Being a tourist

Today was one of the best days of my life. I went to bed at 3 am since I was trying to get wifi (with no success) and I woke up at 7:30 am to get an early start to the day. The alum's spare bedroom might as well be a hotel room. It has air-conditioning, a tv, a big bed, closets, and its own bathroom. We left at 8:45 am to go to the National Museum, where we joined an English tour group. Although the guide seemed to enjoy talking about history a little too much (thank goodness there are only 9 Ramas since each description was at least 5 minutes), I learned many cultural and historical facts about Thai. The museum had a great collection of Buddhist artifacts and relics from the kings. The ceremonial carriages that they use for royal funerals might have been my favorite part. Such care goes into their maintenance, it's quite impressive. The alum and I ate at the National Museum's restaurant, which was my first experience of Thai food in Thailand. The vegetable fried rice seemed similar to what I eat in America, only the rice tasted a little different.

My favorite building at the museum

Next we went to the Grand Palace, which was absolutely amazing. Wat Phra Kaeo houses the emerald Buddha, a must-see for tourists in Bangkok. The bot with the emerald Buddha was the most majestic place I have ever seen in my entire life. The king changes his clothing for each season and he wore a golden jacket and head-piece. A section of the floor reserved room for monks to sit and several of them were praying there.

 

Outside of Wat Phra Kaeo

The Grand Palace

At Wat Pho, I saw the largest Buddha statue in the world: reclining Buddha. We could take pictures in this room, so it was a bit crowded and chaotic.

 Reclining Buddha 

 Mother of pearl feet

I read in all of my tourist books to not trust Tuk-Tuks because the drivers will sometimes take you to his friend's jewelry shop and make you buy fake gems. Unfortunately, we told a Tuk-Tuk driver to take us to the river and he took us to his friend's canal ride dock. The guy wanted over 1000 baht (most cost 800), so we convinced the driver to take us back to our previous location. I learned that those drivers can even try to scam a person who speaks Thai and lives in the area.

Inside my first Tuk-Tuk (this one was a good ride)

We used a taxi to get to another dock, where we embarked on a 1 hour canal ride. That was easily the highlight of my day. Even though the boat seemed a little unsteady, the wind cooled us off from the long day. I got to see parts of Bangkok that I would not have seen otherwise and the contrast of living is startling. I saw kids running around in houses with crooked floors and collapsing roofs. If the house fell apart, the people and their belongings would actually fall into the river. Right next to some dilapidated buildings would be a large modern house that looked very out of place. No matter the condition of the house, most of them had spirit houses (shrines built to appease the ancestors of the land). I love the vibrant colors of the spirit houses, I wish I could bring one back with me. I doubt I could get it through customs though. The boat driver pointed out mini alligators along the canal and a boat vendor tried to sell us drinks.

Canal ride

Tried to take a picture of the alligators...it came out blurry

 Example of a Spirit House (this one is actually plain compared to many)

 Spirit house next to a house with a collapsing roof

The driver took us to Wat Arun, where the alum and I walked around for a bit. We planned to go out for dinner, but exhaustion hit me when we returned to the condo and I promptly fell asleep at 7:30 pm.

The tourist pose

Wat Arun