Exploring Bangkok: The Canals, Golden Mount, Silom and Skybars

Bangkok, Thailand (Asia).

Exploring the canals of Bangkok, visiting the Buddhist Temple on Golden Mount, and ending the day in a a skybar in Thailand’s cool capital city.

We explored the ‘real Bangkok’ on our third day in the city! Two centuries ago, Silom was a prosperous area of low-lying fields covered in rice and fruit plantations, transport typically by riverboat through a maze of water channels called khlongs.

As the new city of skyscrapers was built, most of the canals were filled in, replaced by roads, and more recently the monorail… the BTS Skytrain is the most efficient, easy-to-use (there are simple instruction signs anyone can fathom) transport I’ve ever been on, and it’s not expensive – even if you’re walking you can follow the route so you don’t get lost around town! 

Bangkok’s Skytrain avoids traffic congestion and is presumably a godsend in the rainy season!

We rode the Skytrain on the Silom line to Siam Square in search of the few waterways which remain. Down on the street, we noticed celebrations beside a shrine (in Thailand it’s custom to build a small shrine outside a new business to bring fortune…any size shop from the smallest stall to the massive mega malls).

There were elephants and dancers at the Erawan Shrine, and ordinary people from all walks of life – traditionally dressed Thai ladies, city-bred young women in mini-skirts and heels, men in suits, tourists like me in shorts and sandals.

I joined in the ancient ritual, bought a marigold garland and took my turn to light incense (I still have a stick of incense which I’d kept), a magical moment that haunts my mind…that same scene that was shattered by a terrorist bomb in August 2015.

The canal idea was totally brilliant! Right in the heart of the modern city, it was fascinating to see the local working people and their way of life. We bought tickets at the pier (fares are cheap), then boarded a canal ferry.

Speeding through the canal a different view of city life slides by, leaving the neon lights and high-rise towers behind and passing humble dwellings, old warehouses, the occasional colonial mansion…

I hadn’t really planned it, but we got off at the last stop by Phanfa Bridge and headed for the beautiful gold spire on the hillside, the fabulous Golden Mount or Wat Saket.

Luscious gardens with frangipani trees surround the Golden Mount, a temple on an artificial hill built in the 1800s and a sacred site.

We climbed the spiral pathway (almost 400 steps to the top) passing a number of orange-robed monks.

There are several of rituals to perform on the way, so we joined in the traditions with enthusiasm, which included banging gongs and ringing Thai bells.

The courtyard at the top outside the huge gilded chedi is amazing, with monks and sightseers side-by-side ringing bells in the Buddhist tradition.

The panoramic views are stunning of the walled Wat Saket complex below, over to the old royal city, and the high-rise towers of central Bangkok in the distance.

Inside the ornate gold-leafed shrine room, everyone waited turn briefly to kneel down to revere the Buddha relic on display in the central chapel.

Walking back to the pier, there was a heavy downpour, so we sheltered in one of the many carpentry workshops, which line the road here…the various establishments sell everything from beautifully engraved little souvenirs to large intricate doorways.

Back in Sian again we tried lunch at a small very modest riverside eatery where we’d seen the workers eating earlier that morning…we pointed to a couple of photos of food and were served by a pleasant lady – simple broths, with one little meatball a piece, which tasted slightly coconut and spicy.

Just round the corner we grabbed some tasty little chicken skewers and sausages from a busy street stall (hot peanut sauce to accompany in a plastic bag!).

Bangkok at night is just amazing! Our last evening we dressed up and caught a taxi to a Skybar which was really cool!

‘Nest’ is the rooftop lounge bar of Le Fenix Hotel (Sukhumvi district) and, although not sky-high, there are remarkable views of the city lights at night. The chill-out zone is cool in all respects – an oasis above the hot chaotic city, an exclusive world of chic Zen deco and romantic pod-loungers, featuring signature iced cocktails, and Thai fusion gourmet cuisine and tapas (the best green curry I’ve ever had and the hottest).

A special night out, it was our last in Bangkok… next morning Juan and I were catching a flight to Phuket to enjoy some Thai beach life!

---