Sawadee kha! - Part 1

As soon as i came out from the airport taxi, i was greeted by the revolving cube at the entrance of the Dream Bangkok Hotel. The whole concept of this boutique hotel is very hip and cool... To be honest, i think i like this place more than a lot of other 5 stars hotel..




Day 1

Before boarding the flight here, i've already done some prep work. My fren helped me to list out a few must-go places in Bangkok for a first time tourist like me.

After getting a quick breakfast @ McDonalds, we hailed a Tuk-Tuk with the intention to go to the famous Grand Palace, to begin our "temple day". We never had any experience with a tuk-tuk before but the driver looked decent and nice, plus he offered us a very good price - 20 Thai Baht for a 30 minutes drive to Grand Palace. So why not?



Unfortunately, it was a bad mistake! As soon as we head off to the main road, he tried to persuade us to go to a tailor shop. He begged us to just hang out in the tailor shop for 5 minutes and he will get 5 litres of gas coupon. My fren has pre-warned us about the tuk-tuks who claimed that Grand Palace is only opened around 12pm (it is actually opened from 8:30am) so there is no point being there earlier and that we have no choice but to go to whatever places that they bring us to...

We already knew the trick but being nice and to avoid pissing him off, we agreed. We thought we'd let him get the free coupon as a good start for his day and in return, he will be nicer to us. Again, we were wrong. Not only he did not appreciate our nice gestures at all, BUT instead, he tried to repeat his trick again and get us to visit another store to get another 5 litres gas coupon. This time, he was pissing us off! John was mad and insisted that he fetch us to the Grand Palace as promised. When he said no, we got off the tuk-tuk and took a taxi (and it only cost us 80 Thai Baht ~ RM8).

Oh well, at least we had an experience riding a tuk-tuk for free. No next time, please. -___-""

On our way in the taxi, we saw a lot of pictures of the current king (King Rama IX). He is obviously a very beloved and respectable king of Thailand. I was told that he is the longest serving king ever in the Thailand history. Recently, he just recovered from a spine injuries so there are a lot of sign boards along the road wishing him a speedy recovery and being healthy all the time.


The King with an old man when he was young.

First, we went to Wat Pho, home to the famous Reclining Buddha and also where traditional Thai massage was first taught. You need to dress properly before being allowed into the temples; meaning no sleeveless tops, short pants, spaghetti straps, short blouses, short skirts or singlets.




Miniature manuscripts and buddha images carved on the bottom of the Reclining Buddha's feet.





Very hot and sunny. I am definitely getting tanned after this.. *_*

Wat Pho
Opens daily: 8am - 6pm
Entrance fee: 50 Baht
**Appropriate dress is compulsory

After that, we took a boat ride to the opposite river bank to visit Wat Arun, which is also famously known as Temple of Dawn. The Temple of Dawn is one of Bangkok's most spectacular sights. A quick climb up its porcelain-bedecked prang offers some lovely river views.


Wat Arun from Chao Phraya River.

It was a very very short boat ride, actually. If i were somehow asked to swim across the river bank, i think i could possibly do that. *grins* But of cos, that is not something that i would prefer to do, imagine what could have been thrown into the brownish river.. *ewww*


The central prang from the bottom.


The amazing statues forming the platform of the prang.

When i first saw the central prang of Wat Arun, i said "WOW". When i saw the steep steps going up to the balcony, John said "OH MY GOD". Haha.


Holding tight..


From the central balcony.

The view from the balcony is really magnificent. You can see the Wat Pho and Grand Palace from here. We spent half an hour appreciating the nice sceneries and taking dozens of pictures before moving on to the next temple.

Wat Arun
Opens daily: 8:30am - 5pm
Entrance fee: 50 Baht
Ferry to Wat Arun: 3.50 Baht

Wat Phra Kaew or famously known as The Temple of the Emerald Buddha is Thailand's most important temple, consisting of over 100 brightly colored buildings, golden sapphires and glittering mosaics that date back to 1782.

The Emerald Buddha is in fact carved from a block of green jade and was first discovered in 1434 in a stupa in Chiang Rai. At that time, the image was covered with plaster and was thought to be an ordinary Buddha image. Later, however, the abbot who had found the image noticed that the plaster on the nose had flaked off, revealing the green stone underneath. The abbot initially thought that the stone was emerald and thus the legend of the Emerald Buddha image began.



By the time we reached there, we only have an hour left before it closes at 3:30pm. We didnt take the free guided tour altho it was highly recommended by my friend. The whole tour is gonna take a longer time and we were afraid that we might not be able to visit the whole place. So we decided to walk on our own.. and read the history of each area from the brochure that they gave us.


A mythological giant (yak).

Located at The Upper Terrace are four main monuments - Phra Siratana Chedi, a reliquary in the shape of a golden chedi; Phra Mondop, a repository for Buddhist sacred scriptures inscribed on palm leaves and contained within a beautiful mother-of-pearl inlaid cabinet; a miniature Angkor Wat crafted by the order of King Mongkut (Rama IV); and the Royal Pantheon in which statues of the past sovereigns of the ruling Chakri Dynasty are enshrined.


Phra Siratana Chedi.


Model of Angkor Wat.

Grand Palace is the jewel in Bangkok's architectural crown and it is still used for state functions. But public access is sufficiently extensive to make it a must-see.

The visit to Grand Palace this time around was kinda bad because partial of the palace was closed due to lying in state ceremony of the king's elder sister, Princess Galyani Vadhana, whom had passed away in January(read the news here). According to the Thai's royal customary, the body will be laid in the Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall of the Grand Palace for 100 days and therefore, those area will be closed for visiting.




Chakri Maha Prasat Hall.


John with the Thai guard.

Hope the princess will rest in peace.

Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew
Opens daily: 8:30am - 3:30pm
Entrance fee: 250 Baht (includes Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew, Vimanmek Mansion and The Royal Thai Decorations and Coins Pavillion)
**Appropriate dress is compulsory.

Tired, but looking forward to the next day..