Bangkok

Bangkok is the capital of Thailand and with over 8 million inhabitants its largest city. The city is also known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon , Th-Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or Krung Thep in short. Originally a small trading post at the mouth of the Chao Phraya River, it became the capital of Thailand in 1768 following the sacking and burning of Ayutthaya, Thailand's former capital. In the following 200 years Bangkok evolved as the political, social and economic centre not only of Thailand but also for much of Indochina. Greater Bangkok today has close to 15 million inhabitants and is the major industrial and business centre of Thailand. Bangkok attracts a large number of tourists every year and is a major regional travel hub. Thailand is a very centralised country, with the bulk of infrastructure and commercial and business activity located in and around the capital. As a consequence Bangkok is a huge town with a chaotic traffic. The situation has improved recently with the Skytrain - an elevated monorail which has vastly shortened the time it takes to move around the city.