Day 243: Cruising Chao Phraya River

One of the cheaper ways to get around Bangkok is using the ferry service along the Chao Phraya river. There are a few different boat routes, identified by different coloured flags on the boats, and there are nearly 40 docks that the most thorough ferry stops at. The places I most wanted to see were mostly located along the river, so hopping on the boats was a nice way to see things and get away from the traffic and crowds.

I took the ferry north and got off near Wat Pho. Wat Pho is most famous for a giant golden reclining Buddha statue housed in one of the temples, the site also has a mix of other statues, temples and other buildings to explore.

While in the area I walked next door to check out the Grand Palace. The price to actually go in was more than I wanted to spend, so I just walked around on the grounds outside for a bit.

I walked down to the next dock and took the ferry across to the other bank of the river to visit Wat Arun. Wat Arun is just a structure, so there wasn't really all that much to do there. The structure had an awesomely steep staircase which was the best part, in my opinion. Other visitors would go up (and especially down) clutching at the railing with both hands and slowly crawling up, and I would just bound by them. On the way down I got stuck behind an especially tentative group, and it took me almost 5 minutes waiting at each step for them to finally get down.

Since the price was the same no matter how far you go, I took the boat all the way up to the last stop to just enjoy the day, then took it all the way back and got off near my hostel and walked back.