Atlanta Hotel I got to the Atlanta Hotel in about a half an hour from the airport. The weather is cloudy but steamy. The neighborhood is quiet and I had a great meal at a nearby Egyptian restaurant, called Alexandria. The room is basic but quite large. Really it’s the art deco Lobby that’s the claim to fame. And the swimming pool Which is at its best in the evening. And the turtles! Change of Plans In walking through the town I was baffled by the fact that everyone was wearing black. It turns out that this is the biggest commemoration in Thailand’s history. Their beloved King died about a year ago and tomorrow will be the commemoration of his death. In fact he will be cremated near the Grand Palace which I was going to visit tomorrow. Big change of plans! I would like to figure out a way to participate but I’m not sure how I will do it. It should be interesting.

So I left the hotel at about 10 this morning. Most museums & sites were still closed: the Grand Palace, the national museum, the emerald Buddha – all closed. Seemed like a good idea to head to the river and look for a river tour. So I took the Metro to Saphan Taksin trying to figure out the complicated boat system. It turns out that the water was too high to take one of the Long Boat Tours that would go into the canals. It certainly looked very high. I don’t know what Bangkok will do with sea level rise. Anyway I wound up taking the orange boat line up the river. I wasn’t sure where I was going to get off but then I saw the striking towers of Wat Arun and decided to disembark there. Before before touring the temple I decided to take a stroll around the neighborhood which was on the other side of the river in the Thonburi section. Old Bangkok It was  a revelation; a surprising step into old Bangkok. I walked up one of the Khlong (canals). It was quiet and overgrown with plants and trees. All you could hear were birds chattering … Continue reading →