After a long bus ride, we made it to Bangkok around 6am and wandered bleary-eyed over to our hotel, which is situated in a neighborhood Bangkok that is reminiscent of Bangkok's version of Park Slope: a quiet residential area with cool restaurants and bars nearby. Bangkok is a bustling, overwhelming city flanked by markets around every corner which emit some interesting smells (think Chinatown in summer but with more dried fish). 
We've sampled all sorts of yummy street cuisine but weren't brave enough to try the frogs, snakes, grasshoppers sold by numerous vendors. Fried mashed potato balls are my favorite so far, but I also love a good mango with sticky rice.
After sleeping off some of weariness we felt, we first headed to the Grand Palace. The Grand Palace is comparable to the Vatican in grandeur, and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha is as grandiose as the Sistene Chapel. As such, one must dress accordingly. My dress made it it in, but Ian had to rent some pants for his visit. At Dusit Palace Park, we were both shamed into buying sarongs.
The Emerald Buddha himself is just a little guy, but he is the most revered Buddha in Thai Buddhism and sits high on a throne pronged by other golden Buddhas (sorry, no pics allowed -- you'll just have to visit!). We sat inside his temple and pondered Buddhism as we made up stories to go along with the beautiful images depicting historical events in Thai culture.
After the grand palace, we went to several other wats in BKK as well, including one with a huge reclining Buddha (my favorite!). Most of our time was spent wandering around taking in all the people, smells, and sights. 
After the end of a few days spent walking all over the place, we got a $3 foot massage before taking the train to Chiang Mai in the north. If only I could take those back with me to the U.S...
1 comment:
the emerald buddha - a rare experience indeed. But rented pants? Where do you find that?
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