Colours of Bangkok

When I first started to plan this holiday in Thailand, I imagined I would spend 3 days in Bangkok. In reality it has only been one as I arrived on Day One after 9.00 p.m., and I decided to head out of Bangkok to visit the ruins of the old capital at Ayuthaya on another day.

As I mentioned in my previous post, Jim Thompson's house was high on my list of places to visit, and the photos that follow are from the rest of that day. All have been taken within about an eight block radius from my hotel, either from my morning stroll before breakfast or on a wander on my way back from the canal boat pier after visiting Jim Thompson's, but I think they still manage to capture many of typical sights and colours of Bangkok.

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Curcuma alismatifolia  'Siam Tulip' - a type of ginger.

There was a lively market along one of the canals at the back of my hotel. It would have been hard to resist the tropical fruits on display if I hadn't already ordered a platter for breakfast (served with a delicious coconut yoghurt).

Mangosteen

Rambutan

Longan

Eggplant and bitter melon

As in my posts of the laneways of Jogyakarta in Indonesia, I love how the locals personalise their homes, whether through use of colour, their potted gardens, wind chimes, and decorative bird cages.

As if the colour scheme wasn't decorative enough, there are great shell wind chimes adorning this house/adjoining houses.

Orchids

A spirit house

More wind chimes and, interestingly, the caged birds here were only of the painted wooden variety.

A canal-side home

and another.

Canal-side eatery

Another casual eating spot with friendly waitress

There were several significant Buddhist temples or wats nearby, including Thepthidaram Worawihan and Ratchanadda, as well as the Golden Mountain.

In the background is Loha Prasat or the 'Metal Palace" with its multiple spires and Buddha relic on the top floor.

The architectural detail on the temple buildings is exquisite and elegant.

Hope you enjoyed my eight block tour; not a huge area, but one that summarises my impressions of Bangkok: colour, mass plantings, exquisite temples, canals and colourful street life.