A GREAT HALF-DAY EXCURSION

One of my favourite trips in Bangkok is to hop on the Skytrain and go right to the end of the Silom line and alight at Saphan Taksin station and then walk towards the pier.

We wait on the pontoon for the Chao Express Boat to come up river from our left, we hop on board and try to get seats on the left hand side of boat and away we go.

The 70 minute trip up the mighty river passes scenes splendid and repulsive, uplifting and melancholic, shimmering palaces and temples, shanties hanging out over the hyacinth-strewn river, children swimming in the polluted waters and women doing the family washing.

The stunning architecture along the way is truly memorable. Massive condominiums, unfinished towers dating back to the Asian economic crisis of the mid 1990s, the spire of the Portuguese church, the awe-inspiring Rama IX Bridge, the Thai Naval College, more temples, more bridges as the boat makes stop after stop, monks get on and off, a huge crowd of tourists alights at the stop for the reclining Buddha and the Wat Arun, all the while the boat motors farther and farther away from the pollution, the grime and the madding crowds of Bangkok.

The breeze engendered by the boat’s swift passage along the Chao Phraya comes swishing over the plastic protectors and the heat and humidity that are an ever present duo of enervation are immediately ameliorated.

After 70 minutes the Express Boat pulls into the Nonthaburi Pier. We are now in the neighbouring province of the same name. Many tourists who make this trip believe they are still in the environs of Bangkok because of the contiguous nature of the sprawl of the metropolis.

After alighting from the Express Boat, walk past the clock tower and you are on one of the main thoroughfares of the city. Both sides of this road are lined with country market stalls under canvas roofing, selling all manner of things at prices that the markets of Bangkok cannot replicate.

After you have had you fill of the myriad stalls and their endless supply of everything anyone could want, head back to the pier, walk past the point where you alighted and straight ahead you will see a pontoon restaurant. Its name is the Rim Fang, but you won’t know that until you open the menu as I have never seen a hoarding bearing its moniker on the outside of the restaurant.

We have lunched here on about 20 occasions and I have never had a disappointment. On the last occasion we visited Rim Fang I immediately ordered a large Tiger beer for me and a green tea for the girl who was taking a temporary respite from shopping.

Over a lovely chilled ale I surveyed the menu. All the usual suspects are here and they are cheap.

Finally we settle for Tom Yung Goong (I can never go past this famous dish), an order of deep fried spring rolls, one Som Tum salad, one Guay Tiaw Paad Thai (stir fired noodles, Thai style), and Hoi Tod (another dish I can never resist).

On this sweltering afternoon, with the glowering skies threatening to break open at any minute and unleash torrents of water, we sat on the balcony of the floating restaurant and watched the activities on the Chao Phraya play out on the massive aquatic stage before us.

Boatmen resting in their longtails in the hope of a customer who wants to explore the klongs of Nonthaburi, massive coal barges hooked up in a convoy being pulled along by a struggling tow boat, river boats coming down river from the neighbouring towns, a large craft struggling with an almighty load of recently felled timber and a navy patrol boat doing some exercises just a little way across the river.

After about 15 minutes our food arrived whereupon I ordered another round of drinks. The Tom Yung Goong was as good as everywhere else in Thailand. I must have had this soup dish 300 times in my travels to Thailand and I’ve never tired of it. Whilst devouring the splendid soup spoonful by spoonful, the shopper girl was telling me how delicious her serving of six mini spring rolls was. “Good as the Vietnamese spring rolls”, I ventured. “No, not that good, but they are good”. OK, I’ll try to make sense of that sentence!

The Thai style noodles were a hit with both of us. Apart from the flat rice noodles, it also contained shrimps, roasted pork, bean sprouts, some finely diced red chillies, some finely cut shallots, there was definitely fish sauce in the mix, some lime juice for sharpness, and it was finished in light soy sauce, freshly ground black pepper and some more shredded red chillies.

It left my mouth tingling from the contrasting but perfectly balanced ingredients, so “Another Tiger please”.

Our next endeavour was to make the Hoi Tod (oyster omelette) and the papaya salad disappear, which we did with alacrity and culinary aplomb. The lovely egg and flour batter with the crunchy bean shoots, shallots and the tiny oysters made for a perfect finish to a splendid meal accompanied by soothing mouthfuls of the delightful salad.

At this point several Thai schoolgirls had come into the pontoon restaurant and were sipping on Cokes. Two of them came up to us and asked if we spoke English which of course we said we did.

“Can we practise our English”, they giggled. “OK, go for it”, I said.

“Where you from Sir”? “Australia”. Giggle, giggle, giggle.

“What you do”? “I’m a semi-retired chef”. Giggle, giggle.

“You understand our English”? “Yep, sure do”. Giggle, giggle.

“You say some more English to us, yes?” I thought for moment or two then in my best Paul Hogan impersonation I said “G’day mate”.

A row of puzzled brows evolved as they looked at each other with bewilderment clearly evident. “What that mean”?

I told them it was a common greeting in Australia.

They then addressed each other for a minute or so with “G’day mate” resounding around the pontoon accompanied with much giggling. "We know new English, yes"!

Now I was the one that was giggling.

So it went on for several minutes, then satisfied that their English could be understood, they giggled their goodbyes and headed for a boat that was going farther up the river.

Sitting there that afternoon on the pontoon restaurant, having partaken a lunch of lovely Thai food, having drank three large Tiger beers, having amused a group of secondary schoolgirls, the thought occurred to me “does life get any better than this”? The simple things in life are indeed the best things I concluded.

I went to the hong nam and upon my return the bill and a business card were on a plate on the table with a single purple elegant orchid. Our express boat was almost at the pier, so it was time to leave this idyllic setting once again, but like General McArthur, we will return.

VERDICT: I never tire of this trip and I never tire of this restaurant. Many visitors to Bangkok visit all of the tried and trusted tourist venues and there is nothing wrong with that either. But do yourselves a favour one half day and take the Chao Phraya Express Boat up river to Nonthaburi. I’ll bet that you won’t regret it.

COST: 3 X large Tiger Beers, 95 baht ea.; 2 x green teas, 40 baht; 1 x Tom Yung Goong, 50 baht; 1 Thai style noodles, 35 baht; 1 x serve of spring rolls, 35 baht; 1 x Hoi Tod (oyster omelette) 55 baht, 1 x papaya salad 30 baht. TOTAL: 530 baht ($AUD19.62 at the time or $AUD9.81 per person).

SCORE: Food, 9/10; service 4/10; value for money 9/10; ambience 9/10. Total: 31/40.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: One of the great excursions from Bangkok and so cheap! The cost is 17 baht each way on the express boat and on the return journey try to get on the other side of the boat to that which you occupied on the way up river. You will now see more sights and stunning architecture and 70 minutes later you are back in “Mad Town”, but so refreshed!

FOOTNOTE: If you decide on this great excursion make sure you leave Bangkok after 9 am in order to avoid the rush hours and leave Nonthaburi by no later than 2.30 pm in order to avoid the same thing on the return journey. Believe me you don’t want to be on the Express Boat when school chucking out time has arrived!

That’s all the reviews for this year. In a few days time I will be pointing the Emdee-mobile southwards towards our holiday shack down on the coast with the golf clubs and fishing rods in the back of the car. In the meantime I wish the new owner of this forum Steve, the forum members and the forum guests a very happy Christmas and a successful 2010.

This one is a great post, thank you Emdee.
Today I was wishing that some one writes about Thai food for newbies like me. Along with a wonderful excursiion idea you have also written about things you ate. I have made a note of those Emdee.
Wishing you a great winter holiday too.

Emdee-

Did you get my PM?

We always do this trip when we go to Bangkok. It is a haven of peace away from the madness of the city.

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Alison

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It's Better to Burn Out than just to Fade Away!

great experience, thenks for sharing with us...well done!

Thanks Emdee for an enjoyable read. Have a happy and enjoyable Christmas. Hope you catch plenty of fish and the golf handicap is sustained.