https://soibysoi.com/Short animated explainers about Bangkok: how the city works, what is behind its dishes, one neighbourhood at a time and the rules visitors miss. Every fact sourced.en-gbhttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/from-suvarnabhumi-airport-to-the-cityhttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/from-suvarnabhumi-airport-to-the-cityThree ways from Suvarnabhumi Airport into Bangkok, as of October 2026: the public taxi queue (meter plus a 50-baht fee and tolls, usually 250–400 baht, 45–60 minutes), an app like Grab (the fare shown before booking) and the Airport Rail Link (about 26 minutes to Phaya Thai, 45 baht).https://soibysoi.com/episodes/bangkoks-full-namehttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/bangkoks-full-nameThais usually call their capital Krung Thep, the start of its full ceremonial name: 168 letters in Latin script, the world's longest place name in Guinness World Records. It praises the city of angels, and many Thais know it from a 1989 rock song whose lyrics are only the name.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/the-market-that-folds-up-for-a-trainhttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/the-market-that-folds-up-for-a-trainAt the Maeklong market in Samut Songkhram, about 70 km from Bangkok, the stalls sit on the railway. When a train comes, traders fold their umbrellas and pull back their awnings, then put them back once it has passed. Four trains a day come in and four go out.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/five-escapes-from-bangkokhttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/five-escapes-from-bangkokFive escapes from Bangkok, counted down from the closest: Khlong Lat Mayom's weekend floating market, the green loop of Bang Krachao, the Mon potters of Ko Kret, Maeklong's train market and Thailand's largest reclining Ganesha. Save this for your trip.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/how-many-7-elevenshttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/how-many-7-elevens7-Eleven has 16,284 stores in Thailand (June 2026), second only to Japan: about one for every 4,000 people. Four in ten are in and around Bangkok, about 700 open a year, and each serves about 950 customers a day.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/the-busiest-skytrain-stationshttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/the-busiest-skytrain-stationsBangkok's own statistics count the Skytrain's riders station by station. In 2023 the busiest were Siam (about 50,000 a day), Asok, Mo Chit, Ha Yaek Lat Phrao and Phrom Phong; the weekday rush runs from 7 to 9 am and 5 to 8 pm, as of October 2026. Save this for your trip.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/what-are-the-highest-buildings-in-bangkokhttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/what-are-the-highest-buildings-in-bangkokRanked by height to the top of the building itself, not its antennas, Bangkok's tallest tower is the Magnolias Waterfront Residences at ICONSIAM (315 m), one metre above the famous MahaNakhon (314 m). Baiyoke Tower II would win with its antenna. As of October 2026.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/why-can-thais-eat-spicier-food-than-farangshttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/why-can-thais-eat-spicier-food-than-farangsLiking chilli is largely learned. In chilli-loving families children start small and get more as they grow; eating chilli often dulls the heat sensors only a little, and the big change is learning to enjoy the burn. Genes play a part too, and farangs can train up.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/which-boat-do-i-takehttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/which-boat-do-i-takeOn the Chao Phraya the flag shows the line. As of October 2026, orange stops at most piers on weekday mornings and late afternoons, a yellow flag runs that route at midday and at weekends, rush-hour yellow and red are expresses, and blue is the tourist boat with its own tickets.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/leave-the-vape-at-homehttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/leave-the-vape-at-homeAs of October 2026, Thailand bans importing e-cigarettes, and owning or using one is illegal too. Under customs law, bringing one in can mean a fine of four times its value, prison, or both; UK travel advice says fines are typically 5,000–30,000 baht.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/chatuchak-in-numbershttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/chatuchak-in-numbersChatuchak, Bangkok's giant weekend market, rents out 10,334 stalls, a standard one just 2 by 2.5 metres. Its 839 plant stalls trade midweek, it has drawn more than 300,000 people in a day, and a night market now runs Friday to Sunday.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/the-flower-market-that-never-closeshttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/the-flower-market-that-never-closesPak Khlong Talat, Bangkok's biggest flower market, never closes and is busiest in the small hours, when trucks bring flowers from around the country. Its name means the market at the mouth of the canal; its garlands, strung by hand, went viral in 2026 as a hair trend.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/yaowarat-after-darkhttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/yaowarat-after-darkAt six, Yaowarat Road's day stalls pack up and 172 night stalls take the pavement of Chinatown's main street: woks, grills and noodle soup under neon signs, until midnight, with Mondays off for scrubbing.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/why-water-wont-put-out-chilli-firehttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/why-water-wont-put-out-chilli-fireChilli heat is capsaicin, which switches on the mouth’s heat sensors. It barely dissolves in water, so a sip slides past it; fat and sugar ease the burn more, which is why coconut milk and something sweet help.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/why-som-tam-is-poundedhttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/why-som-tam-is-poundedSom tam’s name means “sour” and “pound”. Pounding matters: garlic makes its sharp allicin only when its cells break, as an enzyme kept apart from its partner meets it within seconds, and a pestle bursts far more cells than a knife. Measured, crushed garlic held more allicin than sliced.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/the-science-of-wok-heihttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/the-science-of-wok-heiWok hei, Cantonese for “breath of the wok”, is a smoky taste only fierce heat makes: searing steel browns the food, fast tosses (almost three a second) let it brown without burning, and singed oil adds smoke.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/why-tom-yum-smells-before-you-taste-ithttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/why-tom-yum-smells-before-you-taste-itTom yum is boiled with lemongrass, galangal and lime leaves, all rich in fragrant oils that evaporate easily. The steam carries them out of the pot, so the scent reaches the nose before the spoon reaches the mouth – and it is smelled again from inside the mouth.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/a-second-floor-for-the-roadhttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/a-second-floor-for-the-roadIn the early 1990s, average speeds in central Bangkok dropped as low as 10 km/h. In December 1999 the Skytrain opened 12 metres above the road, and in July 2004 a metro opened underneath, its entrances raised to keep floodwater out.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/odd-and-even-soishttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/odd-and-even-soisSun, 11 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMTSukhumvit's soi numbers tell you which side of the road you are on: odd sois branch north, even sois south, and the numbers climb as you head east. The Skytrain runs above it, and the road runs 488 km to the Cambodian border.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/the-canal-commuter-boathttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/the-canal-commuter-boatBangkok's Khlong Saen Saep boat runs about 18 km through the city. It barely stops: commuters grab a rope and step across. After heavy rain the boats can be too tall for a bridge, and in the September 2026 floods they were tied up to push the water towards a drainage tunnel.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/they-cut-the-pumping-it-kept-sinkinghttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/they-cut-the-pumping-it-kept-sinkingBangkok cut its groundwater pumping and the water underground rose again, yet the ground kept sinking: clay drains so slowly that it went on squeezing for years, and squeezed clay barely springs back. A 2025 study expects about 5 cm more at most sites by 2060.https://soibysoi.com/episodes/why-is-bangkok-sinkinghttps://soibysoi.com/episodes/why-is-bangkok-sinkingBangkok stands on soft clay. When wells pumped out the groundwater below it, the clay squeezed like a sponge: around Hua Mak the ground sank about 10 cm a year in 1978–1985. Since pumping was curbed, Bangkok sinks about 1 cm a year on average.