A journey through Asia - my Asia travels

Bangkok Thailand - Turtle Temple (Wat Prayurawongsawat)

2012-09-05T12:50:00.002+07:00

Wat Prayurawongsawat Worawiharn
Turtle Temple - Bangkok Thailand
วัดประยุรวงศาวาสวรวิหาร

Temple lays quietly on the banks of the the Chao Phraya river just near Saphan Phut (bridge) and it is a nice place to visit in Bangkok if you happen to like temples. In terms of visit period probably 30 to 45 minutes is about enough.

The place of the temple was originally the site of a coffee plantation belonging to Somdet Chao Phraya Maha Prayurawong. In 1828 he donated the site for the building of his temple. King Rama III gave the temple its current name but the local people preferred calling it Wat Rualek because of its big fence surrounding the temple made from iron in form of lances, swords and axes.

Only a part of fence remains. This is the first temple of Rattanakosin period where the Chedi (Pagoda) was built in the Lanka style.

Inside the wiharn is a Buddha image in subdoing mara posture called Luang Phor Nark. We believe it was one of a pair with Phra Sri Sakkayamuni, the principal Buddha image of Wat Suthat Thepwararam.

วัดประยุรวงศาวาสวรวิหาร - candles

Wat Prayurawongsawat Worawiharn

Chedi - Bangkok Turtle Temple

Buddha statue - Turtle temple

The front part of this Bangkok Thai-Chinese temple has a rock garden, little waterfalls and a small artificial hill with stupas containing the ashes of people that were cremated. A lot of turtles (hence the name) and big fish are hanging out in some pools.

Feeding is allowed and encouraged. The water is not very clear and the pools seem overpopulated, but walking here feels like being in a fairy tale. The actual temple in the back and has a high white chedi.

You can reach to the temple by taking the BTS Sky Train to Wongwian Yai station and then take a tuk-tuk to the temple. The direction is towards Saphan Phut. Thetemple is on the west side of the Chao Phraya river.

Have some questions or suggestions? Use the contact page: http://my-asia-travels.blogspot.com/p/travel-contact.html

The Tiger Shrine Bangkok

2012-05-15T11:35:00.003+07:00

The Tiger Shrine Temple - Bangkok, Thailand

There are more than 40,000 (forty thousand) temples in Thailand and no matter how much I would try, it would be quite impossible to see even a half of them, however every time I see something new or interesting, like the Tiger Shrine, sharing is a must.

No evidence can tell that the Tiger Shrine really existed but from the telling of the people that live near by and by asking the old abbot we can assume that the shrine existed more than 90 years ago, or before 1917.

At first it was only a small wooden shrine near the big bodhi tree at the East of the old church. Inside the wooden shrine there were the tiger drawings for worship. Later on the people who had faith rebuilt the shrine and the image of the tiger god.

The form of the tiger shrine and image of the tiger are seen nowadays right here at the Tiger Shrine temple in Bangkok.

The image on the left shows brand new painted dragon poles at the temple entrance.

Wax monks statues at the Tiger shrine - they are quite impressive.

Within the Tiger Shrine there are a few worship places which looks like houses. They are all interesting, some of them holding was monks statues, other golden statues of Buddha. The entrance is free but the shoes must be taken off before entering any of these worship places.

Near by there is a canal and you can feed the fish as well - considered a donation.

Wooden floor makes it nice to walk through

Golden statues - worship place

Buddha statues along with a story written under each one of it

For more information you can make a comment or drop a line at the contact page.

Enjoy your Thailand trip!

Bangkok Seaview Restaurant

2012-03-18T14:30:00.000+07:00

Bangkok Seaview Restaurant (Bangkok, Thailand)

Many think that the closest place to find the sea is Pattaya or Bang-pu but recently we found out that just around Rama II road, in Bangkok, there is a quick exit to the sea. Turning left just after the BigC Rama II and driving about 10-12 km on a nice new paved road you almost reach to the sea. First you reach a small pier from where you take a long tail boat and they will take you to the Bangkok Seaview Restaurant.

From the long tail boat

The boat ride takes around 20 minutes and it costs 50 BHT for adults and I think 20 BHT for kids.

Nothing unusual, boat ride is smooth and gives you the opportunity to shoot some pics along the canal (klong). Finally you reach to the sea and the restaurant is right there all on the water.

Bangkok seaview restaurant

Fried squid - half squid, half onion probably to control the prices :)

Simple atmosphere (to simple maybe)

All the restaurant is on the water

The good thing about restaurant is that you won't hear to much noise around as it is built on the sea so it is quite a good choice for a relaxing afternoon with some seafood and a cold Singha beer (not many choices here). Prices are not to high in this restaurant but in the meantime you shall not expect to much as well. The waiters are just kids who don't know any of the menus or what they are selling.

Food is reasonable good and it doesn't go into the "great food" category. What we noticed are many seafood restaurants on the way to Bangkok Seaview and those were absolutely packed with people which, in Thailand, means that food reaches to the "great food" category and prices are reasonable as well.

Finally the location of the Bangkok Seaview restaurant is here. On the GPS or Google Earth you can insert these coordinates.
N 13.52776
E 100.42171

Here is the small pier where you take the boat to restaurant. This features a guarded park lot for your car.

Let us know how was your experience at Bangkok Seafood restaurant by adding a comment or drop us a note in the contact us form.

Have a great food in Thailand! :)

Phra Pathom Chedi Thailand

2012-02-20T14:14:00.000+07:00

Phra Pathom Chedi - in Thai: พระปฐมเจดีย์

Phra Phatom Chedi - entrance view

Phra Pathom Chedi is the oldest Buddhist temple in Thailand. It is located in the Region where Buddhism was firstly introduced into the Kingdom of Thailand by Sona Thera and Uttra Thera in the third Buddhist century. The Indian statue style Phra Pathom Chedi which was in ruins for a long time until king Monghut (4) still a monk, paid a pilgrimage to Phra Pathom Chedi which was 84 meters high at that time. When he come to the throne, he decided to restore the Chedi by covering it with the new one. The four wiharn and the cloister were built during his reign. The work began in 1853 and completed in the reign of King Rama 5 who added the new struetion "Belfry" into this monastery, then the principal wiharn was restored and the replica of the former Chedi and the mural paintings were painted in this Wiharn by King Rama 6 command. Next, he pulled down the portico of the north Wiharn and erected the new one to house a standing Buddha image named Phra Rung Rojanariddhisri Indradhit Dharmopas Maha Vajiravuth Roj Pujaniyaborbip. Finally the new ordination hall was bult in the reign of King Rama 7.

Phra Pathom Chedi is the tallest stupa in the world with the height of approx 120 meters.

The name Phra Pathom Chedi means Holy chedi (stupa) of the beginning.

Golden monks

Buddha statue

Phra Pathom Chedi, which is 120 meters high, contains the reclic of the Lord Buddha. During the twelfth Lunar month, which is November, there is an annual fair of this monastery and it's time for the Buddhist to pay homage to this holy Chedi.

Lilawadee orange pink flowers

Phra Pathom Chedi - people come to visit and pray

People writing their names and wishes at the temple

Wat Phra Phatom Chedi - view from inside the walls

Don't forget to drop me a line if you need extra info or planning a trip there.

Kasetsart University Plants Fair Thailand

2012-02-12T13:44:00.001+07:00

Kasetsart University Plants Fair
มหาวิทยาลัยเกษตรศาสตร์

As a quick introduction, the Kasetsart University (in Thai language: มหาวิทยาลัยเกษตรศาสตร์) is a university known internationally for academic excellence and work of world standard. It is a prime mover in mustering intellectual resources to help the nation achieve sustainable development and negotiating power in the world community. Kasetsart University was established on 2 February 1943 with the prime aims in promoting subjects related to agricultural sciences.

Kasetsart University

Lately the university has made an attempt to include medicine and health science. Kasetsart University has 7 campuses throughout Kingdom of Thailand, where its main and flagship campus is at Bang Khen, Bangkok. The total enrollment at Kasetsart University is over 58,000 people, placing it among the top largest universities in Thailand.

In the Bangkok campus there are various fairs held from time to time and we recently attended to a plants fair but not only. If you know the Thai fairs you will know that the food is present always, at all times, in all fairs and places - the food is a great experience in this country.

The pictures below are taken at the Kasetsart University plants and food fair in Bangkok in February 2012.

Food festival - wanna try it?

Full size roasted pork

Crowds at Kasetsart University plants and food fair

Jack Fruit - big and sweet fruit

Kasetsart University - plants fair, February 2012

The flowers and plants festival was a bit smaller than the food fair which covered a large area and provided a lot of delicious options for the hungry crowds! :) There is always a huge crowd attending this kinds of fairs. Some good deals are available but generally it is just a nice place for a Saturday afternoon.

Case you are interested in these fairs or wanna study in Thailand you can drop us a line at the contact form and we will see if there is any way we can help you.

Don Hoi Lot near Bangkok Thailand

2012-01-27T11:28:00.000+07:00

Don Hoi Lot (Thai: ดอนหอยหลอด) is a sandbar off the coast of Samut Songkhram Province at the northwestern tip of the Bay of Bangkok. The sediments of the Mae Klong River together sediments from the sea form a system of mudflats, which is settled by the Razor Clam shells, which also gave the site its Thai name. The site has the largest population of this shell species, which is endemic to the northern Gulf of Thailand.

Don Hoi Lod - searching for shells/clams

Being such a famous place among Thai citizens, we decided to take a look. Driving there from Bangkok only takes an hour or so and then we reach the place ... Don Hoi Lot, entering we can see restaurants on the left side of the road and a market on the right side. There is the car park as well - so glad to see that, we all know how difficult to find a parking spot is in Bangkok or popular tourist attraction places.

The place is a famous for its sea food restaurants, which include those shells which gave their name to the place. Don Hoi Lot means sandbar of the Lot shells, better known as Razor Clam shells.

There is a set of picture from this trip below here.

Don Hoi Lod restaurant view

Don Hoi Lod market

Car parking @ Don Hoi Lod

Ready to eat fish!

Squid on stick - ready to eat & delicious

Shells and prawns

Here we can have a sit and eat @ Don Hoi Lod

This was quite delicious although a lot of bones in that fish

Museum at Don Hoi Lod

Souvenirs tshirts

Don't forget - for any comments or feedback you have the contact page or the form below this article.

Phang-nga Thailand a 800km ride from Bangkok

2012-01-09T14:51:00.001+07:00

Anyone interested in a car ride towards the South of Thailand? only a 800 KM ride.
If, so, here is a great possible destination: Khao Lak ( in Thai เขาหลัก ) in Phang-nga province in the South of Thailand.
Khao Lak เขาหลัก - Phang-nga

Sunset - Muang Thai beach

Khao Lak is a seaside resort located in the Takua Pa district in the Phang Nga province, Thailand and popular as a departure point for liveaboard scuba diving trips to the Similan Islands and Surin islands.
Located approx 60 kilometers North of the Phuket island on Phetkasem Road, one of four major highways in Thailand. Khao Lak is serviced regularly by bus and taxi services. Phuket International Airport (HKT) is situated 74 kilometers south on the island of Phuket. Though Thailand's economy is mostly export-dependent, Khao Lak remains mostly tourist-dependent, with surrounding agriculture and commercial fishing.

What differentiates Khao Lak from neighboring tourist destination like Phuket, is its quiet up-scale secluded coastal resorts; lack of over-crowded masses; family-friendly nighttime environment and the provincial ordinances prohibiting structures to build beyond the height of a coconut palm (albeit, more or less), keeping Khao Lak pristine.

We visited Phang-nga during the month of December and it is known to be a kind of rainy season during this month. However the weather was beautiful in most of the days, with a bit of rain in one day and a bit cloudy on another day.

Quite impressive is the speed boat tour to visit the Similan islands. They took us since morning and return to the pier of Khao Lak around 4-5 PM. The Similan islands are totally amazing with their white smooth sand and crystal clear water.

High waves - Similan islands

There was quite a wavy day I may say, waves were taller than me, I could say about 2 or 2.5 meter waves. We had lunch on an island and snorkeling near another of the islands that makes the Similan arhipelago.

In Khao Lak you can find accomodation probably starting around 1,000 BHT per night and reaching to anything you want, like 10-15K BHT per night ( 30 USD to 500 USD and more).

We found that Khao Lak is mostly for families and kids, honeymooners and others who enjoy a relaxing holiday in a quiet and clean place in Thailand.

Wedding set on the beach in Khao Lak, Thailand

During the stay in Phang-nga we tried quite a few restaurants but I must say that they are all about the same. Mostly it is food made for foreigners and not really authentic Thai food, but this is perfectly normal since I really don't know who can directly eat Thai food without staying here a while or having other contact with this type of food which, by the way, is very delicious.

Khao Lak beach panorama - evening

A set of pictures from Khao Lak are below including some snorkeling shots and white sands beaches of Similan islands.

Snorkeling picture around Similan

Similan white sands beaches

Speed boat fighting with the waves - Similan

Similan island wavy beach

Enjoy and drop me a line if you need some travelling advise or you need help in booking some tours.

Thailand, Bangkok to Phang-nga car ride approx 800 km.

Terminal 21 mall Bangkok Thailand

2012-01-05T16:07:00.003+07:00

Terminal 21 from 1st floor

Terminal 21 building เทอมินอล 21 is a new and mixed-use complex on Sukhumvit Road, near Asoke intersection in Bangkok, Thailand. It opened in October 2011 and it is unique by it's design concept of the floors.

It has two parts of the complex:
A. The retail complex has a total of 9 stories. Main anchors are health club of Fitness First 8 screens of SF Cinema City and Gourmet Market, a supermarket of The Mall Group.
B. The Grande Centre Point Hotel & Residence Sukhumvit-Terminal 21 has a total of 42 stories, 202 metres high building.

Terminal 21 is a one floor - one concept shopping mall and we decided to visit it on the 3rd of January 2012 as it was still a national holiday in Thailand. Overall it is a nice new place which tries to make you feel like in an airport as all the floors have Departure signs and there are some other signs similar to an airport.

LG Floor - Caribbean
This floor concept is Caribbean Beach Town, decorated with beach, sea anchor and lighthouse. It reserved for supermarket of Gourmet Market, quick service restaurants, banks, bookstores and convenient service shops.

G Floor - Rome
This reserved for luxury brands and brand name boutiques, concept is Heaven of Rome. It decorated sculptures with marble mythic of Roman statues and well-known paintings.

M Floor - Paris
It's Champs-Élysées Boulevard and Parisian Boutiques Streets concept, served for Thai designer's boutiques and beauty shops. It decorated sculptures with Arc de Triomphe and Eiffel Tower.

1st Floor - Tokyo
This floor is concept of Nakamise-Dōri Market and Harajuku Town. It reserved for ladies' boutiques, decorated sculptures with Sumo, Torii and Maneki Neko.

2nd Floor - London
This decorated sculptures with iconic red telephone boxes, London's double-decker busses, Tower Bridge and Union Jack Flag. It concept is Oxford Street of London, served for mini-shops of men's wears, jeans and sporting goods. Here we found a few nice clothes shops, nice as in unique and good design, something not easy to find in Bangkok these days.

3rd Floor - Istanbul
This floor is Istanbul Market Town concept, decorated with Istanbul's lamps. It reserved for mini-shops of shoes, bags, jewellery, gifts and decoration products.

4th Floor - San Francisco city
This concept is Chinatown of San Francisco. It decorated sculptures with San Francisco Trams and Golden Gate Bridge, served for Thailand's famous restaurants.

5th Floor - San Francisco pier
This floor reserved for international restaurants and food court of Pier21. It decorated with seaports and fisherman village, concept is Fisherman Village of San Francisco. The restaurant are just the general ones that you can find almost in any malls in Bangkok, like Swensens, Steak Lao, Fuji, Sunrise Taccos shop and others - I would say nothing special here and quite high prices.

6th Floor - Hollywood
Concept is Hollywood Studio Town, decorated sculptures with Hollywood Sign and Oscar Statuette. It reserved for 8 screens of SF Cinema City, health club of Fitness First, spa and IT & Mobile products zone of IT Terminal.

Rome floor - Terminal 21

Gift shop in Terminal 21 Bangkok

Happy New Year 2012 in Bangkok

2012-01-01T14:28:00.000+07:00

Happy New Year 2012 !!!

May everyone of you have a superb and happy new year. The celebrations were amazing in Bangkok downtown around Central World. A lot of fireworks as well as a concert having Palmy (Thai famous singer) as a guest and I guess there were others as well as guests.

Bangkok downtown - fireworks

New year fireworks in Bangkok

Cental World fireworks and concert in Bangkok

People start gathering since 10PM and the place was totally full. Rama I road was closed from Paragon to Central World and the concert was held in on the wide road between Central World and the BigC on the opposite side. Music was nice, fireworks were good although seemed like not long enough, we wish it would last another 2-3 minutes.

Central World panorama in the new years eve

People gathered for countdown and concert at Central World in Bangkok - new year's eve

Thailand Golden mount Wat Saket temple

2011-12-19T17:51:00.000+07:00

Wat Saket Ratcha Wora Maha Wihan
วัดสระเกศราชวรมหาวิหาร (short name is Wat Saket) is a Buddhist temple or Wat in Pom Prap Sattru Phai district, Bangkok, Thailand.

The temple is not far from Sanam Luang and the Wat PraKaew, it is a walking distance.

Also not far from this temple the famous street lays: Soi KhaoSan.

The temple dates back to Ayutthaya era, when it was called Wat Sakae.

King Rama I renovated the temple and renamed it to Wat Saket. Phu Khao Thong (Golden mountain, ภูเขาทอง) is a steep hill inside the Wat Saket compound. It is not a natural outcrop, but an artificial hill. During the reign of King Rama III (1787–1851) the decision was made to build a Chedi of huge dimensions to add to the Wat Saket temple.

However, the large Chedi collapsed during the construction process because the soft soil beneath would not support it. The resulting mud-and-brick hillock was left alone for about half a century, taking the shape of a natural hill and becoming overgrown with weeds. Since then it looked like a natural small mountain it received its name of "Phu Khao" (ภูเขา) at that time. Finally under King Rama IV, a small Chedi was built on the hilltop. This smaller structure was finished under King Rama V (1853–1910), when a Buddha relic from India was housed in the Chedi.

In the 1940s the surrounding concrete walls were built to prevent the hill from eroding. The Wat Saket was built in the early 20th century of Carrara marble. There is an important festival at Wat Saket every November that includes a beautiful candlelight procession up Phu Khao Thong.

This festival is Loy Krathong which is celebrated all around Thailand but this temple has a nice festivity going on at that time.

Phu Khao Thong has become a popular tourist attraction in Bangkok, but the rest of the Wat Saket temple area is much less visited.

Good to know:
* Go before 5:00 PM as the temple closes for visitors.
* Entrance fee is 10 BHT (as of 2011) but giving a bit more would be good.
* Good place for taking photos of the city.

Need more details - drop us a note using the contact page.

Water begins to drain out of Bangkok

2011-11-16T11:49:00.001+07:00

After more than a month of flooding in Thailand and in Bangkok, the flooding water level starts to go down like showing us a sign of peace. So far there were more than 500 casualties of the flooding throughout Thailand. Below there is a flooding map showing the current situation as of 15-16 Nov 2011.

Bangkok flooding update map as of 15-16 Nov 2011

While in many areas of Bangkok the water is almost drained out, the battle still takes place in the North part of the city where the water inflow is just to high for the current pumps. It is true that government allocated a lot of water pumps to drain out the water from the capital. Below here there is the updated flooding situation in a visual presentation.

Water inflow in the North part of Bangkok

* The images are provided by various internet sources and we are not responsible for the accuracy of the data. This is just a blog that wants to keep its readers up to date with the flooding situation in Bangkok and provide other more or less subjective information - just like any other blog.

Bangkok flooding in pictures

2011-11-13T11:58:00.001+07:00

Bangkok flooding in pictures route Suttthisan - Lad Phrao - Central Lad Phrao - Chatuchak Park - Saphan Kwai

In the last weeks I heard and read a lot of news, sometimes I was looking at TV in the evening and the news were announcing that the place I live is flooded "water reached to intersection of ..." and the thing is that there was no flooding and still there is none.

Boat out in flooded Bangkok

What I did was to decide that I have to check by myself where there is and where there is no water and flooded areas. Said and done, took out the camera and started the journey. First things was to travel up on Rachada road until I reach water: Fortune city is dry, so is Thailand Cultural Center area, Robinson and BigC and further on Hway Kwang. Going further I reach to Sutthisan intersection - still no flooding water around here and I went further up. About 400-500 meters away from Sutthisan-Rachada intersection there is the Khlong Bang Sue and North of this canal is where the flooding starts.

Pictures in this article illustrates the journey from Chaophraya Park hotel on Ratchada road towards the North, reaching Lad Phrao intersection and then turn left on LadPhrao road.

Truck taxi carrying people - most of them are free of charge

Foreigners playing in the water on Rachada road

Truck ride in the flooded areas of Bangkok

Shell petrol station flooded and closed - Rachada road

Lad Phrao intersection on Rachadapisek road

Perfect blue sky in Bangkok - not much pollution during floodings

Lad Phrao road flooded

All here is flooded. The water is just enough deep for not allowing the small cars to pass but not high enough to produce any damage to houses or big cars - this looks like a scenario written already. Water is just there, not to much, not to less - just perfect to create an inconvenience and from my point of view, to spend more money on booths and water protection.

So from Lad Phrao road towards Central Lad Phrao and Union Mall everything is under water. Further on the truck went left towards Chathuchak Park which got some water as well. Mostly is the roads that resemble to a sea of water. The sky is a perfect blue in Bangkok which, believe me, is not easy to find - I do assume this is a result of less and less pollution. Probably only 10-15% of the cars are running in Bangkok these days.

Heading towards Saphan Kwai

Waiting for the bus in Bangkok

Pahon Yohin road near Chatuchak Park - flooded

Sea of Bangkok - water as far as you can see

Pickup truck playing in the floods

All the parkings are full with cars and so are the bridges and express-ways where the people parked their cars for escaping the flood to come.

They say Bangkok has been voted as the No.1 place for travel - I guess it was before the flooding :)

Royal Thai Army trucks for passengers in flooded areas it free of charge

Chatuchak weekend market intersection

Just before reaching BigC at Saphan Kway the flooding stopped and everything is dry again - now we are back South of Khlong Bang Sue.

Conclusion: Inner Bangkok is flooded in a lot of places but it is just a matter of inconvenience for the citizen as the water did not reach dangerous levels and it starts to recede as well. By middle of December should be all gone, this would be my forecast on the Thai flooding of 2011.

Drop me a line if you are flooded or you want to post your pics or comments or ideas, I may help you with this.

iGoogle gadgets resource and intro

2011-11-12T09:00:00.000+07:00

iGoogle gadgets resources and introduction for Gadgets website
http://gadgets.vidagate.com

We would like to introduce a new website dedicated to iGoogle gadgets and website gadgets of all kind. There are cute gadgets, utilities, pictures of cars, landscapes, women, cute girls and more. We have iGoogle photos and game gadgets ready to use in your IG page or embedded into your website.

Here are a few iGoogle gadgets and you can fine more at http://gadgets.vidagate.com

Word and Character calculator
http://gadgets.vidagate.com/gadget/tools/word-and-character-calculator/

Sex positions advise - one position per day
http://gadgets.vidagate.com/gadget/picture-images/sex-positions-advice-gadget/

Sudoku game for iGoogle
http://gadgets.vidagate.com/gadget/fun-and-games/sudoku-game-gadget/

Daily Asian cute models
http://gadgets.vidagate.com/gadget/picture-images/daily-asian-models/

Find nice iGoogle gadgets here : http://gadgets.vidagate.com

Website gadgets are small web applications that run on one or more sites, including iGoogle, orkut, other OpenSocial containers, Google Desktop, and other sites all over the web that are able to use the gadgets. Gadgets are usually written in a module language using XML that contains HTML and JavaScript.

Loy Krathong 2011 among the floods in Bangkok

2011-11-11T10:25:00.001+07:00

Loy Krathong 2011 among the floods in Bangkok

Loi Krathong or Loy Krathong ( ลอยกระทง ) is a festival celebrated annually throughout Thailand and other countries around.

Loy Krathong takes place on the evening of the full moon of the 12th month in the traditional Thai lunar calendar. In the western calendar this usually falls in the month of November.
Loy literally means "to float" while krathong refers to the lotus-shaped receptacle which can float on the water.

Originally, the krathong was made of banana leaves or the layers of the trunk of a banana tree or a spider lily plant. A krathong contains food, betel nuts, flowers, joss sticks, candle and coins. Modern krathongs are more often made of bread or styrofoam. A bread krathong will disintegrate in a few a days and be eaten by fish and other animals. The traditional banana stalk krathongs are also biodegradable.

On the 10th of November 2011 we have chosen to attend to Loy Krathong in one of the 16 or 18 parks opened in Bangkok for this celebration, more exactly in the Lumpini Park which is on the Witthayu Rd. This is a nice park right in the middle of the business district of Bangkok and it has entrance from Silom, Sathorn, Witthayu and Rachadamri roads.

Loy Krathong floating- Bangkok parks

There were not to many people due to the floodings in Thailand so the ones that had the time went to the park and float the krathong which also has a candle and a few incense sticks as a part of the design. People also put a few coins on the krathong and then make it float on the water just after lighting the candle and the incense sticks. It is pretty nice, an occasion that makes people do activities and be together in the same place.

The next dates for Loy Krathong celebrations in Thailand and Bangkok are:

Year - Date Full moon of the 12th Thai month
2010 - 21 November
2011 - 10 November
2012 - 28 November

There are many activities normally organized during this festival in Thailand, for example river cruises, fireworks in various places of Bangkok, there are many festivities around the temples (called ngan wat) and these are really nice.

You can drop us a line (using the contact page) if you want to know more about Loy Krathong festivities or plan a trip to Thailand!

Hong Kong - Happy Valley holiday

2011-11-07T15:01:00.000+07:00

A short break in Happy Valley, on the island of Hong Kong

* After quite a pleasant flight, the plane landed on the Hong Kong International Airport which is a bit far from the city, near Lantau island. The immigration procedures didn't took that long like in other places around SE Asia so I would say its fine in HK.

Next step was to reach into the city of Hong Kong so I got my train ticket - yes, the Airport Express is a superb train that takes you in about 25 minutes from airport straight in the city of Hong Kong - at Central station. Price is 180 HK$ for round-trip which is way cheaper than the taxi - which I heard could be around 300 HK$ (one way).

From Central station I was heading towards Happy Valley where I had my hotel booked and the best way for doing this, along with my heavy bags, was to take a taxi - short ride, about 50HK$ and in 10 minutes I was in front of the hotel.

Emperor Happy Valley hotel - Hong Kong

My accommodation in Hong Kong was Emperor Hotel Happy Valley, a hotel that was recommended by a friend in Hong Kong and turn out to be a good place to stay. I was staying on the 21st floor with a nice view. Hotel is surrounded by narrow streets and very high buildings in a truly Hong Kong style landscape. Good thing about staying here is that from Happy Valley is easy to access other interesting areas of Hong Kong like Causeway Bay, Wan Chai, and further on as there is train connection to all the city.

Happy Valley is a mostly residential suburb of Hong Kong, located in the northern part of Hong Kong Island.

Happy Valley is made up of upper income residential areas, and its residents include of a mix of Hong Kong natives and foreigners as well. Two of the tallest residential buildings in Hong Kong, the "Highcliff" and "The Summit" are located in Happy Valley facing Mount Nicholson and the rest of Hong Kong.

Feeling surrounded in Happy Valley

Tall buildings in Hong Kong - Happy Valley

Happy Valley also provides a number of high end restaurants and hotels, and is a rendezvous point for many Hong Kong celebrities. Because of this, much paparazzi activities are present in the area. Many Hong Kong television series are filmed in Happy Valley, too.

The Happy Valley Racecourse is still operational today - beware of the traffic during races, as it would be traffic jam and difficult to find a parking spot for your car.

Tofu meal in Hong Kong - delicious

Dumplings with beef / chicken - absolutely great food in Hong Kong

A glass of beer in Hong Kong - San Miguel is popular

Tofu and lamb fried with onion and white rice - Hong Kong food

Hong Kong Happy Vally landscape - street and restaurants

Some of the best food in Asia I have eaten in Hong Kong. Delicious Chinese foods is available on cheaper street restaurants or more expensive ones. Sure, it is recommended to have a guide that speaks Cantonese and knows what to order as a lot of food menus would be written only in Chinese although some of them have English language and some of them have pictures as well.

Almost forgot, in Happy Valley you can enjoy night life in a few bars or just go to Wan Chai and discover further on, there are a few quite nice restaurants and beer bars as well as go-go style bars with girls from all over Asia willing to have a drink with you. It is not exactly like in Bangkok tho, Hong Kong is more quiet and hidden behind closed doors while in some Bangkok places inside or outside the bar is almost same!

Cheers! Enjoy and let me know if you have any comment/questions.

Bangkok Rachadapisek road flooded

2011-11-06T20:09:00.000+07:00

Rachadapisek is quite an important road in Bangkok, it is also quite long stretching from South of city all the way up to North. Some of the MRT line is following Rachada road as well.

Below are some flooding pictures as of 06 November 2011. These pictures are taken in front of Chaophraya Park hotel on Rachada road which is 500 meters North of Sutthisan intersection. Starting this place and further up towards Lad Phrao both sides of the Rachadapisek road are flooded and water is increasing with every minute.

We could see water rising about 5 cm is approx. 10 minutes which is quite much.

Klong Bang Sue on Ratchada road - high water level flooding houses along

Here the Rachada flooding starts

Bus on Rachada road - small cars are not allowed further than Suthisan

Royal Thai Army transporting passengers to the other side of LadPhrao intersection

Sea of Bangkok directly on Rachada road

Bangkokians gathering to see the flood (most of them)

Khlong Bang Sue - on Rachada road, high water level 06 Nov 2011

Water rising out from the underground channels on Rachadapisek road

The road from Suthisan intersection further on Rachada road is closed for small cars.

Ratchadaphisek (Thai: รัชดาภิเษก) is the district that follows the northeastern portion of Ratchadaphisek Road. It is located north of Sukhumvit, east of Phahonyothin and west of Ramkhamhaeng districts. Since the completion of the metro (MRT) line, Ratchadaphisek has developed into an entertainment mecca for the locals with dozens of clubs, theatres, karaoke bars, bowling alleys and even an ice skating rink and more. Foreign visitors are drawn to its seafood restaurants, cultural performances and "massage parlours" (brothels). The part of Ratchadaphisek Road that runs along the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre is dealt with under Sukhumvit.

The northern runoff is now flowing towards Bangkok's Saphan Khwai intersection, in an inner district of Bang Sue, about 500 metres away, reports said.

The mass volume go water on Monday morning inundated the Kampaengphet intersection near Chatuchak Sunday market. The floodwater was 30 to 40 centimetres deep, impassable for small vehicles.

Traffic police at Bang Sue police station expected the floodwater to arrive at Saphan Khwai intersection about noon today, according to the reports.

On Vibhavadi Rangsit road, the runoff from Lat Phrao intersection arrived at headquarter of the country’s largest local daily, Thai Rath, flooding all lanes of the main road.

The floodwater was reported at 50 centimetre and impassable for small cars.

Water enters Bangkok: my-asia-travels.blogspot.com/2011/11/flood-water-enters-bangkok-city.html

Flood water enters Bangkok city

2011-11-06T12:33:00.003+07:00

Updated situation, as of 8 Nov 2011, on the Bangkok flooding is here - one thing is for sure: the water enters Bangkok city from below, from down under, from the canals under the city and then it pops-up in houses, yards, streets.

Click on the flooding map on the left to see the full size image.

In the last couple of day the water was allowed in, into city of Bangkok flooding arease of Lak-si and coming down to Ratch-Yothin (Major Ratcha-Yothin) intersection and down to Lad Prao. Water is also present at Rachada-LadPrao intersection, yesterday announcing that water reached Chaophraya Prak Hotel which is very close to Sutthisan intersection (Rachadapisek road).

What is coming next we shall see. I think this is a proof that other areas of the city can be flooded and nothing can actually be safe here. So this also means that condo and houses/land prices will not grow exponentially in the non-flooded areas compared to flooded areas - but this is a speculation only - mine. :)

Anyway it seems that Chatuchak Market is open even tho the flooding water is at its gates. They are using pumps to get rid of the water allowing people to do shopping. About 50% of the shops are actually open.

On Phahon Yothin road water from the north is spreading to the Kamphaeng Phet intersection and creeping nearer to the Mor Chit northern bus station, reports said on Sunday. At the Lat Phrao intersection, the water has reached in front of St John's University.

In the west, the floodwater has reached Soi Kamnan Maen in Bang Ban district and previous reports say that water will reach Rama II road shortly (this was on TV on Saturday night)

The risk is higher now than last week when the water tides were the highest. Why is that? Why this turns out to be a never-ending story? I don't know but I know "we" like publicity!

There is a updated flooding and risk map below for Eastern Bangkok:

Eastern Bangkok flooding protection and risk

However, a lack of coordination between water management officials at both the city and national level has probably put more areas in danger.

In a "new" worst-case scenario, the only option to solve the crisis would be to let the water drain through flood-ways which are not regulated by gates or pumps resulting in no control over the flow.

"Water drainage via flood-ways is something people on the job don't want to talk about," said Sutat Weesakul, a member of the Water Drainage in Disaster Areas Committee.

"They all know that by draining water via flood-ways, people downstream could be at high risk of being flooded."

The eastern side of Bangkok, home to Suvarnabhumi airport and the Bang Chan and Lad Krabang industrial estates, is a major concern for business, politicians and officials.

Rachadapisek road flooded - my-asia-travels.blogspot.com/2011/11/bangkok-rachadapisek-road-flooded.html

Bangkok flooding protection measures

2011-10-28T10:05:00.001+07:00

As of 2nd of November 2011 instead of saying that water is being drained and everyday is better, we can say that flooding water advances in Bangkok and reaches Pahon Yothin road around intersection of Racha-Yothin which is not a place that should be flooded anyways. Seems all of this happens due to the fact that they are letting the water come in ... ok, prepare the boots and boats! :)

Recent updates, as of Monday 31 October 2011, are saying that the flooding situation will not get any worse than it already is, which is a "happy flooding news" in a way, still sorry for all those under water! The Prime Minister of Thailand said that the flooding in Bangkok is unlikely to get any worse than it is now.

On the other side a bunch of "citizens" (they used "angry villagers" in the news) take the law in their hands as about 500 local residents who earlier on Monday blocked a section of Nimit Mai Road and destroyed part of the canal floodwall in Khlong Sam Wa district. They were demanding the government raise the sluicegate from an 80cm opening to 150cm.

Good job guys! haha + speechless ! ... :-) ... so finally government agreed to their protests.

She said that all the watergates were now controlled, the water level would stabilise over the next day or two.

The floodgate at Khlong Sam Wa would be operated systematically to make sure the Lat Krabang and Bang Chan industrial estates in the east were not affected.

As of 30 October 2011, it seems that Bangkok is a bit more stable in terms of flooding but still the flooding is serious as residents living along canals in parts of northern Bangkok were warned Sunday to be ready to evacuate if needed because of the spread of floods that have so far spared most of the Thai capital.

"The problem is not yet over. It's still serious," said Bangkok governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra.

"People who live on both sides of canals in Lak Si, Lad Prao, Chatuchak and Bang Khen: be ready to evacuate to safer areas," he said, referring to four northern Bangkok districts.

Based on the latest news, we are still unsure on how the flooding would affect Bangkok city so about 50,000 troops have been deployed in Bangkok and neighbouring provinces under an action plan to protect important establishments from inundation.

The situation is more serious at Charoen Krung road in Yan Nawa district of Bangkok which is now under more than 50 centimetres deep water, the reports said.

The overflow also inundated Songwad road in Bangkok’s Sampantawong district, according to the reports and water level was reported at 50-80 cm.

14 roads were closed in Bangkok due to flooding, and these are:

Northern of Bangkok:
1. Vibhavadi Rangsit: between National Memorial and Lak Si intersection
2. Phahon Yothin: between National Memorial and Soi Phahon Yothin 50
3. Khamphaeng Phet 6 (local road): between the entrance to Muang Ake housing estate to Thung Song Hong intersection
4. Songprapa: between Sri Saman and Kor Sor Bor intersections
5. Weluwanaram: the entire road
6. Liap Khlong Song: between Air Force Palathikarn and Sapan Poon intersections
7. Chantharubeksa: between Air Force Academy and Chantharubeksa intersections

Western Bangkok:
8. Charan Sanitwong: between Bang Phlad intersection and Sirindhorn interchange
9. Arun Amarin: between Arun Amarin intersection and Sirindhorn elevated road
10. Boromratchachonnani:between Pin Klao bridge and Sirindhorn elevated road
11. Boromratchachonnani:between Phutthamonthon 3 and Phutthamonthon 4 intersections
12. Sirindhorn: between Bang Phlat intersection and Sirindhorn elevated road
13. Uthayan: between Uthayan and Phutthamonthon 3 intersections
14. Sala Thammasop: the entire road

Here below there is a map of flooding situation in Bangkok as of 28 Oct 2011

Bangkok flooding update 28 Oct 2011

It said that the highest levels of water will be reached in Chao Phraya river during this weekend and more exactly on Saturday, 29 Oct 2011, after which water is expected to decrease but again, it is not sure yet how hard Bangkok will be hit by the flooding and for how long.

Bangkok flood worse case scenario

2011-10-26T11:58:00.002+07:00

Wednesday morning I posted the worst case scenario which was confirmed now in the evening at a Thai local TV station. Now it is not anymore the worst case scenario but it is something that is going to happen in the next hours in Bangkok. Simply said, they tried to stop the water which was not the smartest idea as now there are 4,000 million cubic meters of water running down towards Bangkok city!

The worst case scenario in regards to Thailand and more exactly Bangkok flooding in 2011 is illustrated in the below graphic. So far various areas of Bangkok are already flooded like Don Muang, areas around Chao Phraya river, around Grand Palace and more. There are no floodings in central Bangkok yet (as of 26 October 2011).

Bangkok blooding - worse case scenario 2011

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra warned Bangkok residents in all areas last night to brace for flooding after advancing runoff from the north of Bangkok surged into Don Mueang airport yesterday.

In addition to the scenario presented above, the real situation map is right below in the illustration.

Bangkok flooding situation - 26 October 2011

Khlong Hok Wa flood barrier is one of the two major barriers that block floodwater runoff from Pathum Thani from surging into the northern part of Bangkok. The other barrier is in tambon Lak Hok of Pathum Thani which connects to Bangkok's Don Muang district.

Floodwater destroyed some earth dykes near Lak Hok flood barrier raising concerns over pressure from a huge volume of water flowing into the city.

Don't forget to drop a note if you have any comments.

Bangkok flood warning for 6 districts

2011-10-24T12:11:00.002+07:00

The Metropolitan Waterworks Authority has urged Bangkok residents to store tap water for use during the flood crisis.

The dyke along the MWA's Khlong Prapa canal had broken, allowing overflow from Khlong Rangsit to flow into Khlong Prapa, which supplies drinking water for the Bangkok city.

"Still, Bangkok residents should store tap water for use as the flooding this year is worse than expected," he said.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration late Sunday issued a warning for people in six districts to prepare for flooding as the huge amount of water from the North continues to bear down on the capital.

The six districts are Don Mueang, Lasksi, Bang Khen, Chatuchak, Bang Sue and Sai Mai.

Bangkok Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra warned residents to remove their belongings and cars to higher ground.

The Nonthaburi high amount of water is to arrive in Bangkok in the next several days. Residents in western Bangkok and adjacent districts of Nakhon Pathom face a challenging week, with massive run-off heading their way from Nonthaburi.

The flooding and disaster situation map as of 24 October 2011 is right below;

Bangkok water disaster map

Google Crisis Response - Thailand flooding map

2011-10-21T16:51:00.000+07:00

Google Crisis Response - Thailand flooding map

The huge amount of water is flowing down to Bangkok and people should prepare for possible flooding, the Thailand Prime Minister said on Saturday (22 October) morning.

Bangkok to be flooded

2011-10-21T10:51:00.001+07:00

Updated: 21 October 2011

From a 90% chance of no flood in Bangkok yesterday, seems that we are going to a 90% chance that Bangkok will be flooded as the City Hall agreed today to open the canals for drainage - 21 October 2011.

The floods are the worst that Thailand met in at least 5 decades. It is estimated that water will flow into the Bangkok city area tonight (Friday). Government is trying to channel it out to the sea through the eastern and western outskirts of the capital.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has agreed to help drain northern runoff into the sea through the city's canals as parts of Don Muang and Laksi districts were declared flood-risk zones yesterday.
Bangkok Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra last night issued a flood warning to residents in Thung Si Kan and Don Muang subdistricts in Don Muang district and Thung Song Hong subdistrict in Laksi district.

It is the second warning from the governor in addition to the first order made on Wednesday to seven other districts, but the previous warning was for people to relocate their belongings to high ground only.

He advised people in the three subdistricts to take shelter at Wat Donmuang, Prachautid, Wat Welu Wanaram, Bumrungrawiwanwittaya, Prempracha, and Phahon Yothin schools in Don Muang and Tungsonghong Witthaya, Bangkhen, Kehatungsonghong Witthaya, Wat Laksi and Kankahathasai schools in Laksi.

The governor said the second warning was in response to water overflowing along Khlong Prapa and leaks in barriers in Laksi.

Bangkok draining out map

The announcement came hours after City Hall and the goverment agreed to a plan to drain the northern runoff through Bangkok's canals.

MR Sukhumbhand said yesterday that all the flood gates in Bangkok had been opened to accommodate the government's flood management plan.

A lot of people choose to park the cars on the express ways for the fear of floods.

This is taken near Rangsit market which is flooded

Previous days updates
1. Bangkok flooding unavoidable : http://my-asia-travels.blogspot.com/2011/10/bangkok-flooding-reported-as.html
2. Eastern Bangkok sacrificed : http://my-asia-travels.blogspot.com/2011/10/thailand-eastern-bangkok-sacrificed.html

Bangkok flooding reported as unavoidable

2011-10-20T14:24:00.001+07:00

Bangkok flooding reported as unavoidable

Latest updates on the situation for Thursday, 20 October 2011, are saying that a vast amount of floodwater will definitely occupy Bangkok as several sections of the floodwall along the Raphipat canal have been damaged. This comes from a Royal Irrigation Department (RID) engineering division chief for Northern Rangsit.

There were cracks from the first to the fifth canal and floodwaters had already surged into Pathum Thani's Khlong Luang and Thanyaburi districts, RID officials said.

"The water will certainly reach Bangkok because the barricades surrounding the Chulalongkorn floodgate are not as strong as the dykes at Raphipat."
Mr. Chuchart said.

News coming in at around 5:00PM Bangkok time says different tho in regards to Bangkok flooding.

About 90 per cent of Bangkok will not be flooded, Justice Minister and Flood Relief Operations Centre director Pracha P. said on Thursday afternoon.

"I'm confident that 90 per cent of Bangkok will not be flooded but authorities will continue monitoring the remaining 10 per cent of the capital city."

"After overseeing the flood situation from helicopter this morning, the situation remains stable," Pol Gen Pracha said after visiting a temporary shelter in Don Mueang airport.

The people living in the inner Bangkok should not be worried about the flooding.

* Eastern Bangkok sacrificed: http://my-asia-travels.blogspot.com/2011/10/thailand-eastern-bangkok-sacrificed.html

* Previous days updates and maps are here: http://my-asia-travels.blogspot.com/2011/10/thailand-capital-bangkok-flooded-19-oct.html

Thailand Eastern Bangkok sacrificed flooded - October 2011

2011-10-20T11:14:00.003+07:00

Eastern Bangkok sacrificed

Updated: 20.Oct.2011
In order to try to save the economic heart of the capital from flooding, the government has finally opted to use the eastern part of Bangkok to drain massive amounts of floodwaters from the northern outskirts. The drainage of floodwaters through eastern Bangkok will affect seven of its districts, namely Sai Mai, Klong Sam Wa, Kannayao, Min Buri, Lat Krabang, Bang Khen and Nong Chok.

All six districts of Nonthaburi province are now flooded with Bang Bua Thong and Pak Kret districts being the worst hit. I know people living around Bang Bua Tong and they are staying in the houses at the second floor as the first floor is all flooded. Some were more lucky and took the value objects up to the second floor, others just saw their kitchen and living rooms flooded with all the furniture and electronics in.

In regards to the drinking water The Metropolitan Waterworks Authority has declared tap water in the capital safe after failing to find hazardous chemicals that may have leaked from inundated industrial parks in Ayutthaya and Pathum Thani.

The most updated map is here below and it shows how the goverment plans to divert the water to East and West through 3 canals.

Bangkok flood - water redirection for saving Bangkok city

Bangkok - flood danger areas

Previous days updates and maps are here: http://my-asia-travels.blogspot.com/2011/10/thailand-capital-bangkok-flooded-19-oct.html

(These information comes from various sources that I read like newspapers and internet)

Thailand capital Bangkok flooded 19 Oct 2011

2011-10-19T22:26:00.000+07:00

Latest updates here: http://my-asia-travels.blogspot.com/2011/10/thailand-eastern-bangkok-sacrificed.html

Bangkok is getting flooded already, City Hall has advised residents of over 200 households outside Bangkok's floodwalls along Khlong Hok Wa canal in Sai Mai district to evacuate to two temporary shelters on Wednesday.

Thai flooding news are saying that seven districts of Bangkok are at high risk of flooding and people in the areas should move their belongings to higher places.

The districts are Lat Krabang, Nong Chok, Minburi, Klong Samwa, Kannayao, Sai Mai and Bangkhen.

Below here there is a map of flooding including the danger level.

Thailand: Bangkok and surroundings flooding 2011 - danger areas in the city

Are you flooded? Where are you? Leave a comment