Thailand Tuttle Travel Pack. Jim Algie

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      11 A Long-tail Boat Ride in Bangkok

      Cultural immersion on an epically affordable scale

      The canals of Bangkok Yai and Bangkok Noi (“big” and “little” respectively) are capillaries that branch off from the main jugular vein of the Chao Phraya River. Twisting through the Thonburi side of the capital they are timelines flowing back through the centuries when Bangkok was called the “Venice of the East.”

      Chartering a long-tail boat to explore them could almost be classified as a “thrill sport”. The prow, laden with garlands to appease the Water Goddess, spears through the waves while the boatman at the back of the vessel steers it with a rudder connected to a big, noisy, diesel-spewing engine, which moves fast enough to have spawned a chase scene in the 1974 James Bond vehicle The Man with the Golden Gun.

      The canals are awash with traditional sights. Children use them as ad hoc swimming pools. Women use them to wash clothes. Vendors ferry fruits and vegetables to fresh markets. Families gather under the wooden pavilions in front of their houses that hover just above the waterline. And teenage boys play takraw—a kind of Southeast Asian volleyball played with a rattan ball manipulated by the feet, elbows and shoulders—on the grounds of Buddhist temples bordering the river.

      Most of these long-tail tours, departing from the bigger piers such as Ta Chang, near the Grand Palace, will include stopovers at the more impressive sights, such as the Royal Barges Museum and the Temple of Dawn (Wat Arun).

      The saltier and more intrepid souls will, however, want to catch the river taxi to the end of the northern line in Nonthaburi, about an hour away. There, you can charter another long-tail boat to the tiny island of Ko Kret. Home to some 4,000, mostly ethnic Mon inhabitants, this enclave of artisans and spinners of pottery has no main roads or hotels. In an hour or so you can circumnavigate it by foot. Nearby is Khlong Om, another flashback of Bangkok’s Venetian past with a Siamese slant, reflected in its riverside temples and Thai-style houses.

      Opening Times Khlong tours run from around 9 am–5 pm from many of the major piers in Bangkok. Bargaining is necessary but expect to pay around 2,000 baht for a long-tail boat or around 500 baht per person.

      Fee Around 500 baht per person

      12 Bangkok’s Red Sky Rooftop Bar

      Rising above the mayhem of the metropolis

      Even taking into account the high standards set by Bangkok’s rooftop restaurants, Red Sky rises above much of the competition. At first glance, the roof of the Centara Grand hotel looks like it’s sprouted a gigantic lotus blossom that slowly changes hues and has an illuminated stem running down the side of the building.

      Inside, there are indoor areas with live jazz, an outdoor bar and area to chill out with the evening breeze, and another watering hole up above with 360-degree views of the “Big Mango” from 55 stories above the swarming streets. The wine list is so extensive that they have a special “glass elevator” to traverse the wine loft for that elusive bottle, while the Martini Bar whips up some of the city’s most originally inebriating concoctions (passion fruit is the house specialty).

      Meanwhile, the pan-European menu, with Asia Pacific accents, will take your taste buds on a journey of gastronomy through Italy, France, Tasmania, New Zealand and the US. Their signature dish, the two-story “Red Sky Surf & Turf Tower”, starring Alaskan king crab, giant Andaman shrimps, wagyu rib eye and grilled Maine lobster, is a work of sculptural art where style marries savory substance (a motif carried off with aplomb throughout the different bars and restaurants).

      To be fair, Bangkok’s glitzy hotels and high-rises have sprouted a number of crowning achievements in recent years, such as Sirocco on the State Tower as well as the Vertigo Grill and Moon Bar top hatting the Banyan Tree. All are sublime choices for a rendezvous with friends, rekindling old flames or sparking new romances, though visitors should be aware that the prices are as stratospheric as the views.

      Opening Times Daily 6 pm–1 am

      Address 999/99 Rama I Road, 55th floor of the Centara Grand

      Getting There Short walk from Siam Square Skytrain Station

      Contact +66 (0)2 100 1234

      Admission Fee Drinks and dishes are as steeply priced as the view

      13 Khao Yai National Park

      Go wild and glut yourself on greenery

      Khao Yai, the country’s oldest and biggest national park, is an Asian safari park that stretches across four provinces and 2,000 kilometers. Sometimes sambar deer graze in the parking lot. Bull elephants lock tusks on salt licks and, in one fell swoop of an outing, trekkers can spot rhinoceros hornbills, whooping gibbons and Asiatic jackals.

      Some 70 percent of these environs are made up of moist evergreen forest. Named after the park’s centerpiece, Khao Yai (“Big Mountain”), the roads twist and wind around photogenic foothills. Though around one million people visit the park every year—most are weekend picnickers from Bangkok, less than three hours away—it still shelters and succors some 350 different species of bird, like the Siamese fireback pheasant, and around 80 different mammals, from Asiatic black bears to Malayan porcupines.

      The lords of these jungles are the elephants. At least a hundred wild ones live within the confines of the park. Oftentimes they’ll be spotted on the roads or heard trumpeting in the distance.

      The park is also rich in orchid species. For its phenomenal bounty of flora and fauna, Khao Yai was granted UNESCO World Heritage Site Status in 2005.

      One of the best things about the park is that it can be done on so many different levels, from five-star opulence to guest-house grittiness. You can go on one of the guided tours led by the resorts lining the main road near the town of Pak Chong or wander around on your own. Any jaunt can be combined with an array of other options, like wine tasting tours of the local vineries or making a pit stop at the area and shopping plaza called “Little Tuscany”.

      Opening Times Daily 6 am–9 pm

      Address The park is spread over Nakhon Ratchasima, Saraburi, Prachinburi and Nakhon Nayok provinces

      Getting There Those СКАЧАТЬ