Touring Bangkok on the Red No. 1

Starting down at the end of Chareon Krung Rd. the humble No. 1 bus takes you for free along the banks of the Chao Phraya River, through the 19th century diplomatic quarter through the heart of China Town before dropping you just a short walk away from the city pillar, Ko Rattanksoin, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha and Sanam Luang. Red Bus No. 1 starts in the south of the old city of Bangkok and runs the length of Charoen Krung Rd. The south stretches of its route are still primarily residential with some old temples and a lot of schools.
One temple of particular note on the southernly section is Wat Yannawa or the Boat Temple. Wat Yannawa is an old Bangkok temple built during the Ayutthaya period. It was originally called Wat Khok Kwai or buffalo stable. In the reign of King Rama I (1782 - 1809) the temple was designated a royal temple and renamed Wat Khok Krabue, which is still a stable for buffaloes though a more royal word.
In the reign of King Rama III (1824 – 1851) a junk, a vessel responsible for prosperous trade between China and Thailand during that period, was built in the temple grounds. Yan in Thai means craft or conveyance and nawa, vessel or boat; hence this wat is sometimes referred to as the boat temple. Continuing up the Charoen Krung Rd. and crossing busy Sathorn Rd the bus enters the old diplomatic quarter and today's international district. Sathorn Rd once was a large canal or klong along which many countries established their diplomatic missions and which could be accessed by ships sailing in from the Gulf of Siam. Today many embassies are still located along Sathorn Rd. Once across Sathorn Rd, the humble Red No. 1 passes by many of the stately 5 Star Hotels: the Shangrila,the Oriental and the Pennisula to name but a couple. The Oriental, of course, is one of the most famous 5 star hotels in the world dating from the times of the height of the colonial area during the reign of Queen Victoria. With the 5 star hotels along the Banks of the Chao Phraya to the left, to the right along Silom and Surawong roads are ancient Hindu and Chinese temples, but more familiar to the more cosmopolitan visitor is the nightlife found along these two famous streets and the little lanes that connect them – most notably Patpong. Continuing upriver, the resolute No.1 passes the old General Post Office with it's statue of its founder King Rama V, the old Customs House, the old Catholic Mission area with the Assumption Cathedral (The current Apostolic Nunciature is located on Sathorn Rd). One of the most beautiful Bangkok churches is the Assumption Cathedral on the Chao Phraya River. Completed in 1821, the cathedral was the brainchild of Father Pascal, a French missionary, who named the church to honor the taking up of the Virgin Mary to heaven. At River City next to the Royal Orchid Sheraton, you can get off and visit one of the most interesting antique shopping malls existing in the world. Antiques of all types, sizes and shapes from all over Southeast Asia are on display and for sale here. Great stone sculptures, old temples door to gem studded hairpins of long gone nobles. River City also has a terrace restaurant from which you can watch the river traffic pass by before you continue your Red Bus No. 1 tour of Bangkok. Just before you enter Chinatown and leave the old mission district, is the ornate Church of the Holy Rosary, built the Portuguese in 1786 with a land grant from King Rama I, four years after Bangkok was established as the capital.
Crossing Khlong Krung Kasem, Red No. 1 is entering into Chinatown. One of the most famous sites along Red No. 1's route is the famous Wat Traimit across from the Gateway to Chinatown or Yaowaraj, as Bangkokians call it. During the reign of King Rama III, a large clay brown statue of Buddha was placed in Wat Phrayakrai in the Yannawa District. This is the area to the south of the Taksin Bridge where Red No. 1 passed earlier just south of the Oriental Hotel. The temple was abandoned and remained deserted until 1957 when the East Asiatic Company took over the premises. When the temple had to be vacated, a crane was moving the statue when it slipped from the straps and fell to the ground. The brown plaster shattered from the impact revealed a Buddha statue cast in solid gold. A closer examination revealed that the statue dated back to the Sukhotai period in the 12th to 13th centuries. The statue was coated with brown plaster to discourage the Burmese from looting it. Apparently, the ploy worked. Since then, the Golden Buddha has been placed in Wat Traimit, Chinatown Bangkok. Today hundreds of devotees visit Wat Traimit daily to pay homage and pray at the feet of the Golden Buddha where is has just be installed in a brand new highly ornate hall. Along Chareon Krung Rd in Yaowaraj district, where our Red No. 1 passes, are gold shops, are spice shops, Chinese herbal medicine stores and a multitude of colorful signs written with large stylish Chinese characters. Along the route is perhaps the oldest Chinese Shrine in Thailand, the Leng Buai Ia Shrine. Chinese businessmen in this area came to this place of worship for refuge and to improve the prosperity of their businesses through paying respect as well as to be able to meet memebres of their community. The shrine is a small low roofed building built in traditional Chinese style. The shrine was built in 1658, corresponding to the central Ayutthaya period. Inside the shrine is an altar for Leng Buai Ia and his wife in the center, one for Gong Wu deity on the left side and one for the Queen of Heaven on the right side. Moving toward the end of the line the little Red No.1 crosses into the old administrative area of Bangkok before reaching the old Royal quarter of the city. Just before the end of the line, Red No. 1 passes,Saranrom Park Not far the Grand Palace is one of the public parks in Bangkok with a long history. It was originally part of the grounds of the Saranarom Palace built in 1866 during the reign of King Mongkut or King Rama IV. It is a green haven in the middle of bustling Bangkok. At the end of Route No. 1, on Atsadang and Bamrung Muang Rd., you find yourself just a 5 minute walk away from the Sao Lak Muang or City Pillar, the Grand Palace, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, Sanam Luang, Wat Po among the many other famous sites here in the center of Bangkok. Old Red No. 1 welcomes you back for a ride through the heart of Bangkok anytime.