I knew the world ran in circles you cannot escape when the tuk-tuk dropped us off at what was purportedly his “special spot” for the second time in two visits. You see, I’d been to the same spot in Bangkok the previous year, with a different driver, on a different weekday, at a different time. They take all the tourists here. And you pay too much for the boat cruise on the river.
That first year, running around with a colleague, I was new to the game in Thailand and didn’t plan for the boat ride. So we grabbed a Chang beer on the quay and laughed at the funny ashtray. Ah ha ha! Clearly there for those smoking tourists, that naughty ceramic cherub.
This year, when our driver dropped us at the same spot, I knew. We had to take the boat ride. We hadn’t properly toured Bangkok from the waterside, and, being pilots and sailors, that need to get on the river and travel couldn’t go unanswered.
So we paid some haggled amount of bhat and off we went. Indeed, we soaked up the view from the swollen rivers running amok in Bangkok. The next day, we’d swirl into the colors of the temple. But this afternoon was all about the float.
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- A cold Chang beer on a sticky Bangkok afternoon
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- A open greeting from this little cherub on the lido
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- The boat travels through the river views of Bangkok
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- An honor-filled job to clean the palace temples swathed in color