DAY ONE: Spend your first day in Bangkok by getting up bright and early and visiting several temples near the Chao Praya River. The Bangkok Grand Palace, the former residence of the Thai monarchy, is home to Wat Phra Kaew. Many tourists flock to this temple to see the Emerald Buddha. After the Grand Palace, a trip to Wat Pho, home of the Reclining Buddha and Wat Arun, or the Temple of the Dawn will give you a good view of this important part of Thai history and culture.

DAY TWO: Floating market Arrange a tour to a Bangkok floating market. Keeping in mind that Bangkok was once called the "Venice of the East", you will appreciate how Thais lived and conducted their daily commerce for many, many years. Because the floating markets open up before dawn and close by mid-morning, your tour to the market will probably include another stop. Some of the popular nearby attractions include the Rose Garden, where you can see Thai dancing, Thai boxing, a demonstration of a Thai wedding and even working elephants. More elephants and crocodiles can be seen and admired if your tour takes you to the Bangkok Samphan Elephant Show.

DAY THREE: Plan to do today's activity on a weekend. Get on the Bangkok skytrain early in the morning and head on the northern line to the Mo Chit Station. If it is more convenient from your hotel, you can take the Bangkok subway north as well. It stops at Chatujak. Once you are off the skytrain or subway, follow the crowds to the Chatujak Weekend Market. You can spend several hours or all day winding in and out of stalls which sell everything from table linens and bird houses to jewelry and beautiful antiques. There is food available and even beautiful flowers to, at least, stop and enjoy. At a market, you are free to bargain for the price. Chatujak Park is located nearby and if you need to shop in mall after spending the day in a market, the Central Plaza Mall on Lat Prao Road is not too far away.

DAY FOUR: The pace of Bangkok is busy, busy, busy. And yet, this large city has some wonderful spas where you can relax and be pampered in luxurious surroundings. Body wraps, body scrubs, foot baths, manicures and pedicures, Thai-styled massages, paraffin hand treatments, plunge pools and steam rooms are available at some of the finest hotels in Bangkok, including the Bangkok Marriot Resort and Spa, the Oriental Hotel and the Banyan Tree. Even the mid-price hotels usually offer Thai-massages for as little as six dollars. These intense massages focus on deep muscles and stretching your ligaments.

DAY FIVE: Thai market Thai food is noted for its four distinct tastes: hot, spicy, sweet and sour. Learning to blend these tastes in the perfect dish is no small feat. Nevertheless, Thai food is all the rage in many parts of the world, especially in America and Europe. Impress your friends by learning to make a great Thai dish. Take a day-long thai cooking class and enjoy eating real Thai food for the rest of your life. The class includes a trip to the local market.

DAY SIX: Historic Ayutthaya was a shining example of the advanced civilization from the fourteenth century to the eighteenth century. Headless Buddha statues and other ruins surround the ancient city and give the visitor a glimpse into this once important trading and cultural center. The city can be accessed in two ways. You can go by bus-it is about 60 miles north of the center of Bangkok-or you can take a river boat cruise, which will take a couple of hours to get there.

DAY SEVEN: The last day in Bangkok is designed to take in as many remaining sights and sounds of Bangkok via the skytrain. Opened in late 1999, the skytrain makes travel around Bangkok much easier. Why not start the day with a ride from the north to the south and then the east to the west, to see as much as you can of the city from four stories above street level. If you have chosen specific restaurants, such as in the Sukhumvit area, then you can plan your travels around when and where you want to eat. Otherwise, start your day off at the Chitlom exit. You will find Gaysorn Plaza, which features very high-end boutiques. Next door is a wonderful place to find nice Thai handicrafts. Silver jewelry, leather purses, wood carvings, celadon dishes and all kinds of clothing and linens are some of the things you can expect to find at Nayra Phand. Across the street is a mall called the Central World Plaza. It features department stores, electronics stores, fabric stores, furniture stores and just about everything in between. There is a movie theatre complex there, too, so if you want to kick back and enjoy some popcorn, soda and air conditioning, seeing a movie is not a bad idea. Most are available in the English soundtrack, but be sure to ask before you buy your ticket! The Siam Square station on the skytrain is one exit west of Chitlom. It features shopping and entertainment areas similar to the Chitlom area. If you go one more exit west, you are at the National Stadium station. The Jim Thompson House is a wonderful museum that showcases Thai architecture. Heading south on the skytrain on the Saphan Taksin route, you will pass through the Silom area of Bangkok, which is one of the major the financial districts. You can get off at this last station (Saphan Taksin) and tour some of the beautiful hotels in the area, including the Shangri-la and the Oriental. If you haven't had the opportunity to take a river taxi tour, this is a good point to catch a ride up and down the river and get a glimpse of city life from the Chao Praya River. If you still have time and energy, Chinatown is accessibly via the river taxis. This area features very authentic markets with some of the best prices in town.