A few weeks back we had another Xangan visitor, this one David from London.  He and I did a day trip down to the evening floating market in Amphawa, which was written about in this entry.  After he went to Phuket for several days of relaxation he returned to Krungthep and Tawn and I met him for drinks and dinner.

We had eaten at Zense before with another David (this one from Singapore) and his partner Chor Pharn, so decided this time to stick with drinks only before moving on to the Italian restaurant at the Amari Watergate Hotel for dinner.

Zense is located on the 17th floor of the Central World Plaza mall, above the Zen department store.  It is one of several new restaurants that are either on rooftops or offer elevated, outdoor dining areas.

The view looking west (above) is quite nice.  You can se the police headquarters (low buildings on the left), the Novotel hotel in Siam Square (tan building with blue sign left of the train tracks), the Skytrain Sukhumvit line, the Siam Paragon mall, and next to it – squeezed between Paragon and Central World Plaza – Wat Phatumvanaram.  This temple is worth a visit as it makes for a very tranquil oasis in the midst of Krungthep’s shopping district.  Looking out from the temple grounds to the surrounding structures gives one a sense of the contradictions that are a part of life here.

Looking south, you look beyond the police headquarters and police hospital (tall building in the immediate left foreground) towards the Royal Bangkok Sports Club – one of only two horse racing tracks in the city – and beyond that, the Sathorn and Silom business district.  The tall buildings under construction on the left are at Ratchadamri Station, a very popular area for short-term expats teeming with many new high-rise service apartments and hotels.

Turning around and looking overhead, the top of the Central World Plaza building has this interesting fiberglass structure that looks like a waterslide and changes color every few seconds in a slow process that is mesmerizing to watch.  Peeking out from behind this structure is the full moon.

Our dinner at the Amari Watergate was pleasant and the food was good, but the lighting was not conducive to taking pictures.  The only shot I managed that was worth sharing was this one, of my “tiramisu in a teacup” that was my dessert.