Our first day in Thailand was spent in Bangkok, the nation's capital as well as the most populated city in the country, with over 8 million residents occupying the 605 square mile city. We arrived early on the morning of December 2nd and after we freshened up a bit, we decided to explore the city. After all, we hadn't traveled 22 hours to sit in our hotel room. Our hotel was located near China Town, a popular tourist area and a haven for foodies who flock here after sunset to explore the vibrant street-side cuisine. In the day time, it’s no less busy, as hordes of shoppers descend upon the less than 1 mile strip adjacent to Charoen Krung Road. Packed with market stalls, street-side restaurants and a dense concentration of gold shops, Chinatown is an experience not to be missed. Our first mission upon exiting our hotel was to trade in our US dollars for baht. We discovered that the best place to do this was at the FOREX located at the nearest temple, the Temple of the Golden Buddha. This 15 ft tall statue weighs an impressive 5.5 tons and is the world's largest solid gold statue, estimated to be worth 250 million dollars. Once we had cash in hand, we were on a mission to explore the city and find food. We asked one of the locals for a food recommendation and soon enough we were in Tuk Tuks being driven through the crazy streets of Bangkok. A Tuk Tuk is a common means of transportation in Thailand. It's a 3-wheeled auto rickshaw and vehicle for hire. Keep your hands and feet inside when you're driving through the streets because no one seems to know what lanes are for. Bangkok drivers are nuts! Mopeds are also a
Our first day in Thailand was spent in Bangkok, the nation’s capital as well as the most populated city in the country, with over 8 million residents occupying the 605 square mile city. We arrived early on the morning of December 2nd and after we freshened up a bit, we decided to explore the city.
