Day 5 - Cruising the Chao Phraya River

Today we decided to catch the local ferry to one end and then back to the other end and finally home. On our walk to the ferry we saw a broom seller.

And then Phra Sumen Fort

This is the Tourist Ferry we did not catch - it was 150 Baht per day each, going from Pier 1 Oriental Pier to Pier 13 Phra Arthit. We spent less and went a lot further than it travels on our adventure today, we travelled the whole route from S3 at Wat Rajsingkom to N30 Nonthaburi (Pibul3).

Kevin found a new knotted string for his Jade stone he got in New Zealand many years ago and got the craftsman to 'sew' the stone onto the new necklace. This is the craftsman in action.

 And just nearby lots of bicycles were 'parked' for the day whilst the riders were at work.

And then we started cruising the river. Not sure what all these sights are but they are of Bangkok. I've left most of them small - if you want to see one larger just click on it.

When we got to the end at Pier N30 we got off and found a really interesting 'wet' market, selling all sorts of vegetables, fishes, meats etc.

What about some fresh whole frogs? You can buy them skinned and lying flat or skinned with their internal organs on the outside folded up in a bundle.

Pink and Green Eggs - who knows what type of bird these are from?

This is travelling the other side of the river going to Pier S3.

It was nice to see one of the shrines to Buddha being constructed this one sitting in the lotus flower.

The city power plant.

Wat Arun that we visited in the beginning of our week in Bangkok.

The river can get choppy depending on the speed of the boats and you can get an extra wash if you are not careful.

We got off at the other end Pier S3 and went for a walk around the Wat there and we were able to make a donation to fund the cremation of an unclaimed corpse, due to the poverty of so many here this is something that occurs often, so it was nice to make a difference in this way.

And the unique to Thailand Mother Earth wringing fresh clean water out of her hair for the children of the earth can be seen again.

The diversity of this land is so great that in one day of travelling the river we have seen the wealth of the modern City of Bangkok to the poverty of the suburban housing etc. At every turn you are brought back to the present moment in so many ways. The sounds, the sights, the smells, the ground on which you walk all changes so quickly that you must be forever present to every change and happening, both from a safety point of view to avoid falling, getting burnt, clashing with other people, to the constant changes your senses experience.

This was the market place we walked through to find a restaurant for our last dinner in Bangkok and then our walk home.