BANGKOK'S VENICE STYLE CANALS ARE FASCINATING TO GAZE UPON: AMAZING, THAT'S FOR SURE...

Copyright (C) 2007 by F. Scott Sinclair. All Rights Reserved. To enlarge the photo, click your mouse on the picture.

Thailand, especially Bangkok (the Venice of the East), has so many treasures just sitting outside the front door of your hotel. Visitors are urged to linger around the canals that permeate Bangkok's residential area, just off the main roads. Watching children dive into the narrow canals seeking shelter from the hot weather, is entertaining. To the right of the lovely Buddhist shrine is where at nighttime, vendors hawk their goods and produce to the local residents. In the morning, banana shaped boats with long propeller shafts and high powered engines pick up passengers and deliver them within walking distance to their places of work. The sound of engines can be heard over the normal traffic congestion of Bangkok proper. But no matter how modern Bangkok has become, the back streets and alleyways of Bangkok are where the smiling and caring folks of the Venice of the East reside. And if you want to know what it's like to live in a big city in Thailand, just turn right or left off a main road, and you'll likely run into a residential area: off the beaten path. That's where you'll really see how the Thais live. So, if you're in the mood to see Thailand from the inside out, dump the tour guide, and/or sightseeing bus, and see Thailand firsthand via the back streets during the daytime (never at night--safety first). You might get a glimpse of the Unseen Thailand everyone talks about, fostering some fond memories (and pictures) in the process. Always travel with friends or acquaintances when traveling in Bangkok, or anywhere else in the world. That's just common sense. I took the above picture with a Pentax K10D.

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QUOTE:

A CONVENIENT (I HOPE) TABLE OF CONTENTS OF

F. SCOTT SINCLAIR'S NOVELS

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FURNITURE STORES IN THAILAND ARE A DELIGHT TO BEHOLD.

Copyright (C) 2007 by F. Scott Sinclair. All Rights Reserved.

Click the picture to enlarge the photograph.

When I have time, it's nice to travel to Chiangmai, Lampang

and other spots in Thailand. One of the most fun aspects of

such trips is visiting numerous furniture stores along the way.

If you take a sightseeing tour of Thailand, undoubtedly your

tour guide will have the bus stop at several "tourist traps": Oops,

I meant to say, shops en route to your destination. If you happen

to notice huge price differences between shops, don't be alarmed.

More than likely, the higher priced shop(s) will be able to send

your new teakwood dinner table and chairs back home. Why

is that? Because a store must have an export license before the

authorities will allow them to ship any teakwood products out of

Thailand. Hence, that's probably the reason for the price difference.

If you choose to live in Thailand, then by all means by the lesser

expensive furniture because in most cases it's of the same quality.

But not always... Buyer beware is a good motto. In either case,

try and dicker the price to your liking. It does no harm, and

it's expected that you will at least try to bargain with Thai

merchants. That practice is as old as the hills. And if you're

wondering how you're going to place a cup and saucer on that

intricately inlaid picture, don't fret. If you haven't guessed it

already, you'll need to buy some pane glass back home to cover

the carving. Anyway, last but not least, I shot the above picture

with a Kodak P850 digital camera.

Bottom line: So, why don't you think about coming to Thailand

sometime? You'll fall in love with its culture and greatest asset:

it's people. Just a pleasant thought. Take care.

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QUOTE:

A CONVENIENT (I HOPE) TABLE OF CONTENTS OF

F. SCOTT SINCLAIR'S NOVELS.

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