New US ambassador tucks into street food on first tour of Bangkok

Godec started at the iconic Wat Phra Kaew or Temple of the Emerald Buddha in Phra Nakhon district. He then strolled up Maharat Road in the company of Radtasiri “Bes” Wachirapunyanont, an alumnus of the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) who works on energy and water issues.

He then took the ferry across the Chao Phraya River to visit Wat Arun, the Temple of Dawn, where he was welcomed by the abbot, Phra Brahmavajaramethee.

No tour of Bangkok would be complete without the world-famous street food, and the new ambassador indulged at a noodle shop on Soi Polo.

He ended his day by offering incense, candles, flowers and water at the Erawan Shrine in Pathum Wan. This fulfilled a wish he made at the shrine a few years ago to return to Thailand.

Godec arrived in Thailand last Wednesday (September 7) to replace his predecessor Michael Heath, who had served as Charge d’Affaires from January 2021 to August this year.