Very Thai by Philip Corwel-Smith

This book has been the best depiction of the Thailand and Bangkok that I know.  The photos and descriptions have the local culture down pat.  Buy yourself a copy if you can...it will be one of the best souvenirs of your trip to Thailand.   Philip also contributes to Bangkok101 a magazine that you can purchase or check out online with lots of handy hints and tips and recommendations.....
“This pioneering insight into contemporary Thai folk culture delves beyond the traditional Thai icons to reveal the casual, everyday expressions of Thainess that so delight and puzzle. From floral truck bolts and taxi altars to buffalo cart furniture and drinks in a bag, the same exquisite care, craft and improvisation resounds through home and street, bar and wardrobe.
Never colonised, Thai culture retains nuanced ancient meaning in the most mundane things. The days are colour coded, lucky numbers dictate prices, window grilles become guardian angels, tattoos entrance the wearer. Philip scoured each region to show how indigenous wisdom both adapts to the present and customizes imports, applying Roman architecture to shophouses, morphing rock into festive farm music, turning the Japanese motor-rickshaw into the tuk-tuk. Colour-saturated illustrations help you navigate various social traits, whether white-faced hi-so matrons or Red Bull-swilling workers wearing coins in their ear. This is Thai culture as it has never been shown before.”