The Grand Palace in Bangkok
February 2004
The Grand Palace
This is a good place to get a feel for the adoration that Thai people place on both their King and on Buddha. It is the ceremonial residence of the King of Thailand, 218,000 square metres protected by high white walls and Royal Guards. Within the walls is an inner complex of temples and sacred Buddhist spots, the highlight being the Emerald Buddha.
The street outside the palace.
Beware the Tuk-Tuks (three wheeled taxis). Drivers will blatantly lie to you that the tourist-trap you're trying to find is "closed today". It's a scam to get you to go somewhere else and pay them fare. No joke, it happened to us a few times. Ken nonchalantly called them liars in the Thai language. They seemed more shocked that this lanky red-haired white guy could speak their language. (More on Tuk-Tuk drivers in my section on Ko Lanta island.)
Ken inside the palace grounds with the inner temple area in the background.
Upon entry, you're looked over, and if you are not dressed respectfully enough, they force you to wear rented modest clothes. I was wearing shorts, but no short pants are allowed, so I had to rent a pair of airy Asian pants, quite cool actually. These clean-cut Thais must be shocked at the filthy attire that some of these backpackers show up in.
A Buddhist monk or monks.
The Ancient Irish past of Asia . . . Leprechauns. (?)
The King's ceremonial residence.
Royal Guards, like the Buckingham Palace guards, stand still and stare straight ahead. The main difference though, is that they do this in stifling heat (and they wear less goofy hats).
While we were there, a crowd of dignitaries was being escorted near us, and we later found out that it was the President of Poland and his entourage. Keen.
This jovial fellow greets you when you enter the temple area in the Grand Palace.
You should see these buildings!
I don't know the significance of these scary looking demonic guardian things. If anyone does, please email me.
These wall paintings cover the inner walls of a courtyard, amazingly intricate.
A scale model of Angor Wat which is in Cambodia.
Ken told me there is a black market on broken pieces from Angor Wat. It is so huge that they can't monitor all of it, so disrespectful tourists break off pieces as souvenirs and some sell them. Sick.
You can't beat the attention to detail. Yeesh.
Look but don't touch, grasshopper.
Outside of the Emerald Buddha Building.
They don't allow you to take photos of the Emerald Buddha, so if you want to see it, you have to go there. They do however allow all people and all religions to enter and everyone has to remove their shoes. It is a very peaceful place, kind of like a cathedral. The focal point is a towering pyramid of gold and intricate ornamentation and artifacts, capped with the Emerald Buddha statue. We saw all sorts of dignified people quietly making offerings and praying/meditating quietly. But on Ken's immediate right was a white falang hippy chick making overly dramatic gestures of prayer and meditation. I could tell Ken was half-amused and half-annoyed at this chick.
More ornamental buildings
On to Wat Po, the Reclining Buddha