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Date: 24 Apr 2011 03:26:43
Title: Oodles of Buddhas - Bangkok, Thailand
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13:44.223N  100:33.526E
 
March 31, 2011 - April 3, 2011
 
From Sukhothai to Bangkok we took another bus.  This time we paid for a VIP ticket ($12 each), but when the bus arrived it seems it didn't have a VIP section because we were given a partial refund and seated in similar comfy, reclining seats to those we had on the previous bus ride.  We were given a box lunch though (chicken and rice), and during the 7 hour ride got to watch a Jackie Chan movie.  Granted, the movie was in Thai, but since dialogue isn't usually the highlight of a Jackie Chan movie, we survived.  The only bad part was that Jackie died in the end.
 
We arrived at the Bangkok bus station and had several broken conversations with independent taxi drivers as to the whereabouts of our hotel before we decided it was best to follow the advice in our guide book, and go with a metered taxi.  The metered taxi got us where we needed to go, which was clear across the city at prime rush hour time, taking nearly an hour to get there.  We paid about $6.  It will definitely be a shock to our system when we get home this summer and have to spend real money again.
 
We stayed in the modern, glitzy, business district of Bangkok for three nights in a new boutique hotel complete with all the good stuff including a rooftop swimming pool (we never used it, but it was just nice knowing it was up there).  Our first order of business was to eat something other than Thai food.  As much as we like the local food, we find we have to break out of the rice, curry, stir fry, noodle dish mode every now and again and reconnect with our roots.  Once that was taken care of, we moved on to more important Bangkok tourist destinations like the Grand Palace and Chinatown. 
 
 
The Grand Palace.  This is Bangkok's number one tourist destination and it didn't take long for us to figure out why.  The place is amazing.  Built the year Bangkok became Siam's seat of power (1782) under the direction of King Rama I, the complex includes about 100 buildings, the most notable of which are Wat Phra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha) and the former residence of the royal family.  This photo shows the scene we were greeted with after walking through the entrance gate. Each building is more ornate than its neighbors and all are incredible - a gold-leaf fantasyland.  The following six photos were also taken within the Grand Palace complex.
 
 
This building is a repository for Buddhist sacred scriptures (inscribed on palm leaves).  In front of it is a shrine either dedicated to or guarded by the elephants of Thailand.
 
 
Constructed of sandstone, this is a scale model of Cambodia's most famous ancient temple, Angkor Wat.  Building of the model was ordered by King Rama IV.
 
 
Close-up of the mythical figures supporting (and guarding) the golden chedi.  The chedi is bell-shaped and reaches as high as the peaked temple roofs.  Housed inside are extremely sacred relics from Buddha himself.
 
 
One of the six temple gates guarded by a pair of demon giants.
 
 
Originally built in 1882 by a British architect, this was the official residence of King Rama V.  It is now used only for state banquets.  The current royal family (King Rama IX) resides elsewhere.
 
 
As hot as it was for us in long pants and long sleeves (modest dress required for entrance into the Grand Palace), imagine how this guy felt in his full dress uniform and pith helmet standing completely motionless while guarding the royal residence the king no longer lives in.
 
 
Thailand's largest reclining Buddha.  Stretching 130 feet long and 45 feet high, Buddha is constructed of plaster around a brick core, covered in gold leaf.  Mother-of-pearl is inlaid on the bottom of his very large feet (only the bottom of his very large toes are visible in this photo).  Buddha in the reclining position represents the passing of Buddha into nirvana (Buddha's death).  Wat Pho (Pho Temple) was built around the reclining Buddha - it's a good thing too because not even his very large feet would fit through the door.
 
 
Wat Pho not only has the largest reclining Buddha, but also has what must be the largest number of Buddha images in one temple - 394.  Here are just a few.
 
 
By the end of our tour through the Grand Palace and Wat Pho grounds, we were feeling like we had seen enough Buddhist temples and Buddha images to last maybe not a lifetime, but a good, long while.  If you add up the number of Buddhas we've seen between Phuket (the Big Buddha), Chiang Mai, Sukhothai and Bangkok, we're well up over 2,500.  I'd say we're good to go for a while.  Don might say something a little more emphatic than that.  Anyway, what you're looking at above is not a Buddhist temple, it's a Chinese shrine in Bangkok's Chinatown.  Thought you might like a little change of pace.
 
 
Chinatown on a Saturday afternoon.  If it weren't for the Thai writing on the signs, you wouldn't know you were in Thailand.
 
 
Chinatown market stalls.
 
 
After the press of humanity in Bangkok's Chinatown, we mastered the subway system and zipped back to the quieter, more expansive streets of the business district where our rooftop pool lay in wait (not that we used it).  That night, our last night in Bangkok - the heart of Thai culture and cuisine - we went out for pizza.  Sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do.
 
Up next:  back to boating.
Anne
 
 
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