After finishing the previous posting about our stay at the Adelphi Grande, we showed the blog results to the front lobby staff in order to make sure that they were aware of our pleasurable experience. Fortunately, the hotel manager and owner both were available for photos so that we could include them in our posting.

In addition, we would like to thank Ms. Sasima (Geedar) and Ms. Palida (Pla) from the Adelphi Grande Central Booking office for helping us secure this reservation.

  Throughout our journey so far, we have rented furnished apartments for each location in which we stayed. When arranging for our stay in Bangkok, we learned that furnished apartments were located within hotels. The Adelphi Grande Bangkok was the serviced apartment host for this part of our trip. Ideally located for access to the areas we wished to visit, the Adelphi Grande was a pampering we had not expected. All of the staff was polite, friendly, and attentive. We were quite happy here and hope that the rest of our journey is as comfortable as our stay in Bangkok.

  With the end of our time in Bangkok approaching quickly, we need to wrap up any remaining contacts encountered, as well as any cultural pictures not yet published.

Bangkok was way outside of our comfort zone, or so we thought upon our arrival. Yet, adjustment to the cultural differences here were not as difficult as envisioned, in part due to the politeness and friendliness of the Thai people. While we did try to learn a few basic Thai phrases, English was quite prevalent, which made it easier to get directions. The ubiquitous street venders, selling everything from various Thai foods, sandals, electronics, clothing, toys, etc.,added a flavor to our visit here that will not be soon forgotten....And we continued to meet many wonderful people from around the world.

  With many of the places we visit, there usually are more photos than we can incorporate in the original post. Khao San Road was one of those. Here are some of those catch-up photos;

  Approximately one kilometer north of the Grand Palace and just a couple of blocks from the river is Khao San Road, one of the oldest neighborhoods in Bangkok. Khao San means "milled rice" because in the past, this was the major rice market for Bangkok. However, within the past twenty years it has become known as a world famous "backpacker's ghetto" full of hostels and cheap hotels. The street is lined with venders and shops selling handicrafts, clothing, pirated cd's and dvd's, as well as a wide range of fake id's. Anything you want can be found here. As day turns into night, the focus shifts to bars, drinking, and dancing. In mid-April, around the time of the traditional Thai new year, Khao San Road plays host to a water splash party, which is really just a big water fight.

  Every once-in-awhile, no matter what activity may be filling your time, kicking back and relaxing for a bit is a necessity (if nothing more than to recharge your batteries). Today was one of those times. For the past five months, we have been delving deeply into the various cultures encountered in this adventure and have thoroughly enjoyed every experience. Time to "...sit back and smell the roses." We took a very leisurely stroll to a delightful little park about a half mile from our apartment. What a wonderful experience this turned out to be. Formerly the location for the Thai meteorology office, this park is dedicated to the Queen. It is exquisitely decorated and maintained, as well as quite peaceful.

  Like most people, we have been aware of Chinese New Year when the media brings it up each February. We did not pay a whole lot of attention to it in the past, except when Lorraine taught a unit on it in her classroom. Experiencing Chinese New Year within an Asian culture, however, is unique. Bangkok has a rather large Chinatown, measuring approximately one square kilometer. Since our arrival here, there have been numerous advertisements regarding the upcoming Lunar New Year. We had visited Chinatown briefly during one of our earlier excursions and decided that a return visit was a must in order to experience the celebrations for ourselves. Organizers turned the main road through Chinatown into a pedestrian walkway for this event. As you will see in the following pictures, this was quite a colorful and entertaining experience.

  Buddhist religious beliefs treat death very seriously, but also as just a different part of life. Within the Royal family, ceremonies following the death of one of its members can be quite a spectacle. These ceremonies are so important that the National Museum dedicated one of its buildings to the trappings for funeral processions.

  Bangkok has been very good to us for the three weeks we have been here so far. The weather has been in the nineties with no signs of rain. People have shown us nothing but friendliness. Perhaps the most interesting parts for us are the many different sights we encounter as we head towards a particular destination.

  We finally arrived at our destination...the National Museum ( or more formally known as the Museum at the Palace of the Front..."Wang Na"). Constructed in 1782, it used to be the residence of five Viceroys (or Deputy Kings). Following the death of Viceroy Wichaichan, the Palace of the Front was abandoned. In1887 the reigning King renovated the grounds and moved the Royal Museum here. It was finally converted into theNational Museum in 1926.

  In previous postings, we have stated that one of the great joys of this trip is the varied, interesting, and delightful people we have met along the way. Reaching out to total strangers can carry quite enjoyable consequences. Contained herein is the latest group of pleasant folks that have returned our friendly overtures;

  Exploring, the way we do, the various locales we have visited during this adventure has provided us a cultural perspective that we probably would not have gained doing just the "touristy" route. The following pictures of street life in parts of Bangkok is a testament to that perspective.

We finally arrived at our destination for the day (approximately 3 miles from the pier through winding streets). This Giant Swing, built in 1784, is a religious structure formerly used in an old Brahmin ceremony, one of 12 royal ceremonies held each month of the Thai lunar calander. This ceremony, lasting ten days, celebrates the Brahmin new year. The two side pillars, representing mountains, are 30 meters high and the circular bases represent the earth and seas. Tradition held that Brahmins would swing up to the 82 foot level to catch (in their teeth)a bag of silver coins suspended at the top. That part of the ceremony was discontinued in 1935 following several fatal accidents.

  Wat Suthat is a Royal Temple of the First Grade, one of ten such temples in Bangkok. Construction of this temple began in 1807 under the reign of King Rama I and was completed in 1847. This complex covers ten acres of land surrounded by an outer wall and four main gates. The lower terrace of the temple contains 28 Chinese pagodas representing the 28 Buddhas born on earth. There are 156 Buddha images along the outer wall. The grounds also contain monastic living quarters for the monks studying here. There is a 25 foot tall Buddha in the main hall, the base of which contains the ashes of Rama VIII, brother of the current King. The exquisite wall paintings in the main hall depict the 24 previous lives of Buddha, as well as the early history of Bangkok.

  This steep artificial mountain pre-dates Bangkok as the Capitol of Thailand. King Rama III(1787-1851), grandson of Rama I, decided to build a mud and brick "chedi", or mountain temple, of huge dimensions to house Budhist relics. Unfortunately,   the soft soil underneath was unable to support the weight and it collapsed while under construction. Laying abandoned for ensuing decades, the collapsed structure took on the shape of a natural hill. King Rama IV decided to construct a smaller temple mountain and it was completed during the reign of his son Rama V (1853-1910). Concrete walls surrounding the structure were added during the 1940's. A series of animals, corresponding to the Chinese Zodiac can be found the base of the hill.

  Right from the start of our stay in Bangkok, we had heard about the Jim Thompson House and museum, so we just had to go see it.

Born in 1906 in Greenville, Delaware, Jim Thompson was a trained archetect. He volunteered for the U.S. Army during World War II, eventually ending up in Asia. Thompson fell in love with Thailand , deciding to live there permanently. In 1958 he began building his home, partly to display his collection of Thai art. Many feel that a highlight of his collection are the six antique (all at least two centuries old) teakwood houses that were dismantled from remote locations and then reassembled on the present site. The largest of these houses became his living room. Adhering to Thai customs, Thompson had the houses elevated a full story above the ground to avoid the rainy season flooding. A number of the relocated houses became service quarters. While the chandeliers are a bit more modern, they came from 18th and 19th century Bangkok palaces.

Thompson's attention was drawn to the ancient art of hand weaving of silk, a long-neglected cottage industry. He spent the rest of his life trying to revive the craft. He was considered to be a highly gifted designer and textile colorist. His devotion to this effort is credited with the substantial growth of this industry along with the worldwide recognition of Thai silk.

While on a visit to the Cameron Highlands in Malaysia on March 26th, 1967, Thompson mysteriously disappeared. No valid clues as to what may have happened to him has ever surfaced. His nephew donated the property to the Thai Kingdom in the 1970's.

  Known to be at least 700 years old, the actual origins of this magnificent Buddha have been lost to history. The interesting part of this story is that this 5.5 ton pure gold statue was at one time covered in plaster to hide it from invading enemies of Thailand. The temple in which it was located became deserted early in the 1930's , when the East Asiatic Company began to acquire the land around it. In 1955,wishing to own the land on which the Buddha was located, the East Asiatic Company made a deal to relocate the statue. They misjudged the weight of the statue and the lifting ropes broke. Since a huge thunderstorm was brewing, it was decided to leave the Buddha statue where it fell overnight and try to move it again the following morning. The next day, passing monks noticed some of the plaster was flaking off. Upon further investigation they discovered that the Buddha was constructed of pure gold. It is considered to be the most valuable public attraction in Thailand.

  This one square kilometer of land has been the main center of trade between China and Thailand for several centuries. The first Chinese traders arrived in Bangkok in the 16 th century, pre-dating the founding of the Thai Capitol. They operated maritime "junk" trade between China and Siam (the older name for Thailand). Originally located a bit west of its present location, the Chinese community was asked to move to where it is now (one of the oldest areas of Bangkok) by King Rama I in 1782 so that he could begin construction of the Grand Palace. Today, Chinatown is packed with shops and market stalls selling such items as stationary, textiles, souvenirs, food, electronics, etc, along with a dense concentration of gold shops. The main road through Bangkok's Chinatown, Yaowarat road, was constructed in 1902 and is said to resemble a dragon's curvy body (considered a good luck sign).

  Built between 1897 and 1901 by King Chulalongkon, the Dusit Palace ("Celestrial Dwelling") is a huge compound of 13 different royal residences encompassing 696,950 square feet. The official royal residence, The Grand Palace, became too crowded and stifling in the summer heat, so the king got the idea to build a new royal residence with spacious gardens on the outskirts of the capital. The different residence halls and gardens were allocated to the various consorts and children of the King. As with all Thai royal palaces, the Dusit Palace was divided into three areas; the outer, middle, and inner courts, separated by canals and gardens rather than walls. In 1932 the absolute monarchy was abolished and part of the Dusit Palace was reduced in size and transferred to the constitutional government. Currently, the various buildings house several museums and exhibitions.

  This was a total surprise for us! While traveling to our next attraction, we came across the following sign;

For people who may not know our background, back in 1967, Lorraine and I joined the Peace Corps. We had only been married for four months and had just graduated from college. We joined the program training for Senegal in Africa. So coming across this sign in Bangkok brought back a lot of memories. We rang the bell in order to see if we could get a look around. We were greeted by Phanuthat Suwan, safety and security coordinator. He graciously brought us in and introduced us around.

  In a previous posting, we indicated that many of the Bangkok attractions are rather large complexes. Perhaps one of the largest is the Grand Palace, consisting of the royal residence, throne halls, government offices, and the renowned Temple of the Emerald Buddha. Created in 1782 on the orders of King Rama I, this complex covers an area of 218,000 square meters ( or 654,000 square feet) and is protected by four perimeter walls. The previous royal residential complex was located on the western side of the Chao Phraya River. Once King Rama I ascended the throne, he decided that his residence was unsuitable and ordered that the new complex be constructed on the eastern side of the river. This compound became known as the Grand Palace. It is as beautiful as it is massive. One could easily get lost roaming the grounds without the aide of a map.

  Situated along the East bank of the Chao Phraya river (opposite the Wat Arun temple) is the "Reclining Buddha" complex. It is one of the best-known and popular attractions in Thailand. Measuring approximately 138 feet (46 meters) in length and 45 feet (15 meters) in height, this massive structure is made from brick and stucco and then lacquered and gilded. The feet of this statue by themselves measure 15 feet (5 meters) by 9 feet (3 meters)...I will never again complain about my feet. As you walk around the feet, you see inlaid patterns of mother-of-pearl indicating auspiciousness. The position of this Buddha statue is said to resemble that of a lion reclining. Thai and other Buddists believe that praying to this image brings them peace and happiness.

  Part of the philosophy of this whole adventurous trip was to sometimes move out of our comfort zone and experience life differently. Everything so far in Bangkok is out of the ordinary for us. Up to this point, the cities we have visited have been very walkable. Bangkok on the other hand is so spread out that we have had to rely upon public transportation (i.e. The sky train - elevated train system -and the river water taxis). Even the weather here is different. Whereas Florence, Rome, and Istanbul tended to be a bit chilly and rainy, Bangkok has been sunny with temperatures in the 90's. Rome was the city of 2000 churches. Istanbul was the city of 2000 mosques. Bangkok appears to be the city of 2000 temples.

In that regard, one of the best known temple landmarks in Bangkok is the Buddist Temple Wat Arun (Temple of Dawn). Located on the West Bank of the Chao Phraya River. It derives its name from the Hindu god Aruna (frequently personified as the rays of the rising sun).