Thailand with kids (Part Two)- Exploring Bangkok

Hello, Bangkok!

For the second leg of our trip, we drove back up to Bangkok and checked into the Centrepoint Sukhumvit 10 hotel, where we enjoyed a beautiful 2BR/2BA with kitchen and washer/dryer (and great buffet breakfast) in a central part of town for only ~$120 USD. Lodging in BKK is SO affordable!

The hotel has a little tuk tuk to take you to the main drag (the Suk)- it's only a 5 min walk, but there are no sidewalks.

Waiting for the Sky Train

We explored our little area and then took the Sky Train to a delicious restaurant  (Soul Food) for dinner. The next morning, we were up early to explore the city. I am trying to make sightseeing palatable for the kids, so we focus on cool transportation methods (of which Bangkok has many!) and interesting aspects of historical/special sights. We talked about Buddhism before we left and made sure they would be respectful at the temples.

We took the Sky train over to the river and then took the Chao Phraya boat (I must admit, not easy to figure out, but once we were on it, totally fun!) to Tha Tien, where we visited Wat Pho. The weather was delightful, sunny and maybe 85, but not the normal scorching hot weather I think Bangkok is known for.

The view from the river boat is amazing. I could ride up and down all day. 

At Wat Pho, we visited the reclining Buddha and just enjoyed the lovely buildings and grounds.

The kids have started looking at the guide books and asking to visit certain sights, and I am so excited about this development! I think the key to happy child travelers is to let them have some say in the process, so we let M choose the next destination- the amulet market. A tuk tuk seemed the perfect way to get there, and that may have been everyone's favorite part of the day.

After lunch, we decided to head back to the hotel and go for a swim. We were tempted to visit one more temple (Wat Arun) where we heard the kids are allowed to climb on the walls, but we didn't want to push it.

That night, we had dinner at Cabbages and Condoms, a restaurant whose proceeds support family planning and HIV prevention in Thailand. I came here 13 years ago as a public health grad student, and it was so fun to be back.

Overall, an amazing day. I was just so proud of the kids. They didn't whine or complain the whole time, and really seemed to love the exploring a new city. Bangkok is lively, friendly, and interesting. We all fell in love.