The big smoke

My sightseeing day in Bangkok is mostly spent looking for ways to cool down. First I jump on the Sky Train, a relatively new transport system that bypasses the traffic by zooming along above it. Then the river bus gives me a nice breeze on the way up to the old part of town. 

I duck into this university campus to find a loo and it's a hive of arty activity. This student is midway through her installation and puzzling over what to do next.

The Grand Palace. Well, I am dressed modestly in what the guide books advise for visiting temples and the like – trousers and a long-sleeved top – but I have to admit I nearly pass out with the heat. A Haagen Dazs ice cream cone cools me down – it costs almost as much as my taxi ride from the airport into the city but it is worth every Baht. 

By the way, this is what happens if you don't come dressed appropriately. You get to style yourself from the Grand Palace's dressing up box. I rest my case.

This pair are much more stylishly attired. Being a monk in Thailand is akin to national service and most men do a stint at some stage. I love seeing them just hanging out, though I've yet to see one smoking...

I spot these two at Wat Pho, the most spectacular temple and one of the main sites here – the big draw, for me anyway, being the gigantic reclining Buddha...

Don't you just love those toeprints? There's ten of them. The reclining Buddha is, I think, a representation of the great one having achieved nirvana. A bit like an ice cream in the searing heat. 

I follow the Lonely Planet walking tour around the old city and it leads me down alleys lined with shophouses and street food stalls, across parks and into the tranquil courtyards of temples off the beaten track, which I quite often have to myself...

A lot of the decoration in the temples was fashioned out of ceramic rubble thrown overboard by Chinese traders when they needed to lighten their load. 

So, the sun's going down and I decide it's time to get high... I end the day on the 64th floor of the State Tower sipping a cocktail in the Sky Bar, a circular pedestal jutting out from the main terrace with only a glass panel between you and the rest of Bangkok. Very cool for me but not for the faint-hearted. It's on the far right of the picture below – you can just make out the blue glass barrier... it's been nicknamed the Vertigo Bar...