Back to Brilliant Bangkok
A Great City for Street Photography
We had just three days in bustling Bangkok so we hit the streets with our cameras and went to see what we could see…
![Man with a walking frame and bright yellow sunglasses](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07618-2013-07-21-at-12-14-42.jpg)
My eye was caught by his glasses
![Smiling man doing a peace sign on a pink bus](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07833-2013-07-22-at-11-00-05.jpg)
He was happy to have his picture taken!
![man waiting for food at a street cafe in Chinatown, Bangkok](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07684-2013-07-21-at-17-40-53.jpg)
Waiting for dinner
The Decline of the New Empire Hotel
We had arrived very early in the morning on the overnight sleeper from Vientiane in Laos. (Click here to read about that journey.) Making our way the short distance to Chinatown on foot, it did not take us long to reach our hotel of choice. The New Empire on Yarowat (AKA Yaowarat) Road is a large hotel which we found to be good value when we stayed last year. However, prices rise and places change. We would no longer recommend staying at the New Empire. We took a room at the back when we found out the prices of the larger front rooms in which we’d been so comfortable last time. The wifi was cripplingly slow, so much so that even downloading an email was impossible most of the time. The final disappointment came when I asked for the breakfast voucher on our first evening there; we were told that they no longer did breakfast! What had happened to the lovely ladyboy maid who’d so faithfully served us our coffee, marmalade and toast last year?!
![B+W street photo - SOCKS](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSCF1253-2013-07-21-at-17-42-07.jpg)
Man with interesting socks
![man crossing a clear Yarowat Road in Bangkok](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSCF1252-2013-07-21-at-17-41-08.jpg)
A rare moment of clear traffic
We got our 10,00 steps in easily being based in Chinatown. The area is not well served by the amazing BTS; you have to walk to the railway station to connect with the underground MRT before you can then connect with the overhead BTS.
![Golden Buddha is housed at Wat Traimit](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07848-2013-07-22-at-13-04-01.jpg)
Wat Traimit (which houses the largest Golden Buddha in the world) is between the railway station and Chinatown
After looking at several other cheaper (and distinctly dodgy) places on the same road we decided that as it was only for a couple of days we would stay put. So, Yarowat Road was our stomping ground and most of the pictures on this post are from the Chinatown area.
![Yarowat Road in Chinatown, Bangkok](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07694-2013-07-21-at-17-51-11-1.jpg)
A true city picture – nothing like this in Vientiane
![men playing Chinese chess in Bangkok](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07720-2013-07-21-at-18-12-11.jpg)
Chinese chess at a food court
![Silom, Bangkok at night from BTS walkway Bangkok night street shot](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSCF1017-2013-07-20-at-21-16-03.jpg)
View from the BTS bridge in Silom on the way back from MBK
We did make it back to the enormous MBK shopping centre though. I bought nothing more exciting than our dinner there but Henry purchased a new camera! He got a good deal and will be able to claim the tax back via the VAT refund scheme when we leave the country.
![yo-yo craze Bangkok 2013](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC04765-2013-07-20-at-18-40-07.jpg)
One of a group of youngsters practising their yo-yo tricks outside MBK shopping centre.
![man selling food from a cart in Chinatown Bangkok](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSCF1166-2013-07-21-at-12-40-10.jpg)
One of the first photos from Henry’s new Fuji
![Tuk Tuk on Yarowat Road](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07851-2013-07-22-at-13-04-31.jpg)
Classicc Bangkok tuk-tuk
Chinatown by Night
![Juice selling at night in Chinatown](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07808-2013-07-21-at-19-37-07.jpg)
Selling freshly pressed juice, particularly pomegranate, on Yarowat Road
Bangkok’s Chinatown is interesting by day; the tiny alleyways, the vast array of shops and markets and street side vendors and the people that live there all contribute to that. It is at night though when it really comes alive, and Yarowat Road is the beating heart of nocturnal Chinatown.
![Lights at dusk in Bangkok's Chinatown](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07761-2013-07-21-at-18-55-55.jpg)
Dusk falls on Yarowat Road
![Durian stall at night](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07755-2013-07-21-at-18-54-18.jpg)
The scent of durian hangs thickly around this stall
![pork wonton stall](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC07731-2013-07-21-at-18-37-18.jpg)
Freshly fried pork wontons – one of the many snack type foods we indulged in
![Lady selling lotery tickets](http://www.minisuitcase.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSCF1307-2013-07-21-at-19-07-50.jpg)
Buying lottery tickets is the ONLY legal form of gambling in Thailand – no wonder it is so popular
I hope you enjoyed some of our street photography from the largest Chinatown outside of China. Read about our journey to the northern city of Chiang Mai in my next post… I’ll leave you with a relaxing shot of some gentleman enjoying a foot massage in a small mall:
Bangkok: 20th – 22nd July 2013