Day Two in Bangkok

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Today we had our trip briefing, where Ole (pronounced "Olay") gave us an overview of our itinerary and we introduced ourselves to each other. In our group, we have 3 couples and the rest singles, mostly adventursome women like me 😊. I'm the youngster in the group, which is just fine by me.

We visited a beautiful flower market where flower dealers made gorgeous arrangements for sale to local shops. For price comparison - a huge bouquet of exotic flowers in Bangkok will cost about $25, compared to $100 or more in the U.S.

We took a longboat ride on the Chaophraya river, and saw many river homes, temples and other buildings along the way. The boat was a loud, diesel-motored contraption.

We stopped for a cooking demonstration at the home of Mrs. Toom. She was a delight! Very funny and obviously enjoyed showing tourists how to whip up a decent Thai chili paste. I'm eager to try this at home.

After a heavy rain, we visited the Royal Barges museum where the Royal fleet is located. We weren't allowed to take photos, which is a shame. The boats were incredibly beautiful with Thai decorations and statuary of Gods and Goddesses.

We then visited Wat Arun, one of Bangkok's oldest temple sites. It was similar in style to Cambodian temple architecture. It's really hard to capture the intricate detail and immense beauty of these gorgeous wats.

Dinner tonight was on the top floor of the hotel where we dined at a lovely revolving restaurant. We watched the lighted boats cruising the river below us. It looked like a Christmas pagent!

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Photos

Flower market 1
Beautiful flowers everywhere!

Flower market 2
Huge bouquet. This one was about 3 feet in diameter.

Tasty Roaches
Fresh fried cockroaches.

Dragon Fruit
These gorgeous red fruits have a white, melon-like center with little black seeds. A roi! (delicious).

View from the River
Beautiful temple as seen from our longboat.

Teak House
This beautiful home by the river is made of teakwood, the hardest and most durable of all woods. It is used by those who can afford it in Thailand.

River Market
Life along the river includes ample opportunities to shop or eat along the way.

Mrs. Toom
Mrs. Toom teaches us about the ingredients of Thai cooking, including a big dose of fun.

Raining
Rains are common in Thailand, even during the non-rainy season. It poured!

Wat Arun
Wat Arun as viewed from our boat.

Colorful Thai Dresses
These dresses reminded me of crayons lined up in the box! Just lovely.

Wat Arun
Known as the Temple of Dawn, Wat Arun is one of Thailand's oldest temples.

Wat Arun 2
The sides of the temples are decorated with intricate carvings.

Wat Arun 2
Statue at Wat Arun.

Wat Arun 3
This is a close-up of the painted porcelain flowers adorning the temple.

Wat Arun 4
The main temple building of Wat Arun.

Wat Arun 5
Statue at Wat Arun.

Wat Arun 6
Another view at Wat Arun.

Squid Snack
We walked through a food market on our way back to the hotel from visiting Wat Arun. Squid on a stick, mmmmmm.

Evening View
The view from the top of our hotel in Bangkok just before dinner.