Bangkok, Thailand

Bangkok was quite the cultural change for us after spending two weeks in Myanmar which seems to be lagging years behind in development.  Bangkok is a city of 8 million people and is the capital of Thailand.  With 581 high rises it has the 5th highest number of any city in the world yet it still has a vibrant street life with active markets and street food galore which make it such an interesting city to visit.  Thailand is presently in mourning as their King Rama the Ninth died in October.  He was the worlds longest reigning monarch and was much loved by the people and out of respect most Thai people are wearing black for the next year.  Fences are draped with black and white fabric and his picture and memorials are everywhere.  The Chao Phraya River runs through Bangkok and has a series of canal running off of it which is why this city is known as the Venice of the east.  A boat ride through the canals is really interesting as they are lined with homes that are barely standing to ones of great beauty interspersed with the occasional temple. We visited the city's most popular sight which is the Grand Palace and it simply took your breath away.  The architecture was stunning and actually glimmered in the sunlight.  Everywhere you looked was another building or statue that was simply glorious.  What a treat!  We visited several temples in Bangkok and each was stunning In their own way.  We were very lucky to have a wonderful local guide Nok who took us to local restaurants and ordered local food for us to try and even had us eating street food as she knew which vendors our western stomachs would agree with.  It certainly enhanced our experience.  Visits to the train market, the floating market and the Asiatique night market were fun and entertaining.  The streets of Bangkok are busy with traffic and people and a popular way to get around is by tuk tuk as they weave around high end cars and trucks.  The best of Thailand so far is the people.  They are so friendly and polite that it so refreshing.  We have learned so much about Buddism on this trip and have come to realize that followers have a certain peace about them that others do not.

The flower market in Bangkok had hundreds of stalls selling incredible arrangements 

These beautiful flower objects are used for offerings at the temples

Delivering fresh flowers to one of the vendors

The streets are alive with food carts serving every type of food imaginable.  The carts were much cleaner than those in Myanmar.

The opposite side of the river from our hotel.  Little shuttle boats ran continuously to take us across.

This woman made the most delicious bananas deep fried in coconut. Fresh and hot they melted in your mouth.

The train market was quite something to behold. As one can see the stalls go right up to the track and the shades overlap it. When they know the train is coming everything and everybody moves out of the way.

As one can see any item with any height has been pulled back.

Low items are left in place and the train is high enough to clear them.  As soon as the train passes the vendors hurry to put everything back in its place.  This goes on daily.

It was very entertaining to watch

Still muscle driven forms of transportation for taxis

Rode in lots of tuk tuks. They tend to dart in and out of traffic so is quite the experience 

Ready for our spa time

We did indulge in a few massages as they were so cheap in Thailand. Ten dollars an hour!

Boiling down the coconut juice to make palm sugar which tasted like fudge.

The floating market was an absolute zoo of boats.  The vendors would use boat hooks to pull boats closer if they thought they could make a sale.  Quite smart on their part.

This lady was paddling up the middle of the mayhem selling ice cream

This gentleman was rumored to make the best noodle soup at the market

After we each ate a bowl while traveling through the market we know the rumors to be true.

The Bangkok night market was huge with hundreds of vendors, entertainment and restaurants 

The buildings within the grand palace were spectacular 

Each door of every building was guarded by a mythical figure

Incredible architecture 

Demons and a monkey hold up a stupa

The glitz was unbelievable 

This famous jade Buddha is draped in gold and sits high above an alter well protected 

Hundreds of years old but glittering in the sun

Thousands of Thai people line up every day to file past the remains of King Rama IV who died in October and was loved by the people.  They will remain in mourning for a year before they will cremate his body.  They whole country is draped in black and white cloth and there are memorials absolutely everywhere.  Some of these people will be in this line for as long as 12 hours.

Outside the Grand Palace

Largest gold reclining Buddha at 46 meters long

Beautiful stupas on the temple grounds

This is our transportation for our tour of the canals of Bangkok

Canals wind here way all through the center of the city

This giant monitor lizard was sleeping on the bank of he canal

All the homes have power, water and sewers

For entertainment residents can watch the tourists go by

One can buy anything on the streets of Bangkok at night

We went on a food cart tour.  A lot of them did not appeal to our appetites but these mushrooms were dipped in batter and then deep fried.  They were delicious.

We visited the Presart Museum set up by our guide.  He is an architect and I would say probably a bit eccentric as he picks and chooses who comes to his magnificent place.  As it turned out Eric and I were the only two there for the two hour private tour of this jewel.  The antiques were stunning and the grounds and gardens breathtaking 

Just a glimpse of the thousands of articles we saw

The buildings on the grounds were also incredible