Thailand-Malaysia 2023
Day 1: Sunday 01 January 2023
Zurich – Bangkok, Thailand
These boats with long motorshafts are the ubiquitous transport on the Chao Phraya River, which provides easy access to most of Bangkok.
Another use of the river – three huge barges coupled together navigate the broad Chao Phraya River.
Bhumibol Bridge, also known as the Industrial Ring Road Bridge. The photo shows only one part of two, which make up the river transit parts of the 13 km long Industrial Ring Road connecting southern Bangkok with Samut Prakan province.
Bangkok suffers from frequent flooding, being only 1-4m above sea level. Here we see that there had been a recent flood, and this was in evidence near the river, where sand bags were still in place, and detritus was strewn around. Also notice the spaghetti tree of street wiring, which we saw all over Bangkok.
There is a variety of buildings which line the river front. Some modern developments, but often these sort of ramshackle houses on stilts.
We took a water bus up and down the river, before alighting at the Wat Arun, a tourist hotspot.
The central prang symbolises Mount Meru. In Hindu cosmology, it is dedicated to Phra Phai, the wind god. The entranceway is guarded by demons, or yaksha, from the Ramakien: the white figure is Sahassa Deja, and the green is Thotsakan, the Demon Ravana from Ramayana.
A close up of Wat Arun main prang. There are three symbolic levels. The base represents Traiphum, all levels of existence. The middle level is Tavatimsa, which is the Tusita Heaven, where all desires are gratified. The top level is Devaphum, which presents six heavens within seven realms of happiness.
There was a festive atmosphere at Wat Arun
Wat Arun is a 17th century Buddhist temple, on Thonburi, on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River, across the river from the main city centre. Its name comes from the Hindu god Arun, often represented by radiations of the rising sun.
The main prang was built in the early 19th century, during the reigns of Rama II (1804-24), and Rama III (1824-51).
Some Thai ladies posing in traditional costume at the monument. This seemed to be a popular activity – in all the Buddhist and temple monuments, we would come across people dressed for photo shoots.
Close up of the Yaksha and monkey supporting figures on Wat Arun’s main prang.
Extensive restoration work was carried out on the prang between 2013-17, which did not please everyone, as the works looked “too fresh”.
Travel Diary
After the plane arrived at 5.40, we went through immigration, providing finger and thumb prints, and a photo, to get a 6 week entry visa. No questions about ongoing flights. The elevated express train to the city gave us a good view of shanty town rows of identical housing and a series of canals, interspersed with industrial and commercial estates. Large floodlit billboards offer us daily essentials through happy family themes. Other advertising promises fun lifestyles impressing your young ‘with it’ friends, if you drink this water brand or wear these shoes. Very into bright colours, smiles galore. Little dance routines, but not overtly sexual. Modesty with heavy-handed morality, a gentle approach to social moulding, which on the surface seems to meet with no resistance.
At the terminal station, passing through a skyscraper-scattered landscape, we swap to the nearby Skytrain metro line. Elevated railways involve a lot of stairs, although there are elevators and escalators for the upward journey in most cases. At each entry we use a smartcard ticket to open the carriers, and are unaccosted by uniformed attendants with covid gear. Covid is present but not strictly restrictive. On the trains nearly everyone is wearing a mask, but not on the boats or in crowded temples.
We leave the train and descend by stages (stairs and lift) to street level, where we negotiate a busy crossing under the elevated expressway entrance/exit, and vow to use the next stop , ‘Nana’, from then on. A feature which strikes us are the ubiquitous electric cable spaghetti jumbles on nearly every post. Although it is New Year’s Sunday and early morning, street vendors and cafes and restaurants are gearing up for a normal day of street hawking.
We get to the hotel room which is luckily already available, and we even have a very copious and delicious breakfast. After this we sleep for 3 hours by tacit mutual consent on 2 queen-sized beds. For the night, Sean sleeps on the sofa bed, as the beds are a tad too narrow for us. The AC is too efficient, threatening chills. We are on a busy road, and hear it, but it doesn’t disturb us too much.
After the rest, we take the Skytrain to the river, Chao Phraya, where we take a river ferry to the northern terminal. Here we take a short walk around the block, discover a patch of mangroves, with large sandbags perched on by large pale-yellow toads. In many places, canals and drains have been sandbagged, riverside buildings barricaded, testifying to the frequent flooding problem. On the west side we alight at Wat Arun, a stunning temple complex. Young (and a couple of not so young) ladies in colourful traditional dress pose for photo ops, adding interest to the weathered but impressive monuments, pyramidal towers adorned by statues of buddhas and figurines that look like mythical creatures, and dragon-ladies and fierce warriors. Built by Rama II (1809-24), the 82m prahung is a Khmer-style tower reminiscent of south Indian guptas.
It is getting hot but not too bad. In one smallish temple, many people pack in to adore in stifled prayer an emerald Buddha sitting aloft on a glitzy pedestal, behind a glitzy array of golden buddhas. Two buddhas have a small amount of gold leaf pressed on them. Very crowded pier, couldn’t get on the overcrowded first HopOn/HopOff boat, so we stood on the heavy pontoon admiring the view of dozens of craft of all types, from luxury taxis, small buses to large craft with hundreds of passengers on 2 decks. Two very large barge convoys pass, each towed by a single tugboat. Plastic rubbish floats in amongst the algal plants.
Back finally as the sun sets redly on the Skytrain pier to reach Siam Square, where street concerts entertain against the odds of noisy crowds. We find a game shop, with many tables of youths playing board games. Pleasing to see them off their devices. Dinner here Fr 45, coconut juice in actual coconuts, sweet and sour chicken and cashew curry. And Sean had a spicy Panang curry with beef.