One day — and night — in Bangkok

The Grand Palace is located near the river on Na Phra Lan Road near Sanam Luang; phone 02222-8181.  Admission is approximately $5. That price includes Wat Phra Kaeo and the Coin Pavilion inside the Grand Palace grounds, as well as admission to the Vimanmek Palace (near the National Assembly). Open daily, 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Important: You must be properly attired to gain admission. That means no shorts or short-sleeved shirts. Skirts and long pants are fine.

Wat Phra Kaeo is within the grounds of the Grand Palace, phone 02222-0094. Admission to the Temple is included in the $5 charge you’ll pay to get into the Palace grounds.

Wat Po, Maharat Road, near the river, phone 02222-0933. The temple is open daily from 8 a.m.-5 p.m., though massages are offered until 6 p.m. You’ll pay about 50 cents for admission and $5 for a massage.

Roti Mataba, Phra Athit Road opposite Phra Sumen Fort, phone 02282-2119.

National Museum, Na Phra That Road about two-thirds of a mile north of the Grand Palace, phone 02224-1333. The museum is open Wednesdays through Sundays, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Admission is approximately $1.

There are a number of stores in Bangkok where you can buy silk, but some of the most well-respected include Jim Thompson Thai Silk Company at 9 Surawong Road, near Silom (phone 02632-8100); T. Shinawatra Silk at 94 Sukhumvit Soi 23 (phone 02258-0295) and H. M. Factory Thai Silk at 45 Promchai, Sukhumvit Soi 39 (phone 02258-8766).

Cabbage and Condoms, 10 Sukhumvit Soi 12, phone 2229-4610. Reservations recommended.

Thai Boxing matches take place primarily at two major stadiums. The Ratchadamnoen Stadium (Ratchadamnoen Nok Avenue, phone 02281-4205) hosts fights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Lumphini Staduim (Rama IV Road, phone 02251-4303 is where you go on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Tickets are about $23 ringside, $20 for second-class seats and about $13 for partial-view, nosebleed seating. Most nights, about 15 pairs of fighters will face off.

Pauline Frommer is the creator of the new Pauline Frommer guides in bookstores now. Her book, Pauline Frommer's New York, was named Best Guidebook of the Year by the North American Travel Journalists Association.

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