Even locals here get lost in Chinatown. It isn’t on any main public transport line, there aren’t too many prominent buildings or skyscrapers to use for navigation, it’s too crowded, and most of the signs are in Chinese. These are just a few of the complaints that expats seem to have. Yet Chinatown is one of the more fascinating parts of the city, full of interesting shops, excellent food, and plenty of history. Yes, Chinatown can be crowded and hectic, but outside of Chinese New Year and the Vegetarian Festival, it isn’t any more chaotic than navigating Siam Square or Chatuchak on a weekend. Here’s a walking tour that isn’t too hard to follow, complete with enough pit stops to make for a very pleasant afternoon’s outing.

It’s not true that there isn’t public transportation to Chinatown. Plenty of buses do go there; but even easier, hop the MRT to Hualamphong, its terminus station. Take Exit 1 over to Rama 4, cross the bridge, and head at a 45-degree angle left onto Wat Traimit Road. This leads down to the giant Wat Traimit, which is famed for its 700-year-old Buddha image, the heaviest in the world weighing in at 5.5 tons. Hordes of devotees flock here regularly to pay homage and make merit at the Buddha image. If you are wandering in this area at night, especially around any festival time, there is a high chance you will see local Chinese opera troupes performing streetside, a beautiful-butseemingly- dying art, as the audience consists only of old folks

Continuing down Traimit Road, you’ll quickly come to the huge Chinatown arch, which signals the entry into busy Chinatown. Turning right, the road splits, with Charoen Krung heading right and Yaowarat, Chinatown’s main drag, heading left. Lots of neon lights take over, with fancy shark’s fin and bird’s nest restaurants lining the sidewalks, along with gold shops and plenty of street vendors selling roasted chestnuts and imported fruit from China.

If you continue a few blocks down, past the Chinatown Hotel, you will come to Soi Padungdao. This corner is famed for its several outdoor seafood restaurants, packed every night with tourists and locals, and serving up some of the freshest and cheapest seafood offerings in Bangkok. Giant prawns, squid, sea bass, and piping hot bowls of tom yum get ferried out of a small kitchen half a block away, and diners are seated at communal style tables, so it’s pretty easy to make new friends and have a close look at what delicacies your neighbors are eating.

Whether or not you are hungry, it is worth making a detour down Padungdao one block to Padsai Road and go left half a block to Eiah Sae, which is perhaps the oldest coffee shop in Bangkok. Over 60 years old, Eiah Sae has been churning out the owner’s greatgrandparents’ coffee recipe to an endless array of chain-smoking regulars, ranging from old Chinese men to hip young couples looking for an excellent cup

of joe. With its art deco purple walls and 20-baht café Boran (old style coffee), you can’t go wrong here.

Retracing your steps back up to Yaowarat, hang a left and continue over to the next soi, Plaeng Nam. This atmospheric soi features plenty of quaint Chinese shophouses, vendors pushing their trolleys, and two fantastic open-air restaurants opposite one another, serving dirt-cheap pre-prepared dishes with a lot of atmosphere to boot.

Just after the restaurants, you come to busy Charoen Krung Road. Going left here and crossing the street brings you to Wat Mangkon Kalawat, perhaps Chinatown’s busiest temple. Consistently filled with incense smoke and worshippers waving joss sticks, this place gets incredibly packed during any Chinese festivals or holidays and is well worth a visit.

If you recross the street opposite the wat, you will find the entrance to Trok Itsaranuphap, a single-file wet market full of produce, spices, and pungent smells. Recrossing Yaowarat, the market continues several blocks down to Wanit Road, also known as Sampang Lane, where you turn right. This is the old Chinese shopping community, moved here after Rama I established his new capital on Rattanakosin Island. This narrow passage is also hopelessly crowded and full of textiles, sewing machines, souvenirs, and plenty of snacks to keep you sated.