Poor Alison has been bed ridden so far for all of our stay in Bangkok, and looks like she'll be there for another day at least. We had our fingers crossed that by tomorrow she might be slowly recovering. So today I planned to visit a couple of sights that she had already seen, the Grand Palace and Wat Pho.
The Grand Palace is absolutely stunning (500 bht pp). The ornate jewelled mosaics covering walls, roofs and sculptures everywhere you look, and as they sparkle in the morning sunlight they will simply take your breath away. At the same time, the crowds are suffocating and may squeeze any remaining breath you had right out of you.
Picking the time of your visit should be carefully considered. I arrived around ten am on a Saturday morning, as did thousands of mainly Asian tour parties. I'm as photo hungry as the next man, but you can't really enjoy any aspect to the full without being hijacked by scores of Facebook posed photos on all fronts. And its not just the kids, even middle aged women seemed to have joined the party. I left thinking arriving as the doors open might get you thirty minutes relative peace and quiet, or a late afternoon visit might be the best options, with the added benefit of cooler temperatures. By the way, if you don't believe me on just how frenetic it can be, consider this - the last King to reside here left in 1897, apparently because he was fed up with the crowds.
Everyone will have their favourite memories of the Grand Palace. Mine were the continuous mural around the shaded perimeter, the mighty bronze lions guarding each gate, and the Ubosoth, with its golden garudas along its entire base. The emerald Buddha is the most visited room and the Golden Stupor the most photographed. Once through the exit gate, you walk past the newer palace residences, including a ceremonial terrace where the king mounts his elephant. I was relieved to get out to be honest, and nearly knocked over the hoards of hawkers outside the narrow main gate in my rush to escape. Thankfully, just a kilometre to the south is the equally impressive, and much more peaceful Wat Pho (100 bht pp).
This Buddhist temple is commonly referred to as Wat Pho, but also goes by its official name of Wat Phra Chettuphon Wimon Mangkhlaram Ratchaworamahawihan. (I think I'll stick with Wat Pho.) It's home to over one thousand buddha images, and also the largest reclining Buddha in the world, coming in at an impressive forty three metres long. There is plenty of open space within the complex, and also numerous enclosed courtyards, with something catching your eye every which way you turn. You'll want to spend time marveling at the reclining Buddha, and also the heavily jeweled chedis (mounds), and exploring the four separate temple halls. It's also a working monastery and you'll see Buddhist monks studying inside some of the shady temple walls. Wat Pho is also considered the birthplace of Thai massage and a massage school has been operating since 1962. Reportedly so good in fact that the Thai royal family are still frequent visitors.
The Chinese new year celebrations were going strong during my visit, and there were stalls and displays near the main entrance, and they were giving free cold water to foreigners, which was much appreciated during the midday heat.
After reluctantly leaving the temple behind, I headed back to Tha Tien pier to catch the ferry back to the hotel. I spent over four hours at the Palace and the Temple, which is more than enough in the thirty degrees heat. After cooling down and checking on my poorly wife, I decided a Thai massage would be a wise choice, and an hour's aromotherapy massage costs just 700 baht at the parlour next door to the hotel. There's no better way to end a day of Temple exploring!
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