Thailand - Bangkok Part One

After a short plane ride we were in Bangkok! We were staying in an AirBnB on the edge of Chinatown in what appeared to be a mix of working class neighborhoods and backpacker hostels.  We had a couple of corner stores to choose from for bottled water, eggs, and bread and a few restaurants, and a couple of people running deep fryers on portable carts with questionable cooking oil.  We patronized all of these establishments.

To get oriented on our first full day, we jumped on a hop-on/hop-off tourist boat that runs up and down the Chao Phraya river, the main waterway of the city.  It is very much still a working river, with warehouses, restaurants, and residences crowding the river's edge too closely to build any more bridges there are heavily-used commuter ferry lines and ferry crossings to get from one side to the other.  There was also nearly constant barge traffic being towed up and down the river.

The king is a big deal in Thailand.  Their old beloved king,  King Bhumibol the Great, Rama IX of the Chakri Dynasty, passed away a little over a year ago and the official mourning period had recently ended.  Which meant that everyone was putting up paintings/portraits/skyscrapers of the new presumptive king, Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun, although he has yet to be officially coronated.

Unlike previous modern monarchs, Rama X has secured the authority to amend the (interim) constitution, and seems to be aligning with the military junta that seized power in 2014 from the then-provisional government appointed by the prime minister after she dissolved the elected parliament that had been established by the Black May uprising in the 1990's...  It turns out Thailand does not have the most stable national government.  Despite that, people seem to get by, make a living, and raise families.

The next day, we took another boat ride.  I have developed a theory that the quality of a vacation can be measured in how long it takes before you get on a boat.  By that measure, the Boundary Waters is nearly the pinnacle of human experience, and Thailand ranks pretty highly as well.  This trip was out to the west of Chao Phraya exploring the canals and waterways that were heavily settled hundreds of years ago.

We stopped to visit Wat Paknam Phasi Chareon, a temple with a towering white stupa and a stunning interior.  Thailand was an independent buffer state, preserved by the colonial powers so that British Malaya and Burma and French Indochina didn't have to rub right against one another, and the number and grandeur of Buddhist temples is, I think, indicative of how much national wealth was invested in the religious institutions rather than being carted off to Europe.  There were temples and saffron-robed monks and novices literally everywhere we went.

Back in the boat!  We stopped off at a forest temple (not pictured) that was less grand and more contemplative where we got a lecture on Buddhist philosophy from our tour guide, and then went to visit the "floating" market.  Just like the floating village in Ao Phangnga, this is mostly on stilts now though there are some boat-based merchants.  

In the back-water canals there were quite a few legitimate working boats - we bought drinks from a coffee and tea boat, we saw the mailman delivering along the waterfront, and declined to partake in the grilled chicken satay boat.  As we got further from the city center the canals went from being back yards to front yards, with many of the houses and businesses only being reachable by water.

Our tour guide showing Maxwell and Amelia a snack being prepared.  It was a pile of aromatic vegetables and spices and was delicious.

Back at our apartment, we introduce Pat and Dave to WhatsApp...

...So Elizabeth and I can go on a date!  We had tasting portions of roughly 15 different dishes, plus live traditional music (kneeling in the background) and dancing (dancing not pictured).  For whatever reason, we heard or saw the story of the White Monkey that impregnates a mermaid at least three times on this trip.  It is a timeless classic.

Then we went to see Star Wars.  While we waited for the movie showtime, Elizabeth got a tarot reading at a Christmas village that was set up at the mall (this tarot deck included Hindu gods).  We are told she will be happy in 2018, since she will get a good job with her strong brain.

In Thailand, before movies (but after literally 30 minutes of advertisements) they play the King's Anthem and everyone needs to stand.  It was accompanied by one of the most rousing photo slideshows I have ever seen, mostly alternating between portraits of the ascendant king in his finery and images of praising, weeping schoolchildren.

Speaking of the king, we visited his house!  This is the royal palace, seat of both the religious center of Thailand (personified by the Emerald Buddha) and also the monarchy.  The architecture is a liberal mix of traditional Siamese chedi's (pointy towers), bell-shaped Sri Lankan stupas (other towers), and the more cucumber-shaped towers are borrowed from Cambodian temple designs.  It was pretty dang impressive.  

Not pictured is a scale model of Angkor Wat in Cambodia commissioned by king Rama IV in the mid-19th century, as if to say "You think this palace is great?  You should see Angkor Wat!"  Which really only deepens my interest in seeing it in person.

Oooh... Aaaah...

100% of Thailand is covered in tile mosaics

Baby Culture Exchange

This mural telling the story of the Ramakien - Thailand's version of the Ramayana.  It may have been Maxwell's favorite thing on the entire trip.

Changing of the guard.  Maxwell had many questions that were hard to answer without going into a lot of backstory about military etiquette.

Thailand has Tuk-tuks!  They are like the 7-11 hot dog warmer of urban transportation: very convenient, but more expensive and more dangerous than the alternatives!

Bangkok came alive after dark, especially on the main streets.  The sidewalks were lined with food vendors, zipping mopeds, and people selling lottery tickets

Christmas Eve at a Chinese restaurant!  We were nearly the only ones there, but probably just because we tend to eat dinner earlier than basically everyone in SE Asia.

Followed, of course, by Christmas Morning!  We decorated the houseplant with an ornament that Danger Monkey was given by the resort staff on Yao Yai, and Santa left presents in our sandals.  Much legos, duplos, and books were had by all.

Coming up next: More temples!  Some old, some very old.