Start With Coffee

These are views from a platform on the blue line of the MRT.  I was en route to Sathorn to meet a friend for a walk in the Old European Quarter of Bangkok.

We decided to meet at Cosmic Cafe.  It's a short walk from Saphan Taksin BTS station.

After coffee, we started our exploration.  The first stop was Wat Yannawa.

The main hall of the temple was closed for renovations.  Next to it, though, was a small museum with various exhibits.  I managed to photograph a few before realizing photography was prohibited.

We then started walking north on Charoenkrung Rd, the first modern road in Bangkok.

My maternal grandfather was named Victor.

Assumption Cathedral

While preparing to photo the cathedral, I had a friendly chat with a lady from South Korea.

The building with the gold dome is State Tower.  From a rooftop bar up there, you can look down and see many of landmarks in the area.  I particularly recall seeing Wat Yannawa and thinking it would be good to visit it one day.

Our next stop was at the old headquarters of East Asiatic Company.  We didn’t notice any construction going on, but it's supposedly being converted into a luxury hotel and spa.

We then walked on to the iconic Mandarin Oriental Bangkok.

The Bamboo Bar opens around 5 PM.  Kade and I have been there before.  I highly recommend it!

Hard to beat a watermelon smoothie on a very hot day.  This was at one of the Oriental Hotel's riverside restaurants.

We then went inside the hotel's historic tea house.

Looking back at the tea house

My mother would thrilled with that squirrel sighting!

Jim Thompson

Once done at the hotel, we walked by the French Embassy until we reached the construction site of the old Customs House, which is being turned into a luxury hotel.

We then sat and rested in a cemetery near a mosque.

This is a temple entrance/exit.  That's Charoenkrung Rd.

After an early afternoon coffee at MaLet's Cafe,  my friend and I parted ways.  It was quite a morning activity!  The heat was getting to us!

  I continued walking down Charoenkrung Rd towards the BTS.

This large shrine is at State Tower.

I found a place for a massage.  I got my typical 90-minute oil massage.  I couldn't have been happier.  It felt like the best massage ever in my years in Thailand.

Chinese spirit house inside the massage shop

Almost everywhere you go, there will be portraits of Thai royals - even in massage shops.

That's the massage shop over there.  Not the prettiest building, but inside it was very clean.  It was a common design: a multi-story shophouse with stairs.

I walked on down to the Bangrak Street Food Market.  I had first spotted it while enjoying a beer at Palate Rooftop Bar on Charoenkrung Rd.  I wanted to try it.

You guessed it!  Coconut Durian Shake!

I had the Braised Pork w/ Rice dish.  It's called Kai Palo.  It's a favorite comfort food for Thais.  I've always loved it.  And I get the boiled egg with it.

Sitting next to me was a lady from Chicago and her friend from California.  He has moved to Charlotte, NC and spends time in Florida.  I enjoyed chatting with them.  I told them they should visit us in Asheville, NC and that I would introduce them to some black bears.

This taro shake was pretty good!

I took the BTS and MRT back home.

This map I made shows all the places visited on this single-day walk.  It also includes activities I did on other days.  With determination and time, you could cover all this in two days.  If you love history, it's definitely worth it.

The entire length of Charoenkrung Rd is 5.3 miles (8.5 km).