street side and restaurants. During morning, you’ll get street food in Bangkok if you walk on the food markets selling small grilled food items on sticks for 10 or 20 Baht. It tastes good so definitely give a try on food by morning too. You will find food images with details in Food section.
Bangkok has many shopping markets and bazaar selling huge clothing and other accessories like bags, shoes, belts, etc. You should try bargaining definitely in Pratunam Market, China Town, Chatuchak Weekend Market (very large market where you may go missing). But I personally felt Pattaya malls are cheaper for shopping than Bangkok markets.
The 3D art Museum is inside a shopping mall. You can take ticket over the counter for 200 Baht. You should go here with a good pixel camera to click your beautiful pictures and bring life to the art. I heard from local people that 3D Art Museum here is better than the one in Pattaya.
It’s time to return back home with happy memories. Try to buy ‘Le pan Banana’ packets from shops in airport and taste. You can also buy cosmetics like lipsticks, lip moisturizer, kajal, etc. in airport shops.
