Thailand Part 2--The Riverboat Taxi

I have lots of photos from Thailand, so stay tuned for more--i'm trying to get as many uploaded with my limited internet access as possible...
Today's installment chronicles the riverboat taxi I took to various interesting sights.
It's basically like any normal city bus - there are piers you stand and wait, the boat pulls up, people hop on/off and it takes off again. Here's an image of it as it's pulling up...notice the buddhist monks--they have special reserved seating, but often the boat is so full, they have to stand--but they also have reserved standing areas!

Here's a shot of a smaller long tail boat (thusly named because they have giant motors with VERRRY long arms with a small propeller at the end). Also notice the insane amounts of water hyacinth (an invasive floating aquatic plant). There are HUGE chunks of this floating everywhere in the river.
Here's what it looks like to be on the boat itself:
And an image of the typical scenery alongside the river--rickety houses on stilts, laundry, etc.The riverboat taxi was an awesome way to get up and down the city--very cheap (less than 50 cents) and the breeze it created while moving was a welcome respite to the INSANE heat/humidity of Bangkok.