Monday March 3, 2008
On this day I concentrated on visiting wats. A wat is a Thai Buddhist temple where monks reside.
I started out my day by visiting the backpacker's street, Khao San Road. It was my first destination when I visited Bangkok for the first time in 1990, and remains the place where backpackers go for cheap lodging, travel services and shopping. It has gentrified somewhat since 18 years ago, what with a McDonald's, Starbucks and Burger King, and some of the old family-run guesthouses replaced by more commercial enterprises, but it still has some of its old-time feel...the street is lined with stalls selling trinkets and clothing, and tuk tuks ply the road looking for fares. Even back in 1990 there was a 7-11 on the street, and the same hippie/backpacker crowd hangs out here as before, and the same hustlers try to draw upon their naivete. Here's a typical Khao San Road scene I happened across:
Some eager young Western backpackers talking to tuk tuk drivers, preparing for some exotic Asian adventure. Check out the guy with the guitar strapped to his back!
At Khao San Road I picked up a few souvenirs and walked around a bit. Khao San Road is very close to some of the major tourist attractions of Bangkok, particularly the Grand Palace (the former residence of the Royal Family - they now live at Chitralada Palace, farther north in the Dusit area of the city). I skipped over it (been there, done that), and headed straight to Wat Pho. Though there were plenty of street hustlers to be seen, trying to lure travelers into being victims of the Bangkok Gem Scam, none accosted me. Perhaps I exuded an air of "Yeah, yeah, I've been here a dozen times and know what you're up to."
At Wat Pho, I went into the Reclining Buddha Temple, famous for... you guessed it!
Here are some tourists dropping coins in pots for good luck:
Then I walked to Wat Ratchabophit, a lesser known temple, but one I like.
In the temple I encountered a prayer ceremony. A monk was guiding a guy in what to say in prayer. (My camera is set to make no noise when a photo is taken, plus I placed it on my mini travel tripod and used the timer to get the photo in an unobtrusive way, with a long exposure and no flash.)
After that I went to Wat Suthat, which is famous for the Giant Swing, once used in a dangerous, long-banned ceremony:
Here is the main hall of Wat Suthat:
But by that time it was starting to get late, so I headed back to Harry's place. I took the khlong boat to get to the subway station:
The rest of my stay, I hung around with Harry and Ann, shopped at Nana, wandered around Silom, and even accompanied Ann to a job interview for translation opportunities. In all I had a very productive and enjoyable visit to Thailand. I could live in Bangkok...it's a very cosmopolitan city with a lot to offer.
I returned to Taiwan on Wednesday evening.
