Exploring the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok via Longtail Boat

If you want to pass a couple of hours and see or do something different that isn’t a temple or riding a Tuk Tuk, then we definitely recommend taking a Chao Phraya Khlong (canal) cruise on a long tail boat (ruea hang yao)

A craft designed to carry passengers on a river with a lightweight long canoe shaped hull, up to 30 metres, and a canopy.

What makes the longtail distinctive among other forms of riverboat vessels in the motor on the back, which is a second-hand car or truck engine with a long shaft and a small propeller attached.

The housing along the khlongs range from grand through to basic.
Some of the older housing is just holding together but if the family don’t have the money to repair/stabilize the foundations, then eventually they sercombe and fall into the river.

It's not hard to imagine the days when the family could sit on their back deck to catch a fish for dinner, but I imagine with modern living & pollution, a lot of the fish that used to live in the khlongs years ago no longer do.

Mae Nam (Thai: แม่น้ำ), the Thai word for "river" (literally, "motherly water") mae signifying "mother" and Nam "water".
Chao P'ia signifies that it is the chief river in the kingdom of Siam.
Chao Phraya River is often translated as river of kings.