MAE NAM CHAO PHRAYA

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MAE NAM CHAO PHRAYA

Travel with the commoners along the river of Kings

Central Thais are river people,building their homes ,livelihoods and capitals along the waterways.One such artery is the Mae Nam Chao Phraya (literally the River of Kings) ,thai tourist which starts in the mountains of northern Thailand ,sweeps past the former capital of Ayuthaya and defines the western boundary of Bangkok before it reaches the Gulf of Thailand some 370km away from its source.

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The river is always teeming with activity:hulking freighter boats trail behind dedicated tugs. elegant long-thai boats skip across the wake,and children practice cannonballs into the muddy water .The residents claiming a waterfront view range from world-class hotels to sweaty warehouses and auspicious temples.

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As evening sets in,cool river breezes mellow the harsh temperatures and the blinding sun slips into serene streaks of reds and golds.From this vantage point,sooty Bangkok suddenly looks beautiful.

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The best way to exploer the watery side of Bangkok is aboard the river express boat (p200),which sprints from Wat Ratchasingkhon in the south of the city to Nonthaburi in the north.

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At docks along the way,the ferry discharges crowds of map-toting tourists,commuting office clerks and groups of monks.(The back of the starboard-side is reserved for monks,women should opt for the port-side.)tourism thai

Start an upriver journey from Tha Sathon,accessible via the Sky-train Saphan Taksin station.On your right is the old farang (Westerner) quarter-what we refer to as Riverside-first inhabited by seafarers and multinational shipping companies.thai tourist The Oriental Hotel and other neoclassical buildings are a few of the remaining memorials to this era when the water was the main thoroughfare.

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Around Tha Ratchawong,the river brushes up against Chinatown (p15)and its cubby-holed warehouses where goods are unloaded the old-fashioned way-by hand.

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After a while,striking Wat Arun (p16)looms on your left and then ornate Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew (p10)on your right - forming a Triangular convergence of sacred sites.

North of Saphan Phra Ram Vlll ,thai tourist an elegant suspension bridge,the concrete dissipates into greenery and sunburned temples. The final stop is Nonthaburi,thai tourist the launching point for boat trips to sleepy KoKret(p156)

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