Bangkok's offical name is Krung Thep,which means ''The City of angles''in thai.actually,400 years ago,bangkok was a small,peaceful village situated on the chao phraya river.the village served as aport for ships sailing up the river to ayutthaya,the old capital of siam.bangkok was already well known to european merchants. The ships became larger, and the village grew in size and importance.in 1782,king rama i moved the capital to bangkok.work began on the grand palace and the temple of the emerald buddha. In the 1850s,the city was called the'' venice og the east''because it had many canals. Many of its inhsbitants lived in floating houses,ang bought and sold products on boats. Today, bangkok combines tradition and modernity,and iy is one of the most cosmopolitan cities on the asian continent. According to a recent study , bangkok is the top tourist destination in asia, with approximately 12 million viditors a year. Sunny beaches,ancient temples,an active night life,and wonderflu food make thailand a great destination for toursits. Bangkok shares its popularity for tourists with other places in thailand :the historic city of chian mai in the north ,the famous beach resorts of phuket ,and many other tropical paradise islands in the south,such as koh phib phi.