....Bangkok, the City of Angels, Sin City, Gommorah to the world, derived most of its reputation from the core of Chinatown..... the spirit of free enterprise breeds freely on moneyed fertilizer....

.....born from the womb of early Chinese immigrants Chinatown in Bangkok today continues to be a living organism of activity with its labrynth of back alleys cleverly hidden from the Tourist's eyes around the main arteries of Rajawong, Yaowarat and Hualompong....

...A 5 minute tuk tuk ride to the Friendship Bridge and I could feel the strength of the mighty Mekong from its gentle roar.? Paying US$30 for my Laotian visa, I stepped into another world far removed from its other South East Asian neighbors....
?the Grand Palace is closed this morning Sir, but I have a free tour of the National Gem Factory with compliments of TAT and should have you back at the Grand Palace by the time it opens this afternoon?

,,,hmmmm are you from Singapore? I?m a pilot from Thai Aiways and its my day off today. Gems are expensive in Singapore, don?t you think??.