Today was a slightly impromptu day. We had it all planned, but then got talking to locals and couldn't help but follow their suggestions.
We were walking to a market when a teacher out the front of a school told us we were headed down a dead end, and we got to talking. He ended up getting us a tuk tuk and cheap deal on a river cruise!
The cruise was just over an hour, and went along a heap of small channels and past some amazing sights. There is one part of the river that is literally brimming with fish, hundreds all jumping out of the water on one spot, and even a small floating market with people selling wares from small paddle boats not too much further along!
The water was quite choppy, and there were a few times we looked around to find the closest life jacket, but we survived and saw the city from the water.
After the cruise, we went to a home of one of the original ex-pats, an architect who took up silk good manufacture in the mid 1900s before disappearing without a trace in 1967.
The house and gardens were spectacular. Pretty much exactly what you would expect of a rich American living in Thailand.
After the house, we had a quick look at the amulet markets before heading back to the hotel. I really love markets like this one, because there were no tourists, and it was a cultural experience completely unlike anything I've ever seen.
There are rows and rows of stalls selling small artifacts, some in the shape of Buddhas, other hunks of precious stones or gold, and locals poring over them all with magnifying glasses and eyepieces trying to find one that would bring them the luck, prosperity or good fortune they needed.
Tomorrow, an early early flight to Singapore xx