Royal palace1

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Royal palace2

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Royal Palace3

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After our tour of this magnificent temple we took leave of our friendly tour guide. She gave us the usual warning of being scammed by touts and gave us her cell phone number in case we needed any help. We thanked her and walked to the Royal Palace.

For just about 150 years, Bangkok's Grand Palace was not only the home of the King and his court, but also the entire administrative seat of government. Thai Kings stopped living in the palace full time around the turn of the twentieth century, but the complex still remains the seat of power and spiritual heart of the Thai kingdom. The palace is laid out following the general outline of Ayutthaya palaces. The Temple of the Emerald Buddha takes up one corner of the complex next to the outer court. Words simply fail to describe what we saw. Art and architecture joined hands together with Thai aesthetics to create this marvelous complex. We were absolutely stunned. The intricate inlay works, the colours, the statues amazed us. Another striking thing which we felt was that the chambers had been constructed and arranged in such a manner that you move from one vibration to another as you move from one chamber to another.

To properly see this out of the world palace one needs at least three hours. By the time we were through dark grey clouds had gathered and the air was humid and stifling. Wind had practically ceased to blow. We were sweating profusely. On our way to the exit we were talking about the scams that people fall victim to in this area which Shanek had once described as shark infested and how come no one came to us with friendly advice. My daughters were of the opinion that our Thai experience will remain incomplete without even a minor scam. I think God heard us and we bumped in to a lady wearing some kind of a badge on her blouse complete with a clip board in hand, a pen and a whistle hanging from the neck. We were to take the ferry from the nearby pier to cross the river to visit Wat Arun. I was not sure whether we should turn left or right after exiting from the palace. So I asked this official looking lady the direction to the pier. After muttering a few Hindi words this lady gave us the direction and said that the temple is closed now and will open at 4 PM and taking the map from my hand she began to make circles around places which we must see till the temple opens, cautioning us of looting Tuk Tuk drivers she blew her whistle and a non-looting Tuk Tuk driver materialized from nowhere. We thanked her for all the help and wished her a good day & better luck and started walking towards the pier.

The pier is just a ten minutes walk from the palace gate. The pavement along the way was full of vendors selling all kinds to things, from pirated DVD’s of Hollywood block busters to watches, ointments and balms, curios and off course food. We waded through the maze of hawkers and reached the pier. We were all very thirsty so we approached a shop selling water and cold drinks. We bought some water and asked the price of a can of beer. The shop keeper said 60B. At the very next shop the beer was selling for 35B.

The temple of sun Wat Arun can be reached by taking the ferry from Tha Tien pier. This one is also a magnificent sight & is one of the best known landmarks and one of the most published images of Bangkok. We also came to know that it had a brief period as host of the celebrated Emerald Buddha which we had seen in the Royal Palace. After buying entry tickets we entered the beautiful garden surrounding the temple. One word of caution here, if you have vertigo or suffer from bouts of dizziness think twice before climbing the stairs. The slope is almost vertical with narrow steps. The whole temple is adorned by numerous idols, intricate Chinese porcelain & glass works. The view from the balcony of this temple is very good. We stood there for a long time looking at the river and the city shoreline.

After taking good many photographs of this wonderful temple we took the ferry back to Tha Tien pier. One person from LP thorn tree had recommended a small eatery located at the pier itself. As you face the ticket counter it is on your left hand side. We got a table there on the river side and sat down. The Wat Arun stood majestically bang opposite. The sky had by now attained a threatening look. We ordered noodles, fried rice, pan seared fillets of pork, sea bass and vegetables, cold drinks and beer. The dark clouds, the stifling air, our vacation coming to an end made us pensive. As we nibbled our food we all were lost in our own thoughts. We would leave this land of sun & smiles tomorrow, back to our work, the daily grind. My younger daughter would leave us and go to Hyderabad where she works. One week of fun and thrill passed away so soon like a dream. In the secret space of these dreams, where I dreaming sat amazed. When the secrets all are told, and the petals of happy memories all unfold. Bent my ear to hear the murmurs of the sea, and closed my eyes to see the world of corals, the shoals of fish. We all seating together to sample the wonderful fare, full of tastes no tongue can know, and sights no eyes can see.

The wind began to blow and soon started howling through the openings of the pier. First fell the rain in drops as big as one rupee coins. Then came the deluge. The heavens broke. It was as if a box of rain has been upturned from the sky. A box of rain, wind and water, Sun and shower, wind and rain, in and out the window of the eatery like a moth before a flame. The rains washed away the sweat, dust, grime and sadness. From oppressively uncomfortable in no time the air became so cool and comforting. We stirred in our seats and deeply breathed the air feeling happy again.

How heavy fell the rain that day
From burdened clouds of mournful grey.
The torrent forced them stay their height -
Composure swayed by onerous might.
The driving drops advanced their gears
To camouflage my sneaking tears -
Whence now did swell such floods of pain
To see me melt into this rain…
On equal bearing now were we:
This rain; myself, in harmony … (Mark Slaughter)

----------------------------- END OF OUR TOUR REPORT--------------------------

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Thank you so much for taking the time out to write this report. I have really enjoyed it it makes me feel like reposting my JBR from our long trip.

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Kiss
God laughs at people who make plans.

Thank you Jax. Looking forward to reading your report. Since you have travelled extensively you report will surely give us ideas for our next trip.

great stuff

just great stuff cheers