window in Bangkok

Taken on: 1st July, 2009. Copyright: All Rights Reserved - See monkey holding peach's page of Flickr

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Set astride the majestic, churning Chao Phraya River, the Thai capital Bangkok represents all that is good and bad about an Asian megalopolis. Loved or loathed, it's a city with everything for some and nothing for others, and a place that almost every visitor to Thailand will find themselves in at some stage.

For many travellers, Bangkok, or Krungthep to most Thais (Krungthep mahanakhon amonratanakosin mahintara ayuthaya mahadilok, popnopharat ratchathani burirom ubonratchaniwet mahasathan amonpiman avatansathit sakkathattiya witsanukamprasit to those who like to refer to places by their full name), is anything but charming on first impressions. But peel back its multitude of layers, and you may well grow to enjoy this fascinating city.

Yes, it's dirty and heavily polluted, and the traffic remains appalling despite two mass transit systems opening over the last few years. Glistening skyscrapers perpetually darken wooden slums and squats, while sparkling new Mercedes dodge ... Read our complete Bangkok travel guide

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