Bangkok Chinatown  Thailand  Oct.2018

Bangkok's Chinatown is one of the largest Chinatowns in the world. It was founded in 1782 when the city was established as the capital of the Rattanakosin Kingdom and served as the home of the mainly Teochew immigrant Chinese population, who soon became the city's dominant ethnic group. Originally centered around Sampheng, the core of Chinatown now lies along Yaowarat Road, which serves as its main artery and sometimes lends its name to the entire area, which is often referred to as Yaowarat Chinatown's entire area is roughly coterminous with Samphanthawong District, and includes neighborhoods such as Song Wat and Talat Noi along the Chao Phraya River, and Charoen Chai, Khlong Thom and Nakhon Khasem along Charoen Krung Road. Originally a wilderness area outside the city walls, Chinatown grew to become Bangkok's commercial hub throughout the late 19th to early 20th centuries but has since declined in prominence as commercial activity moved elsewhere following the city's expansion. It now serves as a hub of Chinese culture, with numerous shops selling traditional goods, and is especially known as a gastronomic destination. (Source:wikipedia.org)

When we came to Bangkok, there was a vegetarian festival. We went to Chinatown with my daughter and my wife, both to visit and to have something to eat. The easiest transportation in the city is with small trucks converted into minibuses. It's called "songtaew". It has a capacity of 12 people, but this figure is exceeded with standing passengers. The passenger who wants to get off is pressing the button on the ceiling. From there, we came to Chinatown on the Chao Phraya river by boat carrying passengers. Chinatown was full of people trying to sell things on the streets and preparing food for the festival. We drank sugarcane and coconut water for the first time. I saw a junk shop in one of the streets. Inside the shop was a mountain of used vehicle sprockets and bearings. I think he only knew which model piece was in where. I took a picture of it with his permission. There is a very rich street food culture. We did not tasted such flavorsas fried caterpillar and crocodile fried but tried traditional Thai dishes Pat Tai and Tom Yum and liked.