Touring Bangkok

So, Chris and I hired a private tour guide to show us around Bangkok on Sunday, September 29, 2013.  It was a fascinating tour, but because it was about 90 degrees and 100% humidity, we didn't make it all day.  It was so humid, my camera was fogged up for the beginning of the tour. Fortunately, we started early and covered most of the hot spots before running for the air conditioning of our hotel room.

We took a taxi from our hotel to the first stop of the morning, which was Wat Trimitr, previously called "Wat Samjeentai”, a small temple built by three friends about 150 years ago. It was restored in 1937 and granted the official name of Wat Trimitwitthayaramworaviharn or known as the Golden Buddha Temple.

The main attraction of the temple is the largest Golden Buddha in the world named “Phra Sukhothaitrimitr”, a puzzling Buddha image 3 meters tall made of solid gold, was believed that he was built around 700 years ago in Sukhothai Period. It was once covered with ordinary cement, until it fell from a crane in about 1955 while being moved to a new building. The belief is that it was covered in cement as a means of protecting it from the Burmese while the capital of Ayutthaya was under siege but there were no records indicating the solid gold Buddha was under there.  

This temple has a school and living quarters for the monks, as well as the a ceremonial building, which was under construction and the main temple, where the Golden Buddha was.  It is located very near Chinatown, so when we left the temple, we walked across the street and down the streets of Chinatown.  Bangkok has a large Chinese population, which our guide indicated was formed when Chinese left China at different times of governmental or economic strife over the years.  There were a lot of very traditional Chinese restaurant, medicine shops, and markets lining the streets of Chinatown.

From Chinatown, we grabbed a Tuk-Tuk to take us to our next stop, which was the Flower market, or what locals call “Pak-Klong-Talad.” Our guide said he didn't know why they call this vehicle a Tuk-Tuk, so he asked around and no one could tell him where the name originated.  He decided it must be because tuk-tuk is the sound the propane-powered engine makes when it is started.  Chris agreed because Tuk-Tuk is also the name in India, where they are also propane-powered and make the same name.

Bangkok has the biggest flower market in Thailand, which is open 24 hours/day. We were told the King encouraged farmers in the north to grow chrysanthemums and marigolds instead of poppies, so they were plentiful. What really amazed me were the orchids, which were plentiful and beautiful, as well as the large bouquets of roses for 40 baht, about $1.25. The women were busily making bracelets and other arrangements of flowers that the hotels apparently give to guests, as well as floral necklaces, which are worn at weddings, and similar necklaces which we were told the average Thai people buy every day to donate to their temple or adorn the shrine in their own homes, for religious beliefs and festivals.  There were beautiful arrangements of lotus flowers, which are key to Buddhist ceremonies and festivals, in both white and purple.
 
While the flowers were incredible and the colors were beautiful, I would saw our experience differed slightly from the description on the tour guide's website:  "The kaleidoscope of colours and fragrances of the flowers provide an exotic sensory stimulation. Mixing this with the smells of street foods and spices, the hectic pace of locals going about their daily business, and the fumes from the local tuk-tuk’s in and around the market, makes the area an incredibly charming and intriguing place to visit."  Chris and I thought about it later and realized we really didn't smell the flowers - not that we didn't stop and appreciate them - but, we really couldn't smell them.  Mostly, the flower market smelled like the street food cooking nearby, the slightly moldy, dirty smell of wet, Asian city, and definitely the exhaust from the Tuk-Tuks and the many, many taxis.  They were beautiful to see, but not nearly as aromatic as you would expect.
 
After the flower market, we walked through a produce market and saw some interesting fruits and vegetables before heading on to the Grand Palace.


The third stop on our Bangkok tour was The Grand Palace & The Royal Temple of The Emerald Buddha - an incredible sight.  While it was really starting to get unbearably humid, and Chris at least, was sweating profusely, we kept going through some very cold water to drink and the incredible sights and history of the palace.  It includes 3 different areas, one designated for the Temple and various ceremonies, which is open to the public, then one where governmental offices are located.  This area is also open to visitors, but my guess is you have to have some official business to get inside of the buildings.  The third area is the royal residences, which are not on the tour and, in fact, no longer the residence of the King and Queen. 

 

Each portion of the palace compound has a distinctly different architectural style.  The first area, where the Temple and ceremonial buildings are, is very traditionally Thai and Buddhist.  The center area, where the office buildings of the King are, is a combination of European and Thai architecture.  The third area, where the royal residences were built, looks very European and very like Buckingham Palace.

The construction began in 1782, during the reign of King Rama I of Chakri Dynesty and continuously built and renovated in many reigns, covering an area of 218,400 square meters, 1,900 meters long for the walls, consisting of 3 large groups of buildings, or courts, serving different royal functions. Inside located the Royal Temple of The Emerald Buddha, the most sacred Buddha Image in Thailand.  After King Rama VIII ‘s death, King IX moved the official royal residence to Chitralada Palace, The complex now is served for royal ceremonies and religious purposes. There is no residence for the monks at this temple.  The current king is known as King Rama IX and the king from  "The King and I" was Rama IV, who ruled from
1851–1868.

The Outer Court or Khet Phra Racha Than Chan Na (เขตพระราชฐานชั้นหน้า) of the Grand Palace is situated to the northwest of the palace and the northeast being occupied by the Temple of the Emerald Buddha.  The "guards" of the temple (at least, those made of stone) are  extremely large and colorful and Hindu in origin, not Buddhist.  

 

In the Outer Court, there is a Miniature of Angkor Wat, the largest Hindu temple in the world, located in Cambodia. This model is located on the side of the Emerald Buddha temple, which in itself is located in the middle of the Grand Palace.  

The Outer Court, in addition to being the home of the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, which is actually made of Jade, is the area where the people of Thailand can come to pray at the Temple.  It is free the Thai people, although foreigners have to pay to visit.  In addition, there were foreigners being turned away at the gate, as you have to be dressed appropriately to enter the Palace and Temple.  No shorts, no skirts above the knee, no bear shoulders or spaghetti straps.  Women in tank tops with a scarf to cover their shoulders were turned away.  Our tour guide had told us ahead of time of the wardrobe restrictions, so I was wearing a long skirt and Chris was in long pants, despite the heat.

The largest and most important court is the Middle Court or the Khet Phra Racha Than Chan Klang (เขตพระราชฐานชั้นกลาง) is situated in the central part of the Grand Palace, where the government offices are located. I was really impressed to see the combination of European and Thai architecture that King Rama V had built (son of the king from The King and I) as a way to shown European countries that there was no need to colonize Siam, as they were already learning the modern ways of Europe.  He cleverly used a European type of architecture and modern conveniences, but also put on a traditional Thai roof - so that the Thai architecture was "on top."  

Thais are very proud of the fact that there are the only nation in this part of the world never to be colonized by Europeans and attribute much of that to King Rama IV and V.  As a result, the country remained a buffer state between parts of Southeast Asia that were colonized by Great Britain and France. The original name of the country was Siam, thus the book on which The King and I was based was entitled Anna and the King of Siam.  However, in 1939, the country's name was officially changed to Thailand, with Thai meaning freedom. 

I really enjoyed this part of the tour, even more than the beautiful Flower Market, because the history was so interesting and so visible on the progression of architectural styles of the buildings.  I found the whole palace fascinating and would definitely recommend it as one of the top tourist sights of Bangkok.  

However, by the time we finished, we were too hot to go on to the next stop on the tour and convinced our guide to take us to a local traditional Thai restaurant for lunch.  We had delicious Thai food, meat, vegetables and rice, and Chris asked for his to be spicy.  The restaurant owner, who was taking our order, wasn't sure he really meant spicy.  When his food arrived, it was spicy, but not overwhelmingly so.  Our guide said they must have toned down the spice some for him.  However, the owner came back while we were eating to make sure that it wasn't too spicy for Chris - she really seemed worried about him.  He loved it and felt much better after sitting in the air conditioning for a while and drinking two Diet Cokes.  

So, on to the next part of the tour.  We caught a taxi and headed for the next temple, Wat Pho.

Wat Pho is situated right next to the Grand Palace near Tha Tien Pier. It was built in the early 18th century and originally called Wat Photharam.  It is also assumed to be the first university of Thailand.

This is the Temple of the Gigantic Reclining Buddha, which is about 105 feet long and 50 feet high, The soles are inlaid with beautiful mother of Pearl scenes elaborately depicting 108 auspicious signs in Buddhism. The main chapel houses a beautiful Buddha image under which the ashes of King Rama I was enshrined. It is considered King Rama I ‘s royal temple.

Wat Pho was also a school of Thai traditional massage. There are many areas showing pressure points and techniques for Thai massage and many people are still getting massages there.  I don't think the school is in the Temple any more, though.
One building is dedicated to the large number of Buddha statues one of the kings had brought into the capital from all over Thailand.  They work hard at reconditioning them and repairing them, first covering them in black enamel and then covering them in gold.  There were different faces on the Buddhas, depending on what area of the country they came from, but most all were in the tradition lotus position, with one had facing down and one facing up.  We were told this signifies the transient nature of life; one shouldn't worry about troubles or relish good fortune too much, as everything will pass.


While our tour guide was planning another temple for us to visit, we told him that this would be the end of our tour for the day as we were so hot and sticky, we just couldn't wait to get back to the air conditioned coolness of our hotel.  He taxied with us back to the hotel and gave us a good recommendation of a restaurant in the area, in case we wanted some traditional Thai food.  We collapsed in our hotel room, showered, napped, and recovered from the heat.  That was all the touring we were up for on Sunday.

Monday was a work day for Chris, but we made it back out to see some sights on Tuesday.  We took a taxi to the Jim Thompson House, which is a fascinating part of Bangkok history as well. The Jim Thompson House is the home of James H.W. Thompson, a self-made American entrepreneur who was the founder of the world renowned Jim Thompson Thai Silk Company.  Jim Thompson was born in 1902, graduated from Princeton and joined the OSS during WWII.  He ended up in Thailand just as the war ended and decided he wanted to live there.  He found that the tradition Thai silk trade had fallen off and he revived it, among other ways, by taking Thai silks to the U.S., where they were included in the movie and stage production of "The King and I," and bought by U.S. fashion designers.   
 
He had his beautiful home built from traditional Thai houses brought together and completed in 1959.  In 1967, Jim Thompson went on holiday with friends to the Cameron Highlands in Malaysia, went for a walk, disappeared, and has never been heard from again.  His home is a lovely exhibit of traditional Thai architecture, which he also helped revive, as well as a beautiful display of silks.

After touring the Jim Thompson House and visiting the shop, we took the Sky Train back to Sukhumvit, the street our hotel was on, and stopped at a restaurant our tour guide had recommended in our area.  We'd thought we'd misunderstood the name of the restaurant, but it really was Cabbages and Condoms. 

The local style Thai food was delicious and the restaurant itself was very comfortable.  We were a bit surprised when we received free condoms, one male and one female, at the end of our meal, when one might expect to get mints. We went to the gift shop and found out that the restaurant and shop, like the affiliated ones in the U.K., support a charity designed to curb population growth in Thailand.  Apparently, the average Thai family has 7 children.

According to their website: "As one of the most unique restaurants in Metropolitan Bangkok, the Cabbages & Condoms Restaurant has attracted international attention. Conveniently located near one of Bangkok's main business districts, C&C is very popular among local and foreign clients.  Our restaurant was conceptualized in part to promote better understanding and acceptance of family planning and to generate income to support various development activities of the Population and Community Development Association (PDA)."

It was a delicious lunch and the hand-crafted items in the shop were beautiful, so definitely a good recommendation by our guide.  We returned to the hotel happy and full and took a swim in the pool before a little more work for Chris, some more U.S. TV for me, and a room-service dinner.  Our flight home was Wednesday, so we headed to the airport fairly early and made our way back to Shanghai.