Wat (1)
Bangkok is many things and has many things to it. It is a city of Wats. It is a city of gold. It is a place where people in sleeveless t-shirts fall off mopeds. For all of the chaos, the eternity of Bangkok’s religious monuments are enough of a reason to be impressed. As the city develops and Bangkok aims to secure its place as a destination for crypto traders and financiers en general, the Wats find themselves increasingly overlooked by the expanding south-eastern metropolis. Wats could fill all of your days in Bangkok, and more; but after visiting all 400, you might reasonably no longer be asking ‘wat?’ but ‘why?’. If you can only visit one, I’d suggest visiting Crocodile Wat. It keeps 4 crocodiles in quite small pits, all in the name of our, not their, spirituality.
River (2)
The Chao Phraya river cuts through the heart of Bangkok’s old town and it is by no means an idle body. The array of pontoons and docks are comically shabby. Some have had restaurants bolted on, few offer any explanation for how they remain above water. Almost all of them give off a stomach churning groan in response to the waves generated by the river traffic. I took this picture balanced on a sandbag, watching the dock be overwhelmed by the rising tide. Those departing the landed boat had no choice but to remove their shoes and wade to safety. It might have been fun, if I hadn’t seen a rat family frolicking in the foamy water.
