Eric and I really wanted to take a trip for our 10 year anniversary. We knew we wouldn't be able to take one when our actual anniversary was though. As we were wondering what to do, Sister Susana told me her employer was going to be away for a month. I asked her if she would be willing to watch the boys for a few days. She agreed to. Sister Anna also came over at night to give Sister Susana a break. Eric and I decided to go to Bangkok, Thailand. Not the most romantic choice, but definitely a culture learning experience. It would have been a difficult place to take the boys to. There was a lot of walking done.
Our plane left at night. We were lucky enough to fly straight from Macau to Bangkok. From the terminal we had to ride a bus to the plane we flew on. Here are pictures of all of that.
Eric asked for a coke. His first Thai coke.
I cant remember if this was our night view of Macau or of Thailand, maybe even China as we were flying away from Macau.
At the Bangkok, Thailand airport heading to the baggage terminal.
Pictures from our ride to our hotel. Bangkok was surprisingly much bigger than we thought it was going to be. It seemed to span more area than Las Vegas.
Night view from our hotel.
I made sure I booked a hotel with breakfast included. The breakfast at this hotel did not disappoint. It was really delicious and the view was really great too.
Our first morning view. It was very cloudy on this morning.
There were pictures of the queen of Thailand in several different places. We found out it was the Queen's Day/Mother's day in Thailand.
Buildings and sidewalk right outside our hotel.
As we were walking deciding what to do this guy who drives a Tuk Tuk stopped by us and asked us if we wanted a ride to see some of the temples or get on boat at the river. We thought it would be fun so we went along with him. He originally told us he would charge us 50 Baht. When he dropped us off at our final destination he charged us 400 Baht. From this experience we learned to not trust a Tuk Tuk driver. The rest of our trip we took taxis. They were much more reliable and honest (only because the ride was metered). However, it was definitely an experience to ride in a Tuk Tuk and he did show us one temple that we would not have seen otherwise.
More buildings we saw on our Tuk Tuk ride.
Here is the first temple we stopped to see. It was very quiet and hardly anybody was there. If we wanted to walk in the temple we had to take off our shoes.
The art in this temple was amazing. It covered every inch of each wall.
Resting Buddha statue.
After we were done at this temple the Tuk Tuk driver took us the where the boat picks up.
Here is our boat. We were lucky enough to be the only tourist on it.
A longboat. This one doesn't have anybody on it, but later in the day each one we saw was packed with people.
Some of the temples, hotels, and homes we saw on the river and the canal.
Homes on the canal.
A Museum. It was closed due to the holiday.
Boats at the museum. These were used during, I believe, one of the world wars when Japan was bombing Thailand. I had no idea Thailand was part of the world war too.
Crazy hair. I thought it wouldn't be as humid as Macau, but it was. People would ask us where we were from. They expected us to say the U.S., but Eric would tell them we came from Macau. Their facial expressions were kind of funny because they didn't believe us.
In Thailand there are water markets. This is where people can buy fruits, souvenirs, etc. from someone on a little boat. It was interesting, but, like the Tuk Tuk drivers, they tell tourist a much higher price.
Eric bought this fruit from the water market guy. He seemed to like them. I wouldn't try it. I should have, but I didn't. I am just not that daring when it comes to food.
Here is where the boat docked while we went to see one of the major tourist attractions, the Wat Arun. It is the Royal Temple that was dedicated to the 2nd reign of the Chakkri Dynasty. The grounds were beautiful. It is so interesting learning about different cultures and their beliefs. The workmanship is quite amazing and incredible.
Because of the holiday there was a lot of people coming here to worship. Before they walked into the temple they would say a prayer and burn incense. Of course, they would have to take off their shoes when they entered the temple or holy space.
After we were done looking at everything and buying the boys some Thailand p.j.'s we headed back to the boat. This is the kind of litter there was in the water. So gross!!
The boat driver then took us across the river to the Wat Pho temple. We had to walk a little ways to see it from the boating dock. In Bangkok there are all kinds of vendors who sell items such as cooked meat, fruits, etc. on the side of the road. They were almost everywhere we went. The grounds of Wat Pho were a lot bigger than Wat Arun. This is where the biggest reclining Buddha is. This statue was enormous. Like Wat Arun, there was a lot of people there worshipping and paying respect to Buddha. On one side of the building there was a line of people each of them had several pennies (coins that looked like pennies). As they walked in the line they would drop one each container that was on the wall. I don't know why they were doing this, but thought it was interesting.
The artwork and tapestry was amazing and very detailed.
A place where the believers pray and worship at.
Even the size of the feet were huge.
Books about Buddhism, the temples, and Thailand.
When we were done looking around Wat Pho we decided to head back to the hotel and rest for a little bit. Once we were rested we decided to go to the Jim Thompson home. This is the home of a famous American who made Thai silk really popular. One day he went hunting with a group, but vanished and never came back. A few pictures below is a picture of the explanation of who Jim Thompson was, what he did for Thailand and how he mysteriously disappeared.
Here are some sights we saw on our taxi ride back to the hotel.
Jim Thompson house. I wouldn't mind living in a place like this. It was beautiful, peaceful and relaxing. The home was amazing. I was only allowed to take pictures of the outside. No one is allowed to take pictures on the inside and everyone had to take off their shoes. Everyone's shoes and belongings were put in a locked locker for safe keeping.
Here is the explanation.
Our lovely tour guide.
The only picture I could take. This is the formal living room.
There is a restaurant on the premises. We were really hungry so we decided to try it out. As we were looking at the menu we noticed the French fries are made using Idaho potatoes. Imagine that! Eric thought it was really neat.
This picture doesn't do the chandelier justice. It was a beautiful chandelier with a rustic feel to it.
Thai sprite and diet coke. The cans are taller and thinner than the ones in Macau and the U.S.
I was a little worried about the food, especially the beef and peppers, but it was AMAZING! I wish I could have eaten here the entire trip. It was so delicious. It was also nice being able to enjoy it without anybody wanting me to share with them or telling someone to sit down or speak quietly.
When we were done at the Jim Thompson house we decided to walk around to see what we could find. We ended up finding this amazing mall that had a movie theatre and bowling alley in it. They also had Krispy Kreme. Of course I had to buy some! We ended up spending the rest of the night bowling, eating Krispy Kreme doughnuts and listening to American music. It was a great end to our first day/night in Bangkok.
Because Siam Paragon was really close to where the bomb went off, I think this is the street where the Erawan Shrine is located. It looks really similar to the pictures we saw online.
I tried to get a picture of the score to prove that I finally beat Eric in bowling, but it went away too fast. I only won by 2 or 3 points, but hey that is still a win.
Trying to get a taxi in a different country is always fun. At least we had the room key. We showed that to the driver and he knew where to go. We were definitely ready for a good night sleep with no one waking us up in the morning. Overall, our first day was a great day. We were able to see a lot of Bangkok, both the old and modern parts.
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