Bangkok used to be called the “Venice of the East” because instead of roads, people travelled around the city using the extensive canal systems. Modernization brought in more efficient methods of travel and the canals or “klongs” as they were called were bridged over. Still, there are places in Bangkok that still have canals and boats. The famous “Floating Market” is a big hit with tourists. My wife and I have also taken a canal boat to downtown on a number of occasions. It is very cheap and very convenient but (and this is a huge but) the canals are very dirty. So dirty, in fact, that I was afraid to get contaminated by even one drop of the canal water. Boats still make up a part of the Bangkok transportation system.
