Number 1 on any tourist list of things to do in Bangkok is to visit a temple. Famed for their intricate designs that glisten in the Thai sunshine.

Given that Wat Po is opposite our accommodation it made sense to go there. We arrive as they were opening the doors (my boys are early risers, they did not inherit that trait from me!) and we pretty much had the place to our selves. Lego boy was particularly impressed with the golden reclining Buddha whist Baby blue kept going up to statues and copying their stance. I particularly liked his attempt at putting his leg behind his head.

After a couple of hours exploring the rooms and court yard it was getting quite busy so we decided to leave.

The other big temple in Bangkok is Wat Phra Kaew and the royal palace but I didn’t think the boys (including husband) would be up for that today.

Instead we headed to the ferry port with the intention of going up the river to the amulet market. But as we questioned a man started telling us about a tour.

I am always dubious in these situations, wary of scams. The tour was a lot more than the ferry for sure but it did sound good. I asked him to show us on a map the route and also the boat before we agreed. My advice in these situations is don’t be rushed into the decision either way. Yes it could be a scam or you could end up on a unexpected cool experience.

Thankfully in this case it was the latter. We had a boat to ourselves much easier with the boys as they climbed around looking at the passing city.

Those of you that know me or have followed this blog will know water is my happy place. On the boat I finally relaxed. It had been a full on few months since Vietnam (I know I am amazingly lucky to be able to say that) the fast pace of city life had left me (as husband would say) a Mardy bum.

But the boat sliding past stilted houses, the sound of the water knocking on the boat and the rhythmic motion washed it all away. Husband slides in next to me “You look happy” and I could honestly answer “yes I’m happy”.

The trip took about an our which was perfect as the boys were starting to get restless. We climbed out at our original intended destination and went looking for food.

Now number one on Middle Mans list of things to do in Bangkok was take a tut tut ride. After chatting with a friendly man (who genuinely seemed to want to just be friendly) we had a few ideas on places to visit. We negotiated a price for the multiple stops and jumped in a tut tut. Our cheap price was only achieved because we had agreed to visit two shops as well.

This is common practice in many Asian city’s. It can be annoying if you unexpectedly get taken to a shop so if you are quoted what seems like a really good deal it’s best to confirm that the driver won’t stop at shops. If they are going to it’s up to you whether to accept it or not.

Basically it works by you spending 10/15 mins in the shop (buy if you want) then the tut tut driver gets food/drink/fuel depending on his deal with the shop. For us we didn’t mind the shop stops for the cheaper price and the understanding that he would wait at each place for us to return. Saving is renegotiating with other drivers, probably saving us a few mins at each place anyway.

We visited a couple of temples, one with Buddha as tall as a 3 story building (unfortunately it was surrounded by scaffolding). The last stop was the golden mount.

The walk up was a great way to use up the last of the boys energy and they particularly enjoyed sliding back down.

And what better way to end the day of course with a cocktail (or 2) 😀