Today was our first full day in Bangkok and it wasn't just Mom, Dad, and I it was also my sister Syd and her friend Austin! Syd and Austin came in last night after I fell asleep so I wasn't able to see them. That same day we were also meeting our tour guide who was our guide for the next 2 days, his name was Pee, but we sometimes or mostly called him Tee.
Our first stop on our tour was the Imperial Palace where the royals lived. The royals used to live in that palace but when the past king was assassinated at the palace the royals stopped living in it. This palace wasn't just an ordinary palace, this palace also also had temples. One of which housed the one and only “Emerald Buddha”. The “Emerald Buddha” was originally owned by Siam (Thailand), but then a western country threatened them so Siam gave the western country the “Emerald Buddha” so a war wouldn't begin. But then Siam was allowed a request since that was their deal and they asked for the Emerald Buddha back. The “Emerald Buddha” isn't actually emerald, it is Imperial Jade. The palace has multiple buildings to it, in a few in different styles.
Next we went to the golden Reclining Buddha. This reclining Buddha wasn't as large as the one in Yangon, but it was the largest golden reclining buddha in Bangkok! Also around there we saw a political building that had a western twist to it because the past king had traveled to Europe and had gotten a feel of European architecture.
Before lunch Tee toured us around the Flower Market. They sold all types of flowers. It is open 24-7. This is where all of Bangkok gets their flowers. One of the things that people were selling were the flower bracelets/garlands that are traditional welcome gifts. To get to lunch we took a route through an alley way where they were filming some show. Lunch had a modern vibe with a view over the river and onto a stupa.
Following lunch we took a water taxi boat in a long tail boat. Instead this boat was bigger and longer and bigger engine than in Myanmar. We flew through canals and arrived at an artisan’s village where we saw a puppet show. This puppet show was different than the ones I have seen because it wasn’t behind a curtain. The actors where wearing all black with black face masks and were with the puppets at all times. During the puppet show the puppeteers messed with us and had the puppets interact with the crowd. After the show we fed the fish and we learned later that there were 100,000 catfish in these canals.
We swam back at the hotel and I ate dinner with just the girls while mom and dad went to Chinatown and the Night Market.
Gold tiled stupa
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