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Entertainment
Though foreign forms of entertainment have infiltrated into modern Thailand, traditional Thai entertainments are still an integral part of the Thai lifestyle. From happy villagers singing bantering songs, a colorful temple fair, watching a game of takraw, to elegant, classical Thai dancing, traditional entertainments are the core of Thai social events, as witnessed at various festivities throughout the nation. Thai people embrace the notion of celebrating seriously. Indeed, Thais are known for their love of sanuk ('fun') and indulge in this passion with high-spirited enthusiasm and fervor.
Bangkok Nightlife
For variety, energy, enthusiasm and excitement, Bangkok's nightlife is in a league of its own. Whatever your age, taste and gender, you can rest assured that Thailand's vibrant capital can deiver. What's more, having a good time here won't burn a hole in your pocket. The restuarants, clubs, bars, discos and other entertainment venues are all reasonably priced, especially when compared to other major cities.
Bangkok is, of course, the hear beat of the country's entertainment industry. The choice of venues and things to do here puts other Thai cities and resorts in the shade. Once the sun has gone below the horizon and the night-lights have been switched on, that amazing dedication to having a good time becomes all so apparent. There's a buzz about the city, a feeling of expectation that something exciting and memorable is about to happen and it often does.
Unusually amongst big cities, Bangkok does not have one major entertainment district. Instread, it has many areas offering leisure time activities. So wherever you stay, great nightlife oppotunities are never far away.
 Sukhumvit Road
Regarded by some people as the Bangkok equivalent of London's Kensington and Chelsea, Sukhumvit is unquestionably the most cosmopolitan area of the city. With the skytrain serving more than half its length, thus easing access to the various pleasures located on the main road and its adjoining streets, Sukhumvit is favoured by foreign residents as the place to live and play. It is also popular with well-to-do Thais who either live in modern condominiums or mansions set in huge compounds and enjoy the area's international flavour.
Essentially, Sukhumvit can be broken down into four distinctive entertainment areas: Nana, Asoke, Emporium and Thong Lor. Each has its own charms and attractions, and appeals to different groups of people.
Silom Road
Bangkok's main business street, Silom is also the focal point of a thriving entertainment industry. Patpong Road, which links Silom with Surawong Road, is known around the world for its nightly market, music halls and bars, but it is by no means the only area with afterdark attractions.
Convent Road, for intance, is witnessing a rapid increase in restaurants, including the elegant French outlet What's Up. At the Silom end of Convent is Shenanigans, the city's first Irish pub, which regularly draws alarge crowd of local and expatriate business men. Its nightly live musical entertainment has also proved a big hit. Another Irish pub, O'Reillys, is set on Silom itself while The Barbican can be found round the corner amid the lounges and karaoke bars of Thaniya Road, an area favoured by the city's sizeable Japanese communicaty. The oldest pub of all is Bobby's Arms, located in the Patpong car park. A younger local crowd have made Silom's Soi 4 their own preserve. the format on this pedestrianised lane is small bars playing techno music with plenty of space outside for the party crowd to study each other. The reopening of Tapas, a bar and dance venue, has much to do with the street's recent rejuvenation.
Beyond Silom next to Lumpini Park are several smaller concentrations of nighttime venues. Soi Sarsin has a collection of live music bars, including the long-established favourite Brown Sugar, whie adjoining Soi Lang Suan is acknowledged as a great place for Italian cuisine, Ad Makers for Thai and Le Moulin de Sommai for French. The nearby Soi Ruam Rudee, which links Wireless Road to Ploenchit, has a number of quality restaurants, including Witch's Oyster Bar and Baan Khanitha 2, which is located in a delightful old wooden house. Cutting across Silom is Chong Nonsee, a road built in recent years to give Bangkok's business area better access to the city highway system. all kinds of interesting night-spots are gragually sppearing on both sides of this major throughfare, turning the area into a new entertainment district. One of the first and still most successful is tawan Daeng, a huge beer hall with its own brewery and top-level local musicians.
Khao San Road
Once an area used almost exclusively by budget travellers due to the large number of cheap hostels and guest houses located here, Khao San Road in Bangkok's Bang Lamphu District just north of Sanam Luang now attracts young locals who enjoy its trandy outdoor restaurants and bars. Best known of these international venue are Susie's Pub in Susie's Alley just off Khao San Road, and the Bangkok Bar, which is located just inside leafy Soi Rambutri, virtually opposite Khao San Road.
Elsewhere, there are dozens of bistro-style outlets and delightful cafes set in old Chineses shophouses, expecially on Phra Athit Road.
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