Cruising Down the Dirty River

Cruising Down the Dirty River, originally uploaded by Robbi Baba.

We had read in the guide books how much a water taxi should cost and when the woman at the ticket window told me we should take this much more expensive long tail boat I was very suspicious.
She didn't speak much english but was adamant about our taking this boat so we did. And it was pretty intense!
For starters it was very low in the water and the driver made a very alarming U turn that had us clutching our seats in fear. And the river itself seemed incredibly filthy and as he picked up speed spray was coming in on us. I remember yelling to Eden to keep her mouth closed lest she get river water sprayed into her mouth.
You can see in this photo how safe Krista was feeling!
Turns out we did need to take this taxi. The regular one would have got us there too late to get into the Grand Palace. Even taking this very fast boat we just made it in time before they closed the admissions.
My faith in the Thai people was restored.