Friday Funny: the longest city name in the world (clue: not Bangkok Thailand))

When I was growing up the Guinness Book of World Records always featured the longest place name in the world as some endless unpronounceable town in Wales, where the name ran so long they had to extend the railway station platform just so they could fit the full name on it.

Ok, so I made that last bit up.

But ... BUT ...

The longest city name in the world is actually the full name for Bangkok (aka known as Bangers, BKK,  even Bankok in social media circles), the bustling, mad-cap, edgy, fun, crazy, stylish capital city of Amazing Thailand.

Are you ready for this? Take a deep breath and repeat after me:

"KRUNGTHEP MAHANAKHON BOVORN RATANAKOSIN MAHINTHARAYUTTHAYA MAHADILOKPOP NOPARATRATCHATHANI BURIROM UDOMRATCHANIVETMAHASATHAN AMORNPIMAN AVATARNS ATHIT SAKKATHATTIYAVISNUKARMPRASIT."

Thais actually learn this almost like a sing-a-long nursery rhyme at school to help them remember it, jing jing.

So what does it all mean? Well, roughly “The land of angels, the great city of immortality, various of devine gems, the great angelic land unconquerable, land of nine noble gems, the royal city, the pleasant capital, place of the grand royal palace, forever land of angels and reincarnated spirits, predestined and created by the highest Deva(s).”

This name has been in place since 1782, so shame on Guinness World Records for not knowing this and attributing it earlier.

But before you rish down to your travel agent to book your flight to KRUNGTHEP MAHANAKHON BOVORN RATANAKOSIN MAHINTHARAYUTTHAYA MAHADILOKPOP NOPARATRATCHATHANI BURIROM UDOMRATCHANIVETMAHASATHAN AMORNPIMAN AVATARNS ATHIT SAKKATHATTIYAVISNUKARMPRASIT, you'll be relieved to know, Thais just call their capital by one word, Krungthep, which means City of Angels.

Of course, you can also simply request a flight to Bangkok. That works too.

Update on Sukhumhvit Soi 11, Sukhumvit Bangkok Thailand

Faithful readers of this Amazing Thailand travel blog – I know there’s one out there somewhere! – will know that one of my favourite sois (side street) in Bangkok is Sukhumvit Soi 11 which I blogged about a little while ago.

I just revisited the area, while staying at Le Fenix boutique hotel, and there’s a few places you really should know about …

The first is Bawarchi Restaurant, which is an Indian place about 100m on the right into the soi from the Sukhumvit Road Asok BTS station end. Neither the service nor surroundings are particularly flash but it’s all about the food. You know I always bang on about the Indian food in Bangkok in places such as Himali Cha Cha and Rang Mahal, well this is almost up there … but without the character, charm and ambience the others offer as part of the experience.

But if you want a damn good paneer, or chicken ticcas in gravy served to the accompaniment of lively and sultry Bollywood videos, this is the place, jing jing. Dinner for 2, with no alcohol, was 888 baht. (I know what you’re thinking – no alchohol, why not???) That's not even $30 to you for a great restaurant meal out.

If you’ve overdone the Thai curries and the Indian curries, your innards are threatening mutiny, and you just want something your poorly travelled stomach might recognize as real food, then just keep going on up the soi for a couple of hundreds metres or so till you find the Aussie Pub. Burgers and beers done just right, with football (any shape of ball you can think of) on the big screen.

That should keep you going. And then there’s still so much more to move on to in Soi 11 any time of day and night …

Read my previous Soi 11 blog here for some of the other nocturnal attractions of one of Bkk's hottest (or is that coolest?) streets.