Getting off the beaten track, crossing the Memorial Bridge

[lonelywombat]

[attachment=0:3i62x3i7]Huge-Buddha-Image.jpg[/attachment:3i62x3i7]

My recent visit to Bangkok was my fourth and, having explored many of the cityтАЩs popular temples and religious sights on previous trips, I was eager to get off the beaten path a bit.

Research told me my best bet would be to take an express boat north up the Chao Phraya River from Sathorn Pier and to get off at Memorial Bridge, a stoneтАЩs throw from tourist-infested Bangkok mainstays like the Grand Palace and Wat Pho. But instead of walking north into Rattanakosin, BangkokтАЩs old city, I would walk south over the bridge into Thonburi, a decidedly more local part of town.

full article and photos author Robert Schrader

http://leaveyourdailyhell.com/2013/01/0 ... ok-temples (http://leaveyourdailyhell.com/2013/01/04/alternative-bangkok-temples/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=alternative-bangkok-temples)

[krobbie]

Wish I was around to give you my Bangkok cultural tour Lonely. I'm a big temple / palace goer. Even the most unlikely royals have left some lovely family homes for the public to enjoy.

My suggestions are:

Vimanmek Palace. This old wooden palace is fabtastic. be sure not to ware shorts or they will make you put on a sarong.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vimanmek_Mansion

Also Dusit Palace is a must.
http://www.thailandsworld.com/index.cfm?p=153

You have probably been to these places anyway but there you go.

Cheers
krobbie

[KevDik]

Good little trip LonelyWombat, great to see people getting off the well trodden path of mass tourism.
KevDik

[pong]

I pass there so often on the 82 bus(Free most of times....) or the nr 3. Its Bang Khaek=the village of the foreigners, in this case Indians are meant. It would indeed be an interesting artcile, had it not been like a >90% (cut-paste?) copy of a same article in some section of the BKKpost (must have been around nov. '12).
Now for the intrepid more curious daredevils daring to go into the bowels of this superbig city:
just a little onward along main road from bridge is the WongWien Lek (small traffic circle), which is not a circle anymore. Turn right-this street is full of massageshops, @ 99 bt/hr (in the quiet slack tmes-150 or so for normal times), then there is a BigC, transformed out of a Carrefour.
Along main road is some hairdresser school-where you can have your top cut -but by students!- for free.
Next comes the big real traffic circle, Wong Wien Yai, whcih in its 2 sidestreets used to have 2 old-style cinema's, that after all those Cineplexes opened turned themselves into special purpose moviehouses-with rental boys, katoeys, etc offering paid mouth-service-for sums you would not believe if I write them. 1 has since been torn down (across from the Robinson dept store), 1 is still alive-next street beside the market.
Other side of there is the WongWienYai train station-beside the market, this line oso famous for its railwaymarket-thats the other side of the line (trains go about ev hour, take 59 mins to reach other end, cost 10 bt for farang, free for your Thai BF)
Just a short walk onwardis the WWYai BTS stop-to the left, the line here is already being tried out for testing for further extension.

[witchhunt]

Pong you are driving me crazy with your posts. Most I can barely understand or bother to finish.

First if that article was posted before in BKK Post why did you not post it yourself
Why assume that just because you have read it, everybody else has read it.

It seems obvious that you are reading and posting from a I phone or similar. Your comments to most forums are too hasty and in fact badly written,to make any positive impact. Your last part of your reply just asserted your local knowledge, and was of little help to visitors and even locals

I have seen one or two of your posts on gaythailand ,which shows you can post not in haste. It would be appreciated if you would do that here.