Royal Palace and Wat Pho

I woke up just in time to catch the tail end of the breakfast buffet.  It wasn’t a big buffet like you would find for a Sunday brunch but it was still respectable.  I originally didn’t have anything specific planned for the day.  I usually prefer to have a loose strategy for my first day because I never know how much I’ll be affected by jet lag.  During breakfast I decided that my goal for the day was visiting the Royal Palace and Wat Pho.

I knew better than to take a taxi.  Taking the sky train and buying a BTS pass is the way to travel.  My route involved boarding the sky train at the Nana Station, making a transfer at the Siam Station and finally getting off the sky train at Saphan Taksin.  There is a tourist information kiosk at the Central Pier.   They sell the tickets for the longboat and you can get detailed maps listing the various stops the boat will make along the river.  I purchased my ticket and we went down the Chao Phraya river until I reached the Royal Palace.  A couple of things to keep in mind when you’re taking a transit boat.  There is a section near the back that gives priority space to monks.  Secondly, it is considered good manners to offer your seat to a child that may be standing on the boat.

We reached the dock for the royal palace and I got off the boat.  I made my way through the street vendors for a few blocks until I reached the grounds of the palace.  Ignored the idiots who claimed the palace was closed and the others offering a private tour of the grounds.   I saw people in shorts and sandals who were being denied entrance due to improper clothing.  Get a clue people - do a little homework and research first!!!

I spent a few hours exploring the grounds and snapping photos.  The grounds were packed with people and it was difficult to take unobstructed photos.  I decided it would be better to revisit the royal palace again tomorrow but at an earlier hour.  Wat Pho was nearby.  Time to go there.

Wat Pho is the temple complex that has the giant reclining Buddha statue.   I’ve seen many photos of it but only when I saw it in person did I realize how big it really is.  Wow!!   I walked around the temple complex for a while before heading back to the dock for the boat ride back to the central pier.   I made my way back to the hotel to drop off most of my camera equipment.  All those lenses can be cumbersome.  I was a little tired but I wanted to do more exploring.  I decided to wander up and down different streets in the Sukhumvit area.  This worked to my advantage because I stumbled upon a spa (The Raintree Spa on Soi 11) that looked appealing.  I love massages - not the perverted “happy ending” massages but rather the therapeutic type.  I get semi-weekly Shiatsu/deep tissue massages when I’m at home.   I went inside and inquired about a 1 hour head and neck massage.  I think it was the equivalent of $25 USD/hour which is a great price by US standards.   I definitely had one of the best massages I have ever had in my life - and I’ve had a lot of them at different spas.   I think the reason I liked it so much was that in the United States, there is only hard they are willing to work your muscles for fear of injury or lawsuit.  Not so much of a worry in Bangkok - that’s why I like Thai massage.

After the massage I was ready for a pre-dinner nap.  I went back to the Landmark Hotel but I didn’t go directly to my room because it was time for my free cocktails at the hotel’s lounge.  I made short order of my vodka on the rocks and headed back to the room for a brief nap.

I didn’t take notice of anywhere special for dinner when I was out earlier in the day.  I had dinner at one of the hotel’s restaurant.  I ate on the outside terrace which was very pleasant because I could watch all the foot traffic on Sukhumvit Road.   I finished up my dinner and then began walking around the neighborhood.  So many interesting sights and sounds to experience.  Sukhumvit Road was packed with people but it was made worse by the vendors that lined the sidewalks.  I preferred to walk down the side streets.  After a couple of hours walking around and getting propositioned every 50 feet, I decided to retire early because I was still suffering from jet lag and I wanted to get an early start on the next day.