Although I had been through Bangkok and had also stopped off for a few days I had never really had the chance to take a good look at the city. On previous visits I had headed strait for the Bars and Clubs but during my last visit (late August/September 2000) I was invited by a really cute Thai Guy from Bangok to stay with him as his guest in his house in the middle of the city.

Most days he had to work but we met up every night and he managed to find the time to show me some of what Bangkok had to offer during the twilight hours!!

My days were spent exploring the city sites, The Royal Palace, and I must admit I did drift off a few times to some of the Sauna's and other places of pleasure and naughtiness!

Getting around in the city has greatly improved since my first visit with the introduction of the Sky Train which hovers above you on huge "monorail-like" tracks above the overfull roads below. Although the complete network of tracks is not yet fully completed you are able to travel to most of the destinations that you would like to visit as a tourist and the journey is a real eye-opener as you pass through all different parts of the city. It seems as if many of the very large stores have taken advantage of the high level track and have built covered walkways connecting the Sky Train to their first (or even second!) floor areas to save you even having to go down to street level to enter the store ............... One thing that the Sky Train has done is to make some very sheltered areas at street level ............ and yet the open construction has not added to the sometimes stuffy air that can hang at ground level from the thousands of cars, busses and commercial vehicles etc.

The construction that took many years has of course also taken many commuters off the roads so the future does look quite promising for this huge metropolitan city!

The Skytrain opened for its first day of business on December 5th 1999 (HM The King's birthday) with thousands of people crowding the stations. The lines for the ticket booths at Morchit Station reached out of the station and across the pedestrian walkways. A Chinese dragon troupe performed on the platform to ensure good luck.

I would certainly recommend to anyone who is making a stop over or taking a holiday in Bangkok to take a ride on the Shy Train ......... just go anywhere and everywhere and you will see parts of Bangkok that were inaccessible in the past but are now open to the visitors of this huge city.

Using this link you can go direct to the Bangkok Transport System Official Website for maps, charges and update information. (Don't forget to come back!!).

So ..Now lets the doors of the Beautiful Royal Palace