{"id":1935,"date":"2008-12-29T17:33:47","date_gmt":"2008-12-29T21:33:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/?p=1935"},"modified":"2008-12-29T17:38:15","modified_gmt":"2008-12-29T21:38:15","slug":"bangkok-thailand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/?p=1935","title":{"rendered":"Bangkok, Thailand"},"content":{"rendered":"

Such contradictions give the City of Angels its rich, multi-faceted personality. Delve just a little deeper and you\u2019ll find a city of climate-controlled mega-malls and international brand names just minutes from 200-year-old village homes; of gold-spired Buddhist temples sharing…<\/p>\n

\"bangkok.jpg\"<\/p>\n

Same same, but different. Its Thailish T-shirt philosophy that neatly sums up Bangkok, a city combining the tastes of many places into a unique and often spicy dish that is never, ever boring.<\/p>\n

Such contradictions give the City of Angels its rich, multi-faceted personality. Delve just a little deeper and you\u2019ll find a city of climate-controlled mega-malls and international brand names just minutes from 200-year-old village homes; of gold-spired Buddhist temples sharing space with neon-lit strips of sleaze; of slow-moving rivers of cars bypassed by long-tail boats plying the royal river; and of streets lined with food carts selling Thai classics for next to nothing, overlooked by restaurants on top of skyscrapers serving international cuisine.<\/p>\n

If all this sounds dizzying, rest assured that despite its international flavor, Bangkok remains resolutely Thai. The capital\u2019s cultural underpinnings are evident in virtually all facets of everyday life, and most enjoyably through the Thai sense of s\u00e0n\u00f9k, loosely translated as \u2018fun\u2019. In Thailand anything worth doing \u2013 even work \u2013 should have an element of s\u00e0n\u00f9k. Whether you\u2019re ordering food, changing money or haggling at the vast Chatuchak Market, it will usually involve a sense of playfulness \u2013 a dash of flirtation, perhaps, and a smile.<\/p>\n

In fairness, there are times in Bangkok that is more fun than others. The city\u2019s three seasons (cool, hot and wet) are all pretty warm, but November to February is the most enjoyable \u2013 not that the rest of the year is impossible \u2013 and the tropical storms of the wet season bring a dramatic relief.<\/p>\n

Weather
\nAt the centre of the flat, humid Mae Nam Chao Phraya delta, Bangkok sits at the same latitude as Khartoum and Guatemala City, and can be as hot as the former and as wet as the latter.<\/p>\n

The southwest monsoon arrives between May and July and lasts into November. This is followed by a dry period from around November to May, which begins with lower relative temperatures until mid-February (because of the influence of the northeast monsoon, which bypasses this part of Thailand but results in cool breezes), followed by much higher relative temperatures from March to May. It usually rains most during August and September, though floods in early October may find you in hip-deep water in certain parts of the city. An umbrella can be invaluable \u2013 a raincoat will just make you hot.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s worth remembering that we\u2019re talking about the weather here, a temperamental beast if ever there was one. So all the dates above are flexible. In 2008, for example, Bangkok was flooded by a major storm in normally dry January, and the cool season stretched well into March.
\n
\nFor a handy interactive weather map for Bangkok and the rest of Thailand, see www.travelfish.org\/country\/thailand<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Getting Around
\nOriginally, Bangkok’s transportation system was based on the Chao Phraya River and a series of canals. With the advent of the automobile, however, many of the canals have been filled in to make way for roads, and water travel is most common on the Chao Phraya. Finding your way around Bangkok is a challenge. Bangkok is not a planned city, and its growth has often been chaotic. The city sprawls alongside the Chao Phraya River, with roads and alleys spiraling off in every direction. Rama I Road goes through the center of town. Further along, Rama I turn into Sukhumvit Road, an area with many hotels, restaurants, and bars. Most visitors to the city travel by taxi, river taxi, or tuk-tuk (cheap open-air, three-wheeled taxis).<\/p>\n

Money
\nMost travelers rely on credit or debit cards to access cash in Bangkok, where ATMs are almost as common as bum holes. The basic unit of Thai currency is the baht. There are 100 satang in one baht \u2013 though the only place you\u2019ll be able to spend them is in the ubiquitous 7-Elevens. Coins come in denominations of 25 satang, 50 satang, 1B, 5B and 10B. Paper currency comes in denominations of 20B (green), 50B (blue), 100B (red), 500B (purple) and 1000B (beige).<\/p>\n

By Thai law, any traveler arriving in Thailand is supposed to carry at least the following amounts of money in cash, travelers checks, bank draft or letter of credit, according to visa category: Non-Immigrant Visa, US$500 per person or US$1000 per family; Tourist Visa, US$250 per person or US$500 per family; Transit Visa or no visa, US$125 per person or US$250 per family. Your funds might be checked by authorities if you arrive on a one-way ticket or if you look as if you\u2019re at \u2018the end of the road\u2019. There is no limit to the amount of Thai or foreign currency you may bring into Thailand. Upon leaving, you are permitted to take no more than 50, 000B per person without special authorization; exportation of foreign currencies is unrestricted.<\/p>\n

Standard banking hours are 8.30am to 3.30pm Monday to Friday, though some banks close at 4.30pm on Fridays, and almost every bank in Bangkok has at least one ATM. It\u2019s legal to open a foreign-currency account at any commercial bank in Thailand. As long as the funds originate from abroad, there are no restrictions on their maintenance or withdrawal.<\/p>\n

Changing money
\nBanks or legal moneychangers offer the optimum foreign-exchange rates. When buying baht, US dollars and euros are the most readily accepted currencies and travelers checks receive better rates than cash. British pounds and Australian dollars are also widely accepted. As banks often charge commission and duty for each traveler check cashed, you\u2019ll save on commissions if you use larger checks denominations.<\/p>\n

Most banks can change foreign exchange but it can sometimes take significantly more time than the specialty exchange places. In tourist areas, such as the Siam Sq shopping district and Th Khao San, you\u2019ll often find small exchange counters outside banks; these can change cash and checks in major currencies and are typically open from 8.30am to 8pm daily.<\/p>\n

See the inside front cover for exchange rates. Current exchange rates are printed in the Bangkok Post and the Nation every day, or you can walk into any Thai bank and ask to see a daily rate sheet.<\/p>\n

Taxes & refunds
\nThailand has a 7% value-added tax (VAT) on many goods and services. Mid-range and top-end hotels and restaurants might also add a 10% service tax. When the two are combined this becomes the 17% king hit known as \u2018plus plus\u2019, or \u2018++\u2019.
\n
\nVisitors to Bangkok who depart by air and who haven\u2019t spent more than 180 days in Thailand during the previous calendar year can apply for a VAT refund on purchases made at approved stores; look for the blue and white VAT Refund sticker. Minimum purchases must add up to 2000B per store in a single day, with a minimum total of 5000B. You must get a VAT Refund form and tax invoice from the shop. Most major malls in Bangkok will direct you to a desk dealing with VAT refunds, where they will organize the appropriate paperwork (takes about five minutes).<\/p>\n

At the airport, large items should be declared at the customs desk, which will issue the appropriate paperwork; you can then check them in. Smaller items (such as watches and jeweler) must be hand-carried as they will need to be reinserted once you\u2019ve passed immigration. Either way, you actually get your money at a VAT Refund Tourist Office (0 2272 9384-5), which at Suvarnabhumi are on Level 4 in both the east and west wings. For all the details, see www.rd.go.th\/vrt<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Dangers & annoyances
\nBangkok is a safe city, and incidents of violence against tourists are rare. However, scams aimed at separating you and your hard-earned are so prevalent that the term \u2018gem scam\u2019 has become almost synonymous with \u2018Bangkok\u2019. Con artists tend to haunt first-time tourist spots, such as the Grand Palace area, Wat Pho, the Golden Mount and Siam Sq (especially near Jim Thompson\u2019s House).<\/p>\n

Most scams begin the same way: a friendly Thai male (or, on rarer occasions, a female) approaches and strikes up a seemingly innocuous conversation. Sometimes the con man says he\u2019s a university student or teacher; at other times he might claim to work for the World Bank or a similarly distinguished organization. If you\u2019re on the way to Wat Pho or Jim Thompson\u2019s House, for example, he may tell you it\u2019s closed for a holiday or repairs. Eventually the conversation works its way around to the subject of the scam \u2013 the best fraudsters can actually make it seem as though you initiated the topic. The scammer might spend hours inveigling you into his trust, taking you to an alternative \u2018special\u2019 temple, for example, and linking with other seemingly random people, often t\u00fak-t\u00fak drivers, who are also in on the scam.<\/p>\n

The scam itself almost always incorporates gems, tailor shops or card playing. With gems, the victim is invited to a gem and jeweler shop \u2013 your new-found friend is picking up some merchandise for him and you\u2019re just along for the ride. Somewhere along the way he usually claims to have a connection in your home country (what a coincidence!) with whom he has a regular gem export-import business. One way or another, the victim is persuaded that they can turn a profit by arranging a gem purchase and reselling the merchandise at home. After all, the jeweler shop just happens to be offering a generous discount today.<\/p>\n

There are seemingly infinite variations on the gem scam, almost all of which end up with the victim purchasing small, low-quality sapphires and posting them to their home country. Once you return home, of course, the cheap sapphires turn out to be worth much less than what you paid for them. Many have invested and lost virtually all their savings.<\/p>\n

Even if you were able to return your purchase to the gem shop in question, chances are slim to none they\u2019d give a full refund. The con artist who brings the mark into the shop gets a commission of 10% to 50% per sale \u2013 the shop takes the rest. The Thai police are usually of no help, believe that merchants are entitled to whatever price they can get. The main victimizers are a handful of shops that get protection from certain high-ranking government officials.<\/p>\n

At tailor shops the objective is to get you to pay exorbitant prices for poorly made clothes. The tailor shops that do this are adept at delaying delivery until just before you leave Thailand, so that you don\u2019t have time to object to poor workmanship. The way to avoid this scam is to choose tailor shops yourself and not offer any more than a small deposit \u2013 no more than enough to cover your chosen fabrics \u2013 until you\u2019re satisfied with the workmanship.<\/p>\n

The card-playing scam starts out very similarly to the gem scenario: a friendly stranger approaches the lone traveler on the street, strikes up a conversation and then invites him or her to the house of his relative for a drink or meal. After a bit of socializing, a friend or relative of the con arrives; it just so happens a little high-stakes card game is planned for later that day. Like the gem scam, the card-game scam has many variations, but eventually the victim is shown some cheating tactics to use with help from the \u2018dealer\u2019, some practice sessions take place and finally the game gets under way. The mark is allowed to win a few hands first, then somehow loses a few, gets bankrolled by one of the friendly Thais, and then loses the Thai\u2019s money. Suddenly your new-found buddies aren\u2019t so friendly any more \u2013 they want the money you lost. Sooner or later you end up sucking large amounts out of the nearest ATM. Again the police won\u2019t take any action \u2013 in this case because gambling is illegal in Thailand and you\u2019ve broken the law by playing cards for money.<\/p>\n

Other minor scams involve t\u00fak-t\u00fak drivers, hotel employees and bar girls who take new arrivals on city tours; these almost always end in high-pressure sales pushes at silk, jeweler or handicraft shops. In this case greed isn\u2019t the ruling motivation \u2013 it\u2019s simply a matter of weak sales resistance.<\/p>\n

The best way to avoid all this is to follow the TAT\u2019s number-one suggestion: disregard all offers of free shopping or sightseeing help from strangers. You might also try lying whenever a stranger asks how long you\u2019ve been in Thailand \u2013 if it\u2019s only been three days, say three weeks! The con artists rarely prey on anyone except new arrivals.<\/p>\n

History
\nSince the late 1700s, Bangkok has been Thailand’s largest and most important city. In 1767, after the Burmese sacked and burned Ayutthaya, the ancient capital of Siam (now named Thailand), the capital was moved down the Chao Phraya River to Thon Buri or Old Bangkok, on the west bank of the river. In 1782 King Rama I (1737\u20131809;r. 1782\u20131809), upon ascending to the throne, moved the capital to a village across the river. This move was strategic, putting the wide Chao Phraya River between the capital and the often-invading Burmese. The village across the river was then composed mostly of Chinese traders and was known as Bangkok, which translates as “Village of Wild Plums.”<\/p>\n

Rama I wanted his new capital to equal the splendor of Ayutthaya, which had served as the country’s capital for more than 400 years. By the end of his reign, Bangkok was a thriving city, and King Rama I had established a walled palace complex, the Grand Palace, and a major Buddhist temple, the Wat Phra Kaeo. To fortify the new capital, Rama I ordered the construction of a seven-kilometer-long (four-and-a-half-mile-long), three-meter-high (ten-foot-high) wall along the river, which further protected the city from invasion.<\/p>\n

During the reigns of King Rama II (1768\u20131824; r. 1809\u20131824) and Rama III (r. 1824\u20131851), many of the city’s Buddhist monasteries (called wats) were constructed. In addition to their religious functions, the wats served as centers of learning, medicine, and recreation. Major temples included the Wat Arun, the Wat Yan Nawa, and the Wat Pho. During this period, however, the rest of the city was neglected. The kings built few other major public buildings and almost no paved roads. Average citizens relied on a series of interconnected canals (khlongs) for transportation.
\n
\nUntil the reign of Rama V (1853\u20131910; r. 1868\u20131910) public works were not a priority. The king foresaw the importance of the automobile and established a system of roadways and bridges. In addition, Rama V instituted a post and telegraph service, an electric tram service, and the State Railway.<\/p>\n

Much of Thailand’s history has been a battle for sovereignty, and while the country has suffered through many invasions, Thailand boasts that it is one of the few countries in Asia never conquered and colonized. This point is debatable. During World War II (1939\u201345), though Thailand was technically allied with the Japanese, troops from Japan controlled much of Thailand and were concentrated in Bangkok.<\/p>\n

In the past 20 years, Bangkok has expanded rapidly. During the Vietnam War era, American soldiers used the city<\/p>\n

During the reign of King Rama II (1768\u20131824; r. 1809\u20131824) and Rama III (r. 1824\u20131851), many citizens relied on canals for transportation due to a lack of roads in the city.<\/p>\n

as a rest-and-relaxation destination. The city then had a population of 1.5 million, a population that has since ballooned to approximately ten million. The increase in population means congestion and pollution in the city. Air pollution in Bangkok is perhaps the worst in the world, and the overcrowding and lack of planning have impacted everything from transportation to drinking water to housing. In the 1990s, Bangkok had close to one million registered motor vehicles, along with an ever-expanding superhighway system. Most of Bangkok’s canals were filled in and paved over to make new roads. This replacement caused parts of the city to sink, and annual flooding has become a problem.<\/p>\n

Despite modern problems, however, the city retains much of its ancient charm. Bangkok’s colorful markets, historic buildings, and ornate temples attract millions of tourists each year.<\/p>\n

Source: http:\/\/www.city-data.com\/world-cities\/Bangkok.html<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Such contradictions give the City of Angels its rich, multi-faceted personality. Delve just a little deeper and you\u2019ll find a city of climate-controlled mega-malls and international brand names just minutes from 200-year-old village homes; of gold-spired Buddhist temples sharing…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1935","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-plan-your-vacation-to-asia-with-our-traveling-information"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1935","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1935"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1935\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1935"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1935"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.asianinny.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1935"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}