Bustling Bangkok

Overview

Bangkok is a striking, must-see destination. You'll not find more unique, brightly colored buildings in more common European destinations. Among the best & brightest: Wat Phra Kaeo (home of the Emerald Buddha) & Wat Pho (home of the 160 feet Reclining Buddha). Add to this the Floating Market, Bridge Over River Kwai, & a trip in search of the Floating Nun & you've got the makings for a trip-of-a-lifetime. The grandeur of this land is astonishing. Thailand is, indeed, a majestic kingdom, & Bangkok is its heart.

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

Tuk-Tuks are an inexpensive, though precarious, form of transportation through Bangkok's gridlocked streets. Use some caution, however, since Tuk-Tuk drivers are just as likely as cab drivers to take you to a place other than your requested destination, usually a gem or jewelry market. This one (see photo) brandished a particularly fond universal symbol--Mickey & Minnie Mouse!

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Royal Orchid Sheraton Hotel

Hotel | "Royal Orchid Sheraton"

First-class, all the way! Shortly after checking in, we received a vase of fresh orchids & a plate of fresh, locally grown fruit. The fuzzy ones & spiked ones were especially fun to eat! Our room overlooked the Chao Phya River, with a sitting area next to the window. Oversized terrycloth robes were just part of the amenities of the room. Breakfast was a delectable feast. The Concierge was helpful in finding a (safe) private car & driver to take us out to Kanchanaburi & beyond. We also particularly enjoyed the Cultural Show on the Riverfront at Royal Orchid, called "Thailand Tonight".

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by akakd on February 22, 2001

Royal Orchid Sheraton Hotel
Siphya Road · 2 Captain Bush Lane Bangkok, Thailand 10500
+66 (2) 2660123

Wat Phra Keo

Attraction | "Wat Phra Kaeo Temple Complex"

Built in 1782, Wat Phra Kaeo is regarded as one of the world's greatest religious sights: a dazzling collection of guilded spires, sparkling pavilions, & towering mythological gods. This is the only one of Thailand's 29,000 Buddhist temples in which no monks reside, though we did see them on site. This was a place to delight the senses: glittering buildings, rustling chimes, whiffs of incense... Wat Phra Kaeo is home to the Emerald Buddha, the most sacred object in the country & a national symbol of freedom & prosperity. In a private ceremony at the beginning of each of their three seasons, the King personally dresses the Buddha in an appropriate set of robes: gilded robe patterned with blue for rainy season, enamel-coated gold robe for cool season, & diamond-studded robe for hot season. I wonder how the Emerald Buddha would feel about the Manneken Pis in Brussels, Belgium having over 1,000 outfits!?!

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by akakd on February 22, 2001

Wat Phra Keo
Na Phralan Road Bangkok, Thailand 10200
+66 02 222 0094, 222

Grand Palace

Attraction | "Royal Grand Palace"

Leaving Wat Phra Kaeo Temple Complex, you enter the Royal Grand Palace Complex. Two rooms are open to the public: Amarin Vinichai, where the King reads his annual Birthday Speech & Dusit Maha Prasat with its mother-of-pearl throne & where deceased members of the royal family are kept before burial. The Royal Grand Palace is still used for state banquets & for receiving foreign dignitaries. We were there for the ceremonial changing of the guard.

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by akakd on February 22, 2001

Grand Palace
Na Phra Lan Road Bangkok, Thailand 10500
+66 (2) 694 1222

Wat Pho

Attraction

Wat Pho is home to the massive 160 foot long Reclining Buddha, representing the Buddha entering the state of nirvana. To give you an idea of size, your face would be smaller than the tip of one of the Buddha's toes! The soles of the statue's feet contain 108 mother-of-pearl ornaments describing various attributes of Buddha. Wat Pho is also centre of a national movement for teaching & conservation of Thai medicine, including the art of massage. We walked back behind the tourist scenes to get a glimpse. We saw many of the children playing around in their classroom after their monk master left the room. They were dancing, chasing each other, standing on tables. Children are children everywhere. In another room, a monk teacher hit a stick across the table & the children fell to their knees in silence. Quite a contrast.

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by akakd on February 22, 2001

Wat Pho
2 Sanamchai Road Bangkok, Thailand 10200
+66 02 222 5910; 226

Wat Arun

Attraction | "Wat Arun, Temple of Dawn"

After several false starts through narrow alleyways crowded by dried fish, fruits, & vegetables for sale, we finally found our way to Tha Tien Pier to catch a ferry across to Wat Arun. Don't even attempt to ask directions in Bangkok! We learned quickly to depend completely on guidebook maps. Bandits abound in Bangkok, deliberately steering you away from your destination & into their stores to shop & spend money. They will tell you your destination is "closed, special Buddhist holiday". Don't believe it. If you take a cab, they'll stop at a shop & request you go in, before they'll take you on to your destination. It can be quite a frustrating challenge to travel independently in Thailand, but well worth the effort for sites like Wat Arun, Temple of the Dawn.

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by akakd on February 22, 2001

Wat Arun
Thai Wang Road Bangkok, Thailand

Wat Traimit

Attraction | "Wat Traimit's Golden Buddha"

The story behind the famed Golden Buddha is a captivating one. During the 1950's, renovation work in a modest temple compound resulted in damage to a huge Buddha statue thought to be made of concrete. Through the crack, a gleam of gold was seen, & when the protective shell was chipped off, it revealed a SOLID GOLD Sukhothai-style statue, 10 feet tall, 5 tons in weight, dating back to the 13th century. A rare find indeed! The Golden Buddha had been completely covered in plaster to conceal it from an invading enemy. Today it is treasured for its historical, artistic, & cultural value. Parts of the plaster covering are on dislay inside the temple building.

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by akakd on February 22, 2001

Wat Traimit
Between Charoen Krung, Yaowarat and Traimit Roads Bangkok, Thailand 10330
+66 (2) 225-9775

Damnoen Saduak Floating Market

Attraction | "Damneon Saduak Floating Market"

Rivers & canals are the highways & byways of Thailand. Known as "Klongs", these waterways are at the very core of Thai life. On these waters, vendors sell their goods, parents take kids to school, & saffron-robed monks paddle door-to-door to receive their morning alms. To get a glimpse into this way of life, we took a long-tailed speed boat past the stilt houses to the famous Floating Market. En route, we passed people bathing, washing fruit, doing laundry--all in the same canal. An eye-opening experience into Thai culture.

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by akakd on February 25, 2001

Damnoen Saduak Floating Market
Bang Phae-Damnoen Saduak Road Damnoen Saduak, Thailand 70120
+66 2 694 1222 (Tour

Bridge over River Kwai

Attraction

The Bridge over River Kwai was built in 1942 when Japanese decided to build a 260 mile railway linking Burma & Thailand, guaranteeing an unbroken link between the Japanese base in Singapore & the Indian front. Hundreds of thousands of laborers from the region, along with 60,000 allied prisoners of war were forced to work under inhuman conditions in order to complete the Kanchanaburi section through mountainous jungle territory. More than 90,000 laborers (coolies) & 16,000 prisoners of war died during construction of the railway, giving rise to the name 'Death Railway'. Unbelievably, the bridge was used only once by the Japanese in their invasion of India. It was bombed by Allied Forces in 1945. Today, a bridge stands firmly in it's place in a picturesque setting in Kanchanaburi. You can walk across this bridge, however, wooden planks are narrow & we found ourselves looking for one of the side overlooks when a train began coming in our direction.

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by akakd on February 25, 2001

Bridge over River Kwai
Kanchanaburi Bangkok, Thailand

The Floating Nun

Attraction | "In Search of the Floating Nun"

Warily, we hired a driver that didn't speak a word of English to drive us out of Bangkok to several sites over an entire day. I had the hotel concierge write out names of five places in Thai for us to show the driver. Clearly having never been there, he had a difficult time finding Wat Tham Mongkorn Thong Buddhist Compound, but I was determined to find the "Floating Nun" I'd read about. We were met at the entrance to the compound by a (thankfully) tethered elephant, a Thai symbol of good luck. With no one on the complex speaking English, we were set into motion on a wild goose chase in search of this "Floating Nun". First we were sent up steep mountain stairs, which afforded a beautiful view of the brightly colored compound below. Next we were sent into a cave laden with candles & Buddha statues. Throughout Thailand, caves are imbued with spiritual significance. We crawled through cautiously, thinking if something happened to these silly tourists in a cave high up in the hills in a remote Buddhist Compound that no one would even know where to begin to look. Though others must certainly come in search of a blessing by this "Floating Nun", we certainly saw no tourists there that day. We climbed up a ladder out into a bright, clear day. We then were guided to descend the mountain where we wandered aimlessly about the compound, watching the Buddhist monks go about their daily chores of tending gardens, etc. We were eventually graced with the presence of the "Floating Nun", also known as Mai Chi Loy Nam. She wasn't at the top of those steep stairs, she wasn't up on the mountain, she wasn't in the cave, she wasn't in the building with the dragon staircase, she wasn't in the temple, but she did come (for a bit of money) to "float" for us. The "Floating Nun" meditates while floating in a pool of water while you sit silently by, feeling like an intruder of something very personal & private. During these sessions, it is said you receive the nun's silent blessings. For us, the blessing was in the experience.

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by akakd on February 25, 2001

The Floating Nun
Wat Tham Mongkorn Thong Buddhist Compound Bangkok, Thailand

Rose Garden

Attraction | "Rose Garden Cultural Show"

For a fabulous overview of Thai culture, the Rose Garden Cultural Show has it all. It began with a Big Drum Duet, followed by a Buddhist Ordination Ceremony. Next came Thai Boxing, a serious bout of boxing mixed with pure comedy. Very funny & entertaining! We also delighted in the graceful Long Fingernail Dance & marveled at the theatrical display of flags from all nations. We also saw sword fighting, followed by flirtatious couples dancing between moving bamboo poles--one wrong step in either activity sure to be painful! Also included was a traditional wedding ceremony. Wedding couples are joined by a sacred white cord (also used to join mourners at funerals on the walk to the burial site). Guests filed by to pour water over the couples clasped hands to wash away impurities, reminiscent of a Native American custom I witnessed in a hogan wedding ceremony in Northern New Mexico. All in all, a well-orchestrated cultural overview. Before leaving, we couldn't resist a ride on an elephant. This one didn't attack my husband.

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by akakd on February 25, 2001

Rose Garden
Km 32 Phetkasem Road Sampran, Thailand 73110
+66 34 322544-7; 322

a mouth full!

Story/Tip

The full Thai name for Bangkok is listed in The Guinness Book of World Records as the world's longest place name. It is "Krungthep Mahanakhon Bovorn Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilokpop Noparathatchathani Burirom Vdomratchaniveymahasathan Amornipiman Avatarnsathit Sakkathattiya-avisnukarmprasit"! In everyday usage, this is shortened to Krungthep, City of Angels. (And I thought "Te Whakarewarewatangaoteopetauaawahiao" Thermal Hot Springs in Rotorua, New Zealand was a long name!

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King & Queen of Thailand

Story/Tip

His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, whose picture is aptly featured on Thai Currency (Baht), is well respected in his Country. He is the longest-ruling monarch in Thai history. Along with Her Majesty Sirikit, His Majesty has visited every province, reaching even the most remote, inaccessible villages by helicopter, jeep, boat, or foot. Together, the Royal Couple have initiated hundreds of projects to better the lives of Thai people. One such program helps wean hill tribes from their traditional dependence on opium cultivation. His Majesty's picture is found all over Thailand. I've heard that at the beginning of movies shown in theaters, his picture is projected onto the screen, & everyone stands up in respect & honor when they see it.

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