Bangkok Destination Guide

Travel in Bangkok is often described as a whirlwind—it’s hot, chaotic, crowded, and full of exotic energy. This popular tourism destination is a city of extremes with majestic temples, floating markets, romantic rooftop restaurants, and a wide range of accommodations to suit every budget. Read through our brief guide to learn about this exciting city and begin planning your journey.

Bangkok is sometimes referred to as the “Venice of the East” because of its network of canals, so take a boat tour to see sights like the Khmer wats (僧院) and the riverside houses. While exploring the city, you’ll definitely want to sample some of the street food options—often fresher and more unique than in the surrounding restaurants! To get a dose of Thai culture, visit the Wat Arun, the Grand Palace, Wat Parkeaw, and Wat Pho.

There are two airport that serve Bankok, Suvamabhmi Airport and Don Muang Airport, and both are located about 30 kilometers from city centre. Most travelers who fly into Suvarnabhumi take the airport rail link to get downtown. The most important train station is the Hua Lamphong Station, and railway lines extend in all directions. It’s not a good idea to travel around Bankok by car since traffic is very congested.

Food is a big deal in Thailand. and there are plenty of cheap eats, high-end restaurants, and street food delights to keep your taste buds satisfied every meal.

When the weather’s hot, do you enjoy a glass of Brad’s Drink while watching your TV made by Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering, and surfing the web using a search engine called BackRub? No? Neither do I. That’s because all these companies have changed their names.

Brad’s Drink is now Pepsi. The mouthful that was Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering has become, simply, Sony. And BackRub is now known as Google. Though I must admit, the idea of a back massage does sound good right now!

Joking aside, choosing the right name for your start-up is a serious matter. Think of the case of a small Canadian company called Research in Motion, who in 1998 had just developed a high-tech mobile phone that could send emails.

They were torn between names like MegaMail and ProMail. Then they sought the help of consulting firm Lexicon, who specialize in brand names. They had other ideas. They brainstormed words connected to enjoyment and freshness. Someone said.

Lexicon’s boss added two capital letters, and there you have it: BlackBerry was born. Since then it has sold over 33 million handsets to customers around the world. Would it have sold as well if it was called MegaMail? Who knows?

Recently, BlackBerry sales have been overtaken by Android phones and Apple’s iPhone. Lexicon’s founder David Placek is a big fan of simple brand names like those Apple chooses: the iPhone. They l0ok a household word and by putting one letter in font of it, it ends up being game changing.

So, for all you entrepreneurs(企业家)out there, make sure you allow time to develop a catchy and memorable name. Think about what makes your company different. What’s your USP (独特的销售主张) ? Maybe you can reflect that in your name.

What about you? What would you call a company if you had one?

A “Game of Thrones” themed hotel made just of snow and ice has been finished in Lapland, Finland. Located in the resort of Kittila, which is 200 kilometers above the Arctic Circle and around 90 minutes from Helsinki, the destination is made up of 24 rooms—10 of which are suites for guests staying overnight.

Temperatures reach -5℃ inside, so high-quality thermal(保温的)sleeping bags are on hand to keep guests warm, as well as a hot berry juice in the morning. Although it’s recommended that guests stay at the hotel for a maximum of one night due to the icy conditions, there are warm log cabins available should they wish to extend their stay in the SnowVillage. Guests can also visit a restaurant, cinema, chapel and bar, all made entirely of snow and ice. Guests also receive a guided tour inside the SnowVillage, a buffet breakfast in the log restaurant, and a diploma to commemorate their stay.

Travelers can book an overnight visit at the snow hotel or simply take a day trip to the SnowVillage, which covers an area of about 20, 000 square meters. The village is open for visitors daily and has a cinema, a chapel, an arctic bar that serves drinks in glasses carved from ice, and a restaurant with frozen dining furniture and a menu featuring reindeer (驯鹿)steak

While it’s been constructed yearly since 2000, this is the first time the SnowVillage has included a “Game of Thrones” themed section.

Kittila is also a great location to view the Northern Lights, and SnowVillage offers snowmobile safaris snowmobile safaris (旅行)where guests can try to catch a glimpse of Greenland’s natural phenomena, as well as activities like reindeer-sledding and ice-sculpting classes.

I love going out with my mate Jerry. People stare at him with admiration. Some even ask for his signature. But Jerry isn’t famous. He just bears a resemblance (长得像) to someone who is the actor Daniel Radcliffe. Yes, Harry Potter himself! And it has a magical effect on people!

I told Jerry he should be a twin model. That’s what Pauline Bailey did. She decided to replicate (模仿) Marilyn Monroe’s image after she was told she bore a likeness to the star.

Bailey says: “I bought books and started reading about Marilyn. I realized we had a similar upbringing, so I had an affinity (亲近感) with her. Then people started saying when I went to places that I looked like her. I didn’t realize you could make a living out of it.”

Now the blonde (金发的) model gets jobs through a specialized agency. She jumps out of cakes, allowing men to live the fantasy of meeting the late goddess of the silver screen.

But not everybody profits from the lookalike business. Iranian actor Mahmoud Basiri claims his likeness to a famous person cost him eight years of earnings. He happens to be the spitting image of former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He was told in 2005 that he could only work with the leader’s agreement. So will Ahmadinejad ever give his agreement to the actor to play him? Don’t hold your breath—Basiri specializes in comedy!

But overall, a resemblance to a popular artist is a good thing, isn’t it? The biggest challenge must be to keep the illusion going—for example, by gaining or losing weight if they do. However, Pauline Bailey thinks it’s important to keep a sense of yourself. She says: “I’m very much an individual person, away from Marilyn. I think you could lose yourself very easily being someone else all the time and lose your own identity”.

I asked Jerry if he thinks impersonating Daniel Radcliffe professionally could go to his head. I worried that all the adulation (恭维) might change him and make him leave me behind. “No way,” he said. “We do everything together.”

What about you? Which celebrity would you like to be the spitting image of?