Welcome back! Today we continue with our Bangkok adventure. Our first stop for today is Chao Phraya River tour. From our place, the most convenient way to start with the tour is by going to Saphan Taksin BTS station. There you will find the first stop of the Chao Phraya tourist boat. The tourist boat cost 150 baht per person and it is ride all you can for one day. You can find more information from their website: Chao Praya River Express.

We boarded the tourist boat at Sathorn Pier. We then alighted at Tha Tien Pier for our first stop, Wat Arun. To go to Wat Arun, you need to take another 5-min boat ride for 3 baht to cross the river. Also known as Temple of the Dawn, Wat Arun is one of the most famous temple in Bangkok. With its beautiful architecture and intricate detail, it is a must see. It was envisioned by King Taksin in 1768 and is named after Aruna, the Indian God of Dawn. We climbed the central prang to see the view from the top. A disclaimer to those not very fit, it can be very hard to climb since the steps are very steep so be careful and climb slowly. The temple is open to the public daily from 8.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. and cost 50 baht for foreigners.

After spending an hour taking pictures, we continued to our next destination. To get to Wat Pho, we had to go back to Tha Tien Pier. From there it's a 5-min walk to Wat Pho. Wat Pho or Temple of the Reclining Buddha, is famous for its giant reclining Buddha that measures 46 meters long and covered in gold. It's feet measures 5 meters long and is decorated in mother-of-pearl illustrations. All visitors must wear appropriate clothing; this means no exposed shoulders or skin above the knee and shoes are not allowed inside. We also walk around the large temple complex which has alot of other Buddha statues and sculptors. Entrance fee is 100 baht and opens daily 08:00 - 17:00.

Other thing that Bangkok is famous for are its street food. Before continuing with our tour, we saw a lady selling hot noodles on the street. We bought one bowl each since we it's already lunch time. After having our lunch and taking a short break, we walked to our next destination.

A trip to Bangkok won't be complete without going to one of the most beautiful attaction in the city, the Grand Palace. Built in 1782 - and for 150 years the home of the Thai King, the Royal court and the administrative seat of government - the Grand Palace is a large complex made up of several impressive architecture including the Wat Phra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha), Chakri Maha Prasat hall and many other Royal Reception halls.

Wat Phra Kaew (officially known as Wat Phra Sri Rattana Satsadaram) is regarded as one of the most important Buddhist temple in Thailand. This temple houses the Phra Kaew Morakot (the Emerald Buddha),a Buddha image in the meditating position in the style of the Lanna school of the north, dating from the 15th century AD. A brief history, the construction of the temple started when King Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke (Rama I) moved the capital from Thonburi to Bangkok in 1785. Other attractions surrounding the temple include a model of Angkor Wat, and Prasat Phra Dhepbidorn (The Royal Pantheon).

Time check, it's now 2 o'clock. Just near the Grand Palace is Maharaj Pier where we took another boat ride to go to our next destination. For the last stop of our Chao Phraya river tour, we alighted at Phra Arthit Pier. In this stop we will visit a famous place for tourist and backpackers, Khaosan Road. From wikipedia, "Khaosan" translates as "milled rice", a reminder that in former times the street was a major Bangkok rice market. It has alot of hotels, backpacker's inn, bar and restaurants. You can also book tours to different places in Bangkok from travel agents stations around the area. Most probably it would get busy on late afternoons...

We are now done with Chao Phraya River tour. Our last agenda for the day is the Siam Niramit cultural show. To go there we must take another boat ride and then a train ride. We went back to Phra Arthit Pier and this time alighted at Si Phraya Pier. From here, we had our first and only Tuk Tuk ride. Before taking a ride, do remember to negotiate first with the driver and bargain for cheaper fare. The driver quoted 80 baht to take us to Hua Lamphong MRT station. From Hua Lamphong MRT, it's 9 stops to Thailand Cultural Center MRT. We asked directions to Siam Niramit and we were informed that a Shuttle bus will be available to take us to the venue. We waited for about 45 minutes and around 5:15 PM, the Shuttle bus arrived.

Upon arrival at Siam Niramit, we were greeted by two huge elephants. People can feed them or they can take an elephant ride around the compound.

We then went on tour of the replica of different villages around Thailand. 

After taking pictures and walking around, we proceed to have our buffet dinner which is inclusive of the ticket we purchased. It was a mix of International and Thai cuisine. There were a lot of variety. In the middle of the room stands the salad and desserts station. In the corners are those cooked food. 

At around 7 PM, the outdoor pre-show started with several dance numbers. In one of the segment, they asked for volunteers to join them in the dance. 

Gates to the Siam Niramit show opened at 7:30 PM. Please note that digital cameras and tablets are not allowed inside, so you have to leave them at collection booth.

Siam Niramit is spectacular show of Thai arts and culture with great special effects. It has a gigantic and stunning stage listed in the Guinness World Records and it features over 100 performers with beautiful designed costumes. One of my favorite scene would be when they created an illusion making the whole stage an ocean floor, and a man dove to harvest a pearl. I don't want to spoil everything, you have to see it for yourself.  Show duration is 80 minutes without intermission and starts at 8 PM. After the show we proceed to get back our cameras and waited for the shuttle bus to take us back to Thailand Cultural Center MRT Station. From there, it's going home time.