Chao Phraya river | Hello from the Five Star Vagabond

Asiatique Market Shops Bangkok

July 18, 2017 by David Herd

ASIATIQUE The Riverfront

Asiatique Market Shops Bangkok

Asiatique Market Shops Bangkok located in the heart of the city on a 30 acre plot. Lots to keep you busy here, there are 1,500 shops & 40 restaurants.

Free shuttle

The easiest and fastest way to get there is via boat. Just catch the BTS (Skytrain) to Saphan Taksin station and board the free shuttle at the end of the pier. It only takes about ten minutes & the boat runs every 30 minutes between 4.00 – 11.30 pm.

A word of warning

Please be careful if you want to take a taxi from Asiatique, the Bangkok taxi Mafia are in full control of the taxi rank at the center. They will charge you B400 ($12 usd) for a fare that in our case for a 6 km trip should have been B70 or $2.50 usd. It is such a shame that TAT the Thai tourist Authority allows these gangsters to tarnish the image of this great city.

How much does a taxi cost in Bangkok?These fares are estimates; the exact fare will depend on traffic and any other surcharges noted below.

A journey of 5km = 55 Baht
A journey of 10km = 80 Baht
From Terminal 21 shopping mall (Asoke Skytrain station) to Grand Palace = 90 Baht
From Bangkok Suvarnabhumi airport to MBK shopping centre (National Stadium Skytrain station) = 260 Baht meter fare + 70 Baht express-way tolls + 50 Baht airport pick-up surcharge.

Good vale at Capri

As soon as you step off the ferry head for Capri which is right in front of you, they have an extended “happy hour” with 2 for one drinks. We ordered 2 ice cold Chang draught beers for B24o & got the next 2 free.

Wood fired pizza oven at Capri

This is my favorite photo from our night at Asiatique.

The finished product arrives. 🙂

Inside Capri

Sit inside or out whatever suits you. 🙂

Jack lives here.

Of course he does.

As the sun goes down

The cruise boats glide up the mighty Chao Phraya river. Follow THIS LINK for boats & buildings on the river.

Great time of the day for photos

Twilight offers a unique lighting scenario, within which ambient light (sunlight) gradually fades, creating a sparse but magical effect that is almost impossible to create artificially. It fades into the artificial light being emitted by street lights. Houses and offices and can sometimes create an ‘un-real’ feel as the shortage of light diminishes the eye’s perception of distance.

Asiatique Market Shops Bangkok

This is a must for your Bangkok bucket list.

Ferris wheel

Looks magic at night.

Time for some food?

These roast chickens look terrific at Fine & Dine.

Chinese food in Market St

Decisions, decisions, where to eat?

Finally we chose “Why 97”

Lucky for us they were offering a 30% discount for dining before 8pm.

Why 97 was good value.

Food was good & the wine a little expensive.

Flesh eating fish

Always a popular pastime in Thailand.

One of 1,500 shops

Shop till you drop, but be prepared for things to be a little more expensive than some other night markets.

There is the taxi queue

Please remember what I said earlier about the taxi rip off.

When I’m in Bangkok I like to stay in Sukhumvit Soi 11, here is an excellent budget hotel, if you USE THIS LINK you will get a great rate of around B1100 per night, or $30 USD.

The best Bangkok budget hotel I have ever stayed in.

Close to Nana BTS.

Centre Point hotel

For something more upmarket near where the ferry docks try Centre Point, fabulous 45M2 rooms, for a great discount book through THIS LINK.

Here are some more posts to check out

Sydney Paris Bangkok

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Great hotel room rates anywhere in the world if you

book through these links below.

Book now & pay later.

Plus free cancellation .

Bangkok Hotels Pattaya Hotels

Pattaya live webcam

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That’s all folks

Everything you wanted to know about Bangkok but were afraid to ask. 🙂

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Canal cruise long-tail boat

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Pattaya live webcam

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Buildings Chao Phraya River

July 17, 2017 by David Herd

Up the lazy river

Buildings Chao Phraya River

Buildings Chao Phraya River Bangkok are one of the many interesting sights in this great city. Take the Sky Train to Saphan Taksin station or grab a taxi. The river ferries leave from just below the station.

Above is the free shuttle to Asiatique an excellent night market 10 minutes away. Lots of terrific restaurants, be careful if you want to take a taxi home from there, they will quote B400 for an B80 ride, the Bangkok taxi Mafia is in full operation here.

Sathorn Unique Tower

Planned as a high-rise condominium complex, construction of the building was halted during the 1997 Asian financial crisis, when it was about 80 percent complete. It’s now the most prominent of Bangkok’s many derelict buildings, and has become a destination for urban explorers.

One of the many skyscrapers.

Bangkok is really going through a building boom, particularly along the mighty Chao Praya river.

One of the very tall buildings.

Check out my Bangkok building photo blog on THIS LINK.

Sunset on the river

There are many ferries large & small taking people on a cruise along the mighty Chao Phraya river, follow THIS LINK for another of my photo blogs.

The golden dome

Sirocco Sky Bar is the world’s highest open-air bar on the 64th floor of the State Tower located on Silom Road, Bang Rak business district, Bangkok, Thailand, the second tallest building in Thailand.

Centre Point Hotel Silom

Centre Point Hotel Silom is the white building close to the State Tower, excellent 45 M2 rooms, for a discounted room rate just book through THIS LINK.

All shapes & sizes

So many interesting boats on the river.

Buildings Chao Phraya River Bangkok

How would you ever find a life-jacket if there was a problem with the ferry?

Thanks for visiting my Buildings Chao Phraya River Bangkok photo blog, follow THIS LINK for the Asiatique market.

Here are some more posts to check out

Sydney Paris Bangkok

Tokyo Rio De Janeiro Budapest

London Beijing Capetown

Great hotel room rates anywhere in the world if you

book through these links below. Book now & pay later.

Plus free cancellation .

Bangkok Hotels Pattaya Hotels

Slide show here.

Pattaya live webcam

That’s all folks

Check out these great photo blogs.

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Sydney Harbour

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Pattaya live webcam

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Chao Phraya Iconic Bangkok River

December 12, 2013 by David Herd

State Tower at Silom

Chao Phraya Iconic Bangkok

Chao Phraya Iconic Bangkok River is a great way to explore this magnificent city. There are many different boats to take you to all the interesting places. Large & small ferries, long-tail boats and dinner cruises. The photo above shows one of the many wharves where you can board the boats.

Long-tail boat

The long-tail boat, known as Ruea Hang Yao is a type of watercraft native to Southeast Asia, which uses a common automotive engine as a readily available and maintainable power-plant. A craft designed to carry passengers on a river may include a lightweight long canoe hull, up to 30 meters, and a canopy. There is much variation among these boats, some have evolved from traditional craft types, while others have a more improvised look—the sole defining characteristic is a secondhand car or truck engine.

Huge truck engine

Advantages to the inboard engine with a long drive-shaft include keeping the engine relatively dry. Following the basic design pattern allows a variety of engines to be attached to a variety of different kinds of hulls. This flexibility simplifies construction and maintenance while sacrificing the efficiency and comfort that might be expected of a typical mass-produced product.

Cooling to the engine is provided by a shaped metal pipe strewn underneath the rear running board which is used as a rudimentary heat-exchanger. This is then coupled to the engine using rubber or plastic hoses. Clean water is then used as the coolant.

Control is achieved by moving the engine with a lever stick attached to the inboard side. Ignition and throttle controls provide simple means to control this simple craft. Larger boats may include more than one “tail,” with several operators piloting in tandem.

Chao Phraya Iconic Bangkok River

How would you ever find a life-jacket if there was a problem with the ferry?

Here is another photo blog on the Chao Phraya river.

River City shopping mall on the Chao Phraya river

When it was completed in 1984 the complex was awarded the Gold Medal for the “Best Commercial Complex” by the Association of Siamese Architects under the Royal Patronage of Thailand. The complex is an art and antique center that showcases Thai art and culture. On the third and fourth floors are over 100 art and antique shops with antiques such as Buddha images, gold ornaments, large blue and white vases, porcelains, silver boxes and betel nut sets, art deco clocks and sculptures, intricate wood carvings and other artwork also from China, Thailand, Burma, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. Monthly auctions held at the River City auditorium on the fourth floor every first Saturday of each month are organised by the Riverside Auction House Ltd.

The Royal Orchid Sheraton Hotel

The Sheraton joins river city with an elevated walkway.

Long-tail boat at the Sheraton Pier.

Without a doubt AGODA is the best online Hotel booking site.

Not all buildings on Chao Phraya Bangkok’s major river are modern.

One of the many dilapidated buildings on the Chao Phraya river. Here is my live webcam from my balcony overlooking Pattaya beach in Thailand.

Chao Phraya Iconic Bangkok River waterfront living

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Magnificent C.A.T. Telecom Building.

CAT Telecom Tower, Bangruk, this building holds Largest Thailand’s Internet Exchange. The C.A.T. Communications building. Bangkok features some beautiful modern architecture, and the government budgets are usually high enough to afford it. CAT is the state-owned communications company, their real company name is CAT Telecom Public Company Limited. Why the name CAT? Because it used to be known as the Communications Authority of Thailand.

Centre Point Hotel

Centre Point Hotel Silom is the white building, excellent 45 M2 rooms, for a discounted room rate just book through THIS LINK.

State Tower

Centre Point Hotel Silom

Centre Point Hotel Silom is the white building close to the State Tower, excellent 45 M2 rooms, for a discounted room rate just book through THIS LINK.

Wat Arun.

Wat Arun, “Temple of Dawn” is a Buddhist temple in Bangkok Yai district of Bangkok.

What could possibly go wrong?

Who said you need to pay attention on the

Waiting for the lock to fill.

Here I am in a long-tail boat with two English friends. Thanks for checking out my blog Chao Phraya Iconic Bangkok River, if you need to book a hotel in Bangkok there is no better site than AGODA. Four English friends came to Bangkok January 2013 and had a wonderful holiday.

Not everybody is happy on the river

A Vietnamese cargo ship ploughed into riverside houses along the Chao Phraya River in Phra Pradaeng district yesterday April 5t 2017, damaging three homes.

Residents fled to the streets in panic as the cargo ship loomed over them. Three houses were damaged, one badly, but nobody was injured.

iCheck Inn Soi 11

When I’m in Bangkok I like to stay in Sukhumvit Soi 11, here is an excellent budget hotel, if you USE THIS LINK you will get a great rate of around B1100 per night, or $30 USD.

Here are some more posts to check out

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