After another day of being well-fed and cared for we arrived at the remarkable port of Laem Chabank, Thailand. We were sooooo excited to spend 1 night Bangkok - looking forward to the food, the culture, the food, the sights. . . .the food! Yum – S p i c a y!!!!! Again, we had a long bus drive into (2hr) Bangkok and we were rewarded with a boat trip. This vessel (open air – which means lets in all the humidity) journeyed into the canals and tributaries that traverse this fascinating city. It used to be called Siam and you’ll all remember the story of the King and I right? Well he was King Rama the IV and I wanted to see his temple but he was not that important of a king to put on tour. Anyway I don’t want to ruin the picture of Yul Brynner in my mind. Some of the other highlights were: the Temple of Dawn (which we toured later at length), King Taksin’s palace, the Royal Barge and ended with lunch at a traditional Thai restaurant that was spectacular and . . . . spicy!!!!! After checking onto our hotel we had some time to kill so we took a boat and a sky train and ended up in the center of the city. M and R went deeper into the old city and we stayed at the HUGE HUGE HUGE (do i make myself clear?) Mall. Just like home only 3 times BIGGER! I actually found a department store, let’s call it Macy’s, that had everything you could want under the same roof. We even found golf equipment and apparel! Amazing. I bought some shirts and we also got a few gifts but it was fun and air conditioned. There was a food floor that included Krispy Creme, but the line was so long it was out the door, in addition to Burger King, KFC, Dunkin doughnuts and Bon a Pain. But, alas we were not hungry! Can’t imagine why. After a really awesome taxi ride back we had a brief rest and then joined our group for really special dinner and show at beautiful restaurant, lit up like it was Christmas. The food was just ok but the show was great. The dancers performed stories from classical Thai literature and folk tales in costumes that were unbelievably gorgeous.
The next day we had a light breakfast and headed out to yet again, more Temples. Well to be fair, this time it was a palace. Wat po is famous for housing the reclining Buddha. I just want to say that the Buddhas in Thailand differ from the laughing Buddhas of China in that they seem to be taller (tho always sitting) and handsome. Although, their eyes are always depicted at a downward angle in order to be revered from beloved subjects below them. The next Palace, named Wat Phra Kaew (temple of the Emerald Buddha) was the best and houses the Jade Buddha. The grounds of this palace were extensive and took most of the day but awesome to see. The Jade Buddha was discovered by accident and at first thought to be made of stone until a chip fell off and they thought it was emerald but it was actually carved from a single piece of jade in the 15th Century. More shopping then back to the ship. We all really wanted more time here to do our own investigating. Next time…..
Hugs to all – tomorrow Cambodia – yike I’m falling behind.
Maryann
