Enjoying Bangkok - The Great City of Angels

Enjoying Bangkok - The Great City of Angels
By Margaret Winfrey

It is very easy to enjoy a luxury Bangkok vacation because the city seems almost to have been designed for tourists. To the Asians it is Krungthep Mahanakhon (Great City of Angels): they do not like the name 'Bangkok' so try to refer to as the locals do when you visit. The official name of this city contains 21 words and 167 characters, and is named by the Guinness Book of records as the world's longest place name. It shall not be repeated here!

A vacation in Bangkok is an experience of the traditions of the East together with the best of western culture, and this great city has much to offer to those interested in Oriental history and the way of life that people in this part of the world live. It offers some of the best hotels in the East and the Bangkok Oriental is one of the finest hotels in the world. A stay here is worth the vacation itself, but you get much more than that from a visit to this great city. You can enjoy your vacation while retaining the civilization with your are familiar - if that is what you want.

It's a shame that this wonderful city has the unsavory reputation it has gained, but the authorities are taking steps to stop all that, and a Krung Thep vacation can now be enjoyed by everybody, including young families. The food, history, architecture, sports and entertainment has something to offer everybody of all ages. The transportation systems are excellent, with trains, buses and other local means of transport, although due to the river and delta, many people travel in boats.

The Chao Phraya River is the life-blood of this part of Thailand, and a cruise along it is the most pleasant way to see the city on your Bangkok vacation, and it is because of this and its associated waterways and canals that it is dubbed the Venice of the East. The canals and rivers are known as khlong and maenam, and are a vey important means of transportation for many of the people of this part of the country. It is by the river that you find most of the traces that are left of the early Rattanakosin period of Thailand's history.

The city itself is low-lying, only around 6 - 7 feet above sea level, and the monsoons can create many problems with flooding. The entire area lies on a series of delta plains and at one time, each area of land separated by these waterways was a separate district of the city, although that system has now been superseded.

You can use these waterways to enjoy the city and the outlying districts, and you can take anything from a speedboat to a converted rice boat to enjoy a luxurious cruise through the city. Why not finish it off with a wonderful relaxing meal on board or even some Thai dancing and entertainment on your boat? You could even visit the water market, where all the goods are sold from boats, and you need a boat to visit. That's where you will find the real Thai delicacies, though you might be better off not examining some of them too closely!

When visiting this city, you are advised to do so with professional guides and escorts that are familiar with the city and its history, since otherwise it is easy to get entrapped in the popular downbeat culture that many visit the city to enjoy, rather than experience the true history and flavor of this great oriental city. It contains many unique Buddhist temples, or Wats, that are well worth a visit but easily missed without a guide. The Wat Trimitr (Temple of the Golden Buddha) and Wat Po (Temple of the reclining Buddha) are two of the more famous that you must visit.

Thai food is famous the world over, and although spicy has something offer all tastes. Krung Thep has a fabulous selection of restaurants, and if you can't get used to traditional Thai food, then there is also a wonderful selection of restaurants of various types. To finish off, why not enjoy some traditional Thai dancing after your meal.

Perhaps you will be so impressed by the Thai style of cooking that you want to take some of back home? Well, why not learn yourself? Enjoying your Bangkok vacation can also mean learning how to cook Thai food. Visit a local market and choose your ingredient - don't worry, your guide will keep you right. Then cook it in the Thai style and eat it yourself. What could be a better way to enjoy Thai food than to choose the ingredients, cook it and then eat it!

Wouldn't that be great skill to take back home with you? How about that for a great dinner party in Beverley Hills or Brooklyn? You would be the talk of the neighborhood with your new-found Thai cooking skills. It's always good to go on vacation and return home with something that is going to be useful for you, and what more useful than a Thai dinner in a room decorated with all those wonderful Thai souvenirs and decoratives you purchased in Krung Thep - as you can take delight in calling it. It would be a great conversation topic.

A Bangkok luxury vacation is a wonderful experience, and to enjoy this with first class accommodation and the services of your personal courier check out Ultitude Travel where you will be offered the best quality of food and travel to ensure that you and family get the best possible experience from your visit to the Orient. Also be sure to visit Ultitude-Travel.

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