Bangkok, Thailand

 

One of the Buddha halls at Wat Pho, Bangkok


Karen and I were in Bangkok, Thailand for a quick weekend escape from the cold and dampness of Hong Kong in January. Hong Kong had the coldest January in 30 years and while it was not a New England winter it was cold.   














We stayed in a friend's lovely apartment (Thank you Emily!) in a quiet section of the city.  There were vendors selling fresh fruit and food on the street, cheap restaurants and massage shops.  A 2 hour Thai massage (which some may consider a form of torture) was 16 dollars [US] including a very generous tip.   

The street outside Emily's apartment



  

A spirit house. 
These altar type structures
are built to allow the spirits who were
displaced by construction of buildings
with a new place to stay. This one is
rather elaborate, they are not all so
fancy, though they are very common.


Bangkok is notoriously congested with traffic.
We found the public transit a much better way
to travel in the city.  You have a choice of
boats, trains or buses.
 

Bangkok traffic.


   

Trains were clean and had AC, though they
did not cover all the city. 

 

Boats were another way to move around the city.  Bangkok sits 6 feet
above sea level, so parts of the city flood often.  Traveling by
boat is very convenient if you are going north or south along the
river.



 

We hopped on a local bus for what we thought
would be a quick trip up town.  Over an hour
later, we arrived at our destination.  These buses
are not used by tourists, but we found it an
interesting way to get a sense of the local scene.
Payment of the fare is done with the woman shown
above.  She would ask each passenger where
they were going, establish the fare and make
change out of the long tin box she carried.










The royal temple grounds as seen from the river.

 

Sign found upon entering the grounds of the Royal Temple.  Note the warning
not to trust "wily strangers".  This was advice we were given repeatedly, do not
trust people who come up to you on the street as con-artists were everywhere.
This made asking for directions difficult.




Stupas on the grounds of the Royal Palace. 
The grounds were breathtakingly beautiful.




Inside the courtyard of the Royal Temple


 

Shrine on the grounds of the Royal Temple.


 

All the buildings on the grounds were incredibly ornate.





Crowds of local people waiting to get in to
see the Emerald Buddha.




The Emerald Buddha is said to have miraculous powers and is worshipped by people in Thailand.
The actual statute is small and sits high up on an altar. 
No pictures are allowed inside the building, so this shot
was taken from outside.  The Buddha's cloak is
changed three times a year by the King of Thailand;
once in each of the seasons (cool, hot, and rainy). 
These are the cool season dressings.

 Near the Royal Temple was another temple - Wat Pho, known as the site of the Reclining Buddha.  We knew the Buddha was big, but it bigger than we imagined - 148 feet long and 45 feet high, covered in gold leaf.  It was impossible stand far enough back to see the whole Buddha. 


The Reclining Buddha's head







The Reclining Buddha of Wat Pho




The Buddha's feet. The bottom of the feet are
covered in mother of pearl.



We also visited the famous weekend market in Bangkok, Chatuchak.  Held every weekend, it is Bangkok's largest market, having over 8,000 stalls selling items such as clothing, household goods, fake designer purses, jewelry, real antiques and newly minted antiques.  The market grounds cover 30 acres.  We were there for about 5 hours and saw just a fraction of the stalls.

Children performing in the market

Most of the stalls were in buildings with streets between
the buildings



Luckily there was a tower on the grounds
which helped us to keep our bearings.