Walking Around Bangkok By The Chao Phraya River In the Early Morning | Thailand

Arriving Bangkok pretty late, or rather, pretty early; by the time I reach the hotel (Centre Point Hotel Silom), its already around 3 am, so it depends on how you look at it.  

I knew my arriving time, so I have decided not to pay for the night I don’t really use, instead, I will rest in the hotel in the wee hour upon arrival and hang out around the city until check in time. Being a cheapskate that I am, I thought this was a fantastic idea. Come on, I saved a day!

Thank God the hotel is very accommodating with the idea, they took my luggage, store it safely, and led me to their 4th floor lobby and let me sleep there, customer service is first class, a great start in Bangkok.

Although, one problem, hotel crew actually start working and preparing for the day around 5 am. So the lobby is actually pretty busy and loud around dawn. Normally I would be able to sleep under any condition, but maybe due to jet leg and excitement, I was not able to. But at least I got to sleep for a good two hours or so on the lobby couch. Quite comfortable really.

Awake after 5 am, not able to sleep again after that. By 6 am, hotel guests started to show up for the breakfast buffet; their restaurant is on the same floor. Most guest look at me with a strange eye wandering why this Asian looking dude (probably mistaken me for a Thai as well) was sleeping in the lobby. Now that I think of it, it really is not a pretty sight … So I give up trying, get up and walk out the hotel and start exploring the streets.  

The official start of my Thailand travel, YES!

I walk to the Chao Phraya River first, which is very close to the hotel. This is the first time I look at this famous river up close, I didn’t realize it from all the publication, even with the right expectation, it is still a lot  mightier than I thought it is. And the water is rough, there’s not a moment that it is calm, you can feel its power smacking on the face with every rolling and tumbling, for a first timer like me, it’s a true WOW moment.

After the initial shocking effects subside, I start noticing all the tall buildings that sit along the river, with the early morning golden sun ray hitting the land, it makes up for a beautiful landscape, not bad for a first look and first impression of this famous city.

I am truly here!!

This photo was taken from a riverside bar slash restaurant, there are boats tie up to here. As it turns out, this place also serves as a spot for private boat chattering.

The main method, or rather, the only effective method to move up and down the city, at least for the parts of the city that are close to the river, is by boats. Boaters are ready early every morning to take passengers through the river and dropping them off any spots they desire.

These private boaters are mostly for the tourist though, as most of the locals use only the official city boats, which have fix dropping off points, and way cheaper.

I learned real fast that going from one place to the other in Bangkok, is not through the main street, that will take forever. The fastest way to go from one area to another, is through those small alleys that cut through blocks in the middle of the street. Sometimes they are hard to find, but no matter how small the alley is, it is guaranteed to be filled with vendors; every alley is a world of its own and a market unique to that area.

You never know what you will find in an alley market, in this one, I found a cat. A cat that is furiously guarding the fruit stand. I guess It is ok to have a cat guarding a fruit stand because we all know that cats are meat eater, they won’t look twice at the fruits, they are there for the mouse! A perfect symbiotic relationship with the human, that’s what the human thinks anyway … until they conquer the world.

Once you are through an alley, you came out the other side and find a new world, and the scene is usually quite different from the one you enter from. I found this lively and vibrant morning scene on exits. This is actually a pretty common sight throughout downtown Bangkok every morning.

Most of the indoor shops actually open later in the morning, it’s the street vendors that open for business first, and they open very early, they are ready for business by 6 am, making up for a whole street market system supporting the entire working class in downtown Bangkok. Of course, locals shop here for their family needs as well, like buying fruit, vegetables, meats and seafood for their home cooking purpose.

You can buy veggies and meat to cook at home, or you can buy pre-made meal for your lunch and dinner, and for working class, all the pre-made meals are perfect for breakfast and lunch, and they are really cheap, very affordable for all kind of income.

If it is me, I mean, these are pretty tasty stuff, a lot tastier than I can cook, so if I live here, if I am one of the locals, I think I will give up cooking all together and buy all my food need from markets and streets.

Dough that is prepares on the street; it’s the form of the Thai Chinese Donuts before deep fried. I see them prepare these over and over again none stop, they can crank out a bunch of these in a short time, pretty efficient. Like many other street vendors, they sell what they prepare for the day and once their supply sold out, they go home. So when they finish a day’s work really depend on how good their business is.

Those dough are meant for this big wok filled with hot oil, what a faith … They fluff and expand and turn their color golden brown as they flip and flop and tumble up and down the wok, ready in less then a minute. I call them the Thai Chinese Donuts because it looks exactly like the Chinese donuts (油条 – YouTiao), they are even made the same way, but strangely, taste completely different, they taste somewhere in between cookies and candies, a lot more solid than the Chinese donuts in texture, sweeter too.

The different is in the dough I suppose. They do taste good, I chow down a bunch of it while walking the street of Bangkok. That’s the thing, my tummy was never really empty while I was in Thailand, I think I am always full most of the time. There are just too many things to eat.

Pig Feet and Pork Hock! And lots of it! They look fantastically good and delicious, but I didn’t have too many of it because, honestly, I don’t have much room for it, I am simply too full from everything I ate, and constantly …

This is a famous one, their roast duck is well known in the area, people from all over the world have come here to try their roast duck, it’s an old shop, they have been here for a long time as well. I had their roast duck noodle soup for breakfast, it’s pretty good, their soup is very clean, the taste is very clear, very focus on the feature, the roast duck, fantastic eat!

Food cart like this dots the street of Bangkok, they are everywhere selling all sort of heavenly tasting dishes, and they are mobile, they can come and go any time, and setup takes only minutes and little effort, it really is a very efficient system.

This cart here sells noodle soup, which is a main dish for the Thai, they can have it any time, from breakfast to supper and any time in between. I am a big fan of noodle soup, all sort of them, so I have my fair share of noodle soup in Thailand.

The feeling of downing a good bowl of noodle soup into your system is one of the most satisfying feeling in the world.

The general area where I am.

Part 3: Cruising The Chao Phraya River With Boat Ferry and Admiring The Diverse Riverfront Landscape Of Bangkok

-Lumaca

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