8:00 am, woke up in a sweat. At first I thought my trusty fan had failed, but I could feel warm wind on my toes. It was so hot that the fan couldn’t keep up with the heat of Bangkok. I walked out onto the balcony and the air wrapped around me like a wet electric blanket. Flipped open my laptop to check the temperature. It read: 8:04 am, temp 90° F, completely cloudless. And the sun had only been up for an hour and a half.

Bangkok, according the World Meteorological Organization, is the world’s hottest city for one reason: Bangkok rarely cools down, temperatures tend to remain largely above 30° C from day to night, summer to winter.

The high will reach 102° F today. On a day like this, anything worth something is best done before 11 am.
After that, waste away those sweltering afternoons in one of these 5 ways:

1. Visit Ocean World

Deep, down, in the cool basement of Siam Paragon lies an ocean waiting for you to discover. Ocean World is not just aquarium exhibits, it’s an interactive experience of rain forests, and canopy walks. See sharks from a glass-bottomed boat, or even scuba dive. Not to be missed is the theme park style 4D movie. It’s a bit pricy, expect to spend 1000 baht per person.

2. Splash away a languid afternoon at Siam Park

Swimming, sliding, waves–nothing beats the heat better than playing in water. Siam Park is a great way to get wet and have fun. It’s a bit ways out of Central Bangkok, located on the far eastern edge of town, 101 Sukhapibarn 2 Road. Adults are 200 baht and children: 100 baht.

3. Go bowling

Bowling is available in many venues across Bangkok. SF cinema often extends it’s entertainment venues with bowling. MBK has a great SF Bowl housed on the 7th floor. At night, the lights go down and Rock and Bowl comes to life. The best part? Freezing cold air con blasting.

4. Come for Song Kran

If you have the chance to come to Bangkok during Song Kran, head down to Khao San Road for splashing in the Thai New Year. (mid-April) You’ll hardly feel the heat.

5. Eat ice cream

I know that sounds cheezy, but cool yourself off from the inside out. The bonus–ice cream from around the world is available in Bangkok. The good ole fashioned cool stuff, American style can be had at Swenson’s, Cold Stone Creamery, and Baskin Robbins. Italian and Turkish gelatos pop up in various malls. Desserts are taken very seriously in Bangkok. In Central World plaza, there are several upscale eateries dedicated just to the sweet stuff.

Don’t forget to take all the necessary precautions to protect yourself from the heat: generously lather on the sunscreen, wear a hat and sunglasses, and drink plenty of water. Bottled water is so cheap in Bangkok. Watch the electrolytes, drink fresh juice. You can also do as Bangkokians do–use an umbrella for shade while walking the hot city streets.

If you aren’t interested in these 5 ways of cooling off, then I suggested 5 other ways in a previous post entitled 5 ways to Beat the Heat in Bangkok.

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