The lifeblood of Thailand, the Chao Phraya flows 372 km south to Bangkok and out into the Gulf of Thailand. For several hundred years the river served as the major transport artery and hosted three royal capitals and other densely populated cities on its banks from north to south. Bangkok, the current capital with a population of over 12 million occupies a prominent position on its banks. Every day 50,000 people still use the river to get about. It is also where the many faces of Thailand from half naked children frolicking in its muddy waters to precariously built shacks teetering on the water’s edge and in complete contrast, gleaming high rises, ornate temples, civic buildings and monuments built by several foreign trading partners of yore can be glimpsed.
Among the impressive sights on its banks is the 18th century Grand Palace, once the home of the Thai King and the seat of government. Wat Pho or the temple of the reclining Buddha, 46 meters long and covered in gold leaf and the magnificent Wat Arun, the temple of dawn. The Royal Barges Museum, the dry dock for a fabulous collection of eight gilded teak ceremonial barges, the like of which is not seen anywhere else is also on its bank.
Taling Chan, Wat Saphan and Wat Mayomi Floating Markets on the Thonburi bank of the river provide an insight into a way of life when lives were inextricably bound up with the waterway. Most of the stalls sell food and visitors get to sit on mats or on low chairs and enjoy some excellent traditional cooking.
The river still plays an important part in the spiritual lives of the Thais. Many people still release fish, turtles and eels into the river to gain merit and the river is the site of festivals such as Loi Krathong and Songkran. During Loi Krathong in November candles in decorated floats are set adrift under a full moon with offerings for ancestors and also to take away bad luck. During Songkran on the 14th and 15 of April the river banks resound with happy laughter of people being drenched with water. The river is also the site for long boat and swan boat races which are international competitions.
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