Today I’m on a boat trip organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Thai media to explore historical neighborhoods along the river in Bangkok where foreigners used to live. The trip is called “ย่านฝรั่งในบางกอก” (Foreign Quarter in Bangkok). This project is part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ cultural diplomacy. Its purpose is to create historical […]
🚂 Calling all train fans! There is an event at Hua Lamphong station from now until 16th January 2022 where you can get up close with steam locomotives and also visit places in the 105 year old station that are not normally open to the public. As well as taking pictures of the steam locomotives, […]
⛴ Good morning from Bangkok. Today I’m on a special one-day excursion on the Chao Phraya River aboard the RIVA Express. I love doing boats trips and so couldn’t resist. Cost is 699 Baht and there will be seven stops. This is a live THREAD of the trip. The RIVA Express has a lower deck […]
I’ve promoted the free drinking water dispensers at airports before, but several people had a valid question. How much can we trust that they maintain the filters? So, I brought along a TDS Water Meter to measure dissolved solids in the water. The first TDS reading is tap water at Phuket Airport. At 92ppm that […]
Good morning from Bangkok Railway Station. Today I’m taking the excursion train to Nam Tok in Kanchanaburi. There will be a couple of stops along the way before we get to the waterfall. When you get on the Nam Tok excursion train, it’s important that you get in the right carriage. This is because the […]
This morning I’m exploring Khlong Phadung Krung Kasem on foot. This outer moat for the Grand Palace was dug in the 1850’s during the reign of King Rama IV. The canal is 20m wide, 3m deep and 5.5km long. All of the land on the right hand bank of this photo belongs to the railway. […]
Good morning from Bangkok Railway Station. Today I’m going on a special day excursion to Pasak Cholasid Dam. The train leaves at 6:00am and returns tonight at 6:50pm. To go on the train excursion, you must be fully vaccinated or can show a negative ATK covid test taken within 72 hours. After we had boarded, […]
The Bangkok Metropolitan Authority (BMA) are improving the landscape on each side of Khlong Phadung Krung Kasem for 1,250 meters where it runs alongside Bangkok Railway Station. They will widened the path to include a jogging track and also plant 151 more trees. This is an artist impression of what this section of Khlong Phadung […]
One of my favourite riverside markets is Khlong Lat Mayom Floating Market in Taling Chan district of Bangkok. I went there the other weekend and it was just as popular as ever. If you are worried about crowds, I would strongly advise you to arrive by 9:00am at the latest. This is a great place […]
Now is a great time to re-visit or take visitors to the Grand Palace as there are hardly any tourists. Usually there are long lines to take selfies, and then you will always get strangers in your photos. Not so at the moment. Entrance fee is ฿500 for foreigners and free for Thais. I’ve never […]
The tradition of offering alms to monks on boats is not seen so much these days. In the old days, when canals were the highways, it was more common. One place where you can still observe this is at Kwan Riam Floating Market in Minburi district of Bangkok. If you come at 7:30am on Saturday […]
One of my passions is boats and canals. During my youth in the UK, my parents often took us on canal boat holidays during the summer. So, even today, even though I don’t as yet own a boat (one day maybe), I love exploring the canals and doing boat tours whenever I can. So, I […]
One of the most well known political street artists in Thailand is Headache Stencil. Like Banksy, he likes to remain anonymous as much as he can. He told Khaosod, “I started calling myself Headache Stencil because I knew what I did is going to cause people headaches. I’ve been a troublemaker since I was a […]
Today I’m at the Department of Disease Control to apply for my yellow vaccine passport which I will use for international travel. I’m applying at the office in Nonthaburi, but you can also apply at your local health office or provincial hospital. This THREAD gives you the steps. [2/6] I made an appointment to apply […]
It’s always good to see some historical landmarks still remaining in Bangkok. This structure in front of Central Embassy used to be one of six boundary markers on the land owned by Nai Lert. This is the information about it from the plaque: In 1909, Phraya Bhakdinoraseth (Lert Sreshthaputra) bought a vast plot of land […]