Bangkok Sightseeing: What Wat?

Today was the day of temples, or wats, as they are called in Thai. We started out our tour at 7:30 am with a ride down the Chao Phraya river on the river taxi. Crossing the Chao Phraya everyday are hotel taxis, massive barges, tugboats and river taxis filled with both tourists and Thais alike. As our taxi waded through the masses of water hyacinth, we passed the Portuguese embassy, Chinese temples and Wat Arun (The Temple of the Dawn). Soon, we reached our destination - the stop for the Grand Palace complex. 

Located on the same expansive grounds, Wat Phra Kaew and the Grand Palace are the two sites most frequented by tourists. The Grand Palace

complex was built in 1782, housing the royal residence, government ministries and Wat Phra Kaew, or the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. Housed inside the wat is the Emerald Buddha sitting regally atop a glittering gold throne. The Emerald Buddha was actually carved from a block of green jade, but was thought to be emerald by the first person who discovered the Buddha in 1434. The emerald buddha has three different outfits depending on the season. Today the buddha was still wearing his summer outfit though we can expect his outfit to be changed soon since the monsoon season has begun. Only members of the Thai royal family are allowed to change the emerald buddha's robes. 

Surrounding Wat Phra Kaew are lavishly decorated stupas, pagodas and statues. Many of the structures are covered in coloured ceramic tiles, mirrors and lots of gold. The inner walls of the courtyard are covered entirely in paintings depicting the tales of the Ramayana. The murals constantly require restoration as the elaborate paintings must face the extreme weather of Thailand's monsoon season and hot(ter) season. 

A quick jump from the Wat Phra Kaew grounds is the Grand Palace. The Grand Palace features both Western and Thai architectural styles - the bottom half of the structure being Western, topped off with a Thai-style roof. As we approached the building, we were able to witness the changing of the guards. We also saw many mourners, dressed entirely in black, visiting the King's sister who lay in state in the Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall. After passing away in December 2007, the mandatory five month national mourning period for her death has just recently ended. 

The next stop on the tour was only a quick tuk-tuk ride away - Wat Po. Wat Po is a temple

housing one of the largest reclining buddha statues in the world. Wat Po was more enjoyable than the previous because although it was in a greater state of disrepair than Wat Phra Kaew, it was much less crowded. We didn't have to weave our way through snap-happy tourists with their Nikon cameras or worry about losing each other among the throngs of visitors. Although we did meet the Shoe Nazi. The Shoe Nazi was a little man with a white head of hair, in bowl-cut style, and a thick, white mustache that took up most of his face. It seemed to be his job to direct visitors: 

"Shooze! Een de boks!" ... "Een de boks!"

As we paused to retrieve our shoes from outside the temple, Amber sat on a ledge neatly displaying a "Do Not Sit" sign. However, with her fractured foot and the wieldy black boot (featuring lots of velcro straps) that needed to go on it, surely people would have understood her need to take a seat. Not the Shoe Nazi.

"Why you stop?! Agh, you mek long liiine!"

So we scurried on, shoes in hand. 

The last wat of the day was Wat Bowon which is where many important men have been ordained as monks, such as - current king Bhumibol Adulyadej, his son the Crown Prince and last, but certainly not least, my dad. Today we managed to see a few recently ordained monks, their families taking pictures of the young boys with their newly shaven head and eyebrows. This time of year, at the onset of monsoon season, is a popular time for Thai men to choose to be ordained. In Thailand, being ordained is a rite of passage for Thai men. They can be a monk for three days, three months or for the rest of their lives. 

After the last wat visit for today, we walked to the (in)famous Khao San Road. Referenced in numerous travel guides, backpacker blogs and the movie The Beach, Khao San Road is everything you'd expect and more. You've got your typical European/Canadian/Australian backpackers drinking beer at 11 am, getting their hair beaded, and wearing bikini tops in the middle of Bangkok. You've got Bangkokians dressed up as northern hill tribe women selling northern hill tribe wares at Bangkok prices. You've got street-smart entrepreneurs selling fake everything - fake IDs, fake Rolexes, fake Hurley board shorts, fake CDs, fake Gucci sunglasses... You want it, they got it and they'll even bargain you for it. And then you've got people like us, just on Khao San to watch everyone else.