The Bangkok Flooding, Photos From The Ground January 14th, 2011

Sleepy Sukhumvit

It's not quite sleepy Sukhumvit, but then neither is it the vibrant bustling that we expect in one of the world's most exciting cities. A stroll around Sukhumvit today found one of Bangkok's busiest boulevards remains quiet.

Asoke

This shot taken at the Asoke intersection on Sukhumvit with the new Terminal 21 shopping mall in the background shows just how quiet it is. Many Bangkok residents remain outside the city and with schools still out – they were supposed to resume for the
second semester two weeks ago but that has been put off until next Monday, at least – traffic is much lighter than usual. And the number of visitors to Bangkok remains low too. Just walking around Sukhumvit, apart from at lunch time it just
plain feels quiet.

Soi Arab

Water remains readily available. Wherever you look, you can find vendors with heaps of water.

And in supermarkets too it seems that water is available in more and more locations. I haven't see the 6-litre bottles for sale but smaller bottles of many popular brands are making a comeback.

Thermae Bangkok

I am not sure why the Thermae management thinks they need to protect the premises. There are already a number of steps up to the landing from which you go down to the Thermae. Still, it's good to see that they are prepared should the waters arrive.

tuktuk

One of the funny aspects of the flood crisis is the wise guys who think they know all about the water – usually those people who think they know everything about everything. Some say the water will jump the sandbag barriers. Others say it will make its way around the city via the extrusive underground pipe network. I am waiting for some wise guy to tell me it will make it down to Sukhumvit in the back of a tuktuk – which would never happen as everyone knows a taxi would be much cheaper.

In the photo above, taken near the start of Sukhumvit soi 23, parts of the road are wet. I don't wish to be alarmist, but each day for the past few days there appears to be water on Suhkumvit soi 23 – the soi at the eastern end of Soi Cowboy. It's just a small amount of water and it *appears* to have come up through the drains although whether this is actually the case or not, I do not know. One of the drains outside the first 7 Eleven branch you get to in the soi has been blocked with sandbags placed over it along with some bricks on that. As best I can make out, this is NOT water from street vendors who have cleaned up after they have sold their food for the day. Asking the taxi motorbike riders in the area where the water had come from did not elicit the most worthwhile responses.

I will watch this soi with interest…

Soi Arab

There's plenty of protection at the restaurants in Soi Arab, in fact there seems to have been more effort made to protect businesses in that bustling little neighbourhood than in much of the rest of Sukhumvit.


I am not sure how long I will continue to update this page and there may or may not be an update tomorrow. For sure, if there is a change to the situation there will be an update, but please remember that I am only covering Sukhumvit and other areas popular with Westerners. I am not travelling around the city to cover flooded areas and am not looking for the money shot of people stuck in the middle of flooding. I am simply trying to provide current information on the part of the city that many foreigners visit.

Stick

nana plaza