Seeing the Sights

If this were a cheap paperback adventure novel, the opening line would probably be; "Bangkok was hot and sultry…”. This is just a free blog, but I will still begin this post “Bangkok is hot and sultry…” because it is. When we arrived it was 1:45 am, but when we stepped out of the airport, it was like stepping into a sauna. I was warned about how hot Thailand would be, but I didn’t take it seriously. After all, I had spent quite a few years in South Carolina, so I thought I had a handle on what humidity meant. Well, it seems that there is actually a difference. This is the tropics. It seems like there is a different sun here because its rays seem to cook you. Being in the tropics also brings a whole new meaning to sultry. So while checking out this city, I took the advice of a friend, and wore sunblock. Normally, I don’t use the stuff but I heard it said once that discretion is the better part of valor. I figured I would be discreet and not find out the hard way that people with my complexion actually can get sunburn.

A few of the “must see” sights of Bangkok are the Royal Palace, the reclining Buddha (or chillin Buddha as I like to call it), and the giant Buddha. In fact, for those who practice the Buddhist faith, there are hundreds of “must see” sights here because there are hundreds of Wats throughout the city. We were going to visit the Royal Palace which also has the reclining Buddha in the same complex, to try to kill two birds with one stone. However, upon arriving to the palace, we were informed that you could not visit the sites with shorts or short sleeve shirts on. Can you imagine, in this temperature, not being able to wear shorts or short sleeve shirts? They would however loan appropriate clothing to you once you arrived at the premises. So we qeued up with everyone else but wouldn’t you know it, there was a 380 Bat (Thai dollar) charge for entrance even though we were told it would be free. So it turned out that for Westerners, this was not really a must see. We skipped it because he is not my king, nor is Buddha my god, so I was not about to offer up sacrifices to either one. We did see one of these sights though. We saw the “big” Buddha. Hidden off the main road is a gigantic statue of Buddha that stands 120 feet tall. Much to our surprise there was also a baby "chillin" Buddha at this site. Since this more of a religious than historical site, we found it interesting, but it was not a highlight of our trip.
Something that we always find interesting is seeing different places from the water. Since Bangkok is known as the Venice of the East, this was definitely something we had to do. If you ever visit Bangkok, we recommend what I have dubbed the poor man’s river cruise. This package includes the river, a boat, and a view of the city, which is basically the same thing you get with any of the other packages that you will be offered as a foreigner at the docks. The great thing about the poor man’s river cruise is that it cost a fraction of the cost of the others (26 Bat compared to 400 to 500 Bat). How do you get this package? It is known as the river taxi. All you have to do is get on one of those boats, and then you pay your fare of 13 Bat once you are on board. It is a cheap way to get to different places in the city, and you get a relaxing cruise with a great view to boot!
One of the things that I was most looking forward to about Thailand was going elephant trekking. So we booked an excursion to a place outside of Bangkok that offered elephant trekking, an outing to a floating market, and a cobra show. That was trip was definitely worth the price of admission. I will write more on that later. - Frank
The camera makes everyone a tourist in other people's reality, and eventually in one's own.
Susan Sontag