There are many Asian and European restaurants. Thai food is hot and spicy, but most tourist restaurants tone down the food for Western palates. Pri-kee-noo, a tiny red or green pepper, is one of the hot ingredients that might best be avoided. These are generally served on a side plate in a vinaigrette with the main course. Popular fruits are papaya, jackfruit, mangosteens, rambutans, pomelos (similar to grapefruits) and, above all, durians, which farangs (foreigners) either love or hate. Owing to the strong smell of durians, the majority of hotels do not allow them onto the premises.
Things to know: Bars have counter or table service. There are no licensing laws.
National specialities:
• Tom yam (a coconut-milk soup prepared with makroot leaves, ginger, lemon grass, prawns or chicken).
• Gang pet (hot 'red' curry with coconut milk, herbs, garlic, chillies, shrimp paste, coriander and seasoning) served with rice.
• Kaeng khiaw ('green' curry with baby aubergines, beef or chicken) served with rice and gai yang (barbecued chicken).
• Kao pat (fried rice with pieces of crab meat, chicken, pork, onion, egg and saffron) served with onions, cucumber, soy sauce and chillies.
• Desserts include salim (sweet noodles in coconut milk).
• Songkaya (pudding of coconut milk, eggs and sugar often served in a coconut shell).
• Well worth trying is sticky rice and mangoes (rice cooked in coconut milk served with slices of mango). This is a favourite breakfast dish in the mango harvest season (March to May).
National drinks:
• Local whisky, either Mekhong or SamSong.
• Coconut milk straight from the shell during the harvest season.
Tipping: Most hotels and restaurants will add 10 per cent service charge and 7 per cent Government tax to the bill.

Bangkok offers a wide range of entertainment venues, from nightclubs, pubs, bars, cinemas and restaurants (many of which are open air), to massage parlours, pool halls and cocktail lounges. Performances of traditional religious and court dances can be seen at the Thai Cultural Centre. Elsewhere on the mainland, nightlife takes the form of traditional dances. The islands are renowned for their nightlife, and attendance is almost exclusively by foreigners. The full moon parties are notorious and continue well into the following morning.

Good buys include Thai silks and cottons, batiks, silver, pottery with celadon green glaze, precious and semiprecious stones, dolls, masks, lacquerware, pewterware, bamboo artefacts and bronzeware. The weekend market at Chatuchuk Park in Bangkok is a regular cornucopia with items ranging from genuine antiques to fighting fish. Tailor-made clothes are also good value and can be made in a matter of days. Shopping hours: Mon-Sun 1000-2100; department stores 1000-2200.