Wat Phra Kaew .... take two!

Asia » Thailand » Central Thailand » Bangkok
May 7th 2008

Published: March 20th 2013

I have made a point of getting up early to really get going before it starts getting really hot. The weather today was slightly cooler which means about 30 with some serious humidity (I have officially looked like crap since setting foot here!)

Breakfast consisted of another choice off of the Asian breakfast menu, wok fried noodles with chicken and vegetables. Again it was a very thick soup; beef broth, cracked pepper, celery, carrots and topped with a poached egg. It was so good. Poon, the waitress, was impressed that I knew how to eat soup with chopsticks ... years of practice at the New Mee Fung!

The plan today was to see the sites in the Royal part of the city as well as in the Old City with a quick stop across the river in Thonburi. So after a quick skytrain ride I boarded the Chao Phraya River Express and made my way down the river. It is about 60 cents for the boat ride. I then had to take the ferry to Thonburi which cost about another 10 cents. And so the incessant shoe removal could begin (you can't enter temples with your shoes ... that is all you do in Bangkok ... take your shoes off, well that and climb stairs ... skytrain, skywalks, wats ... whatever).

First stop was Wat Rakhang. This is not a really well known temple but I had read that it had an impressive collection of bells and I was not disappointed. The bot was ornate but add to it that it had all of these little bells hanging all around its periphery. It was like being surrounded by windchimes, which I just love the sound of. There was an older monk giving a lesson to some younger monks, one of which had the very traditional thai tattoos all over his back. There were also women dressed in the same robes, except that they were white. Their heads were also shaven. As I walked around, I noticed that there was a mausoleum in the back. It consists essentially of a small tablet with some writings (all in thai, of course), the persons photo and small hooks on either side which allows for the placing of offerings. There were a lot of jasmine garlands, bottles of water and the like, even some cigars at one tablet.

At the ferry that is right by this wat, there were hundreds of pigeons. None of the other piers are overrun by pigeons ... It must have something to do with the fact that there is a woman selling bread right there and everyone feeds them!!! There were also hundreds of fish; big ones with more of a flat nose.

So back on the ferry and a short walk and I am back at Wat Phra Kaew and Grand Palace complex. A tuk-tuk driver tells me that the site is closed; yeah nice try there bud! I decided to take the audio guide; you have a map with the numbers for each building, you punch in the number and you get a pretty good description of what you are seeing. I was glad I took it because it was very well done. The entrance to this fee also includes the entrance to Vimanmek House, which I will probably go see on Saturday.

This particular complex is 65 acres and includes amazing, beautiful buildings like the Bot of the Emerald Buddha, the Library of Buddhist Scriptures, the Royal Pantheon and 8 prangs (representing each of the 8 buddhist states represented each by a different colour). There are 6 pairs of yakshas which protect the entrances to the temple structures.

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Emerald Buddha ... most revered statue and yet the smallest statue I have seen so far</td></tr></tbody></table>

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Royal Palace</td></tr></tbody></table>

Leaving there, I made my way to a couple of obscure sites. First Mae Torrane (Earth Goddess) ... this is part shrine and actually considered a public drinking fountain although not used as such. The Goddess is a woman who is wringing water out of her hair to wash away the evil spirits trying to corrupt the meditating buddha.

Second, Lak Muang which is the shrine to the city pillar. This is literally a golden pillar which represents the official centre of the capital. There are actually two, one was moved over from one of the first capitals of Thailand (Thonburi). It is considered the spiritual core and I was surprised by its size. There were large gatherings of worshippers, offering the usual flower garlands, incense, drinks, candles. One offering caught my eye though; a pigs head with a garland around it. The city horoscope is actually contained within one of the pillars.

I was then off to three different wats. The first being Wat Ratchapradit; not as well known but I was very pleasantly surprised. This wat was begun by King Rama IV; some of his ashes are actually buried there. There is also a bronze statue of him in one of the structures.

On the way to the next wat, you had to cross one of the many khlongs (canals). Right by the Ki Pun bridge, I noticed a shrine. Not hard to miss seeing that it was a large pig with the obligatory offerings surrounding it. It was erected as a homage to Queen Sikirit; who was born in the year of the pig.

I crossed the bridge and decided to stop and have a couple of green oranges and mangosteens (my new favorite fruit!). There was a man fishing in the khlong with this large net. That is a photo op if I ever saw one. His friends who were sitting across the khlong noticed that I was taking his picture and essentially told him so once he pulled out his net he came to proudly show me his catch. I could hear his friends clapping on the other side. I have a great shot of it!

So off to Wat Ratchabophit; this one started by King Rama V in 1869 and it took two decades to complete. The striking part is a huge chedi in the middle of the complex. Nestled all around the base of the chedi were buddha statues. At one of them there was an offering of lotus flowers and a beautiful wooden mala.

Last but not least, I went to Wat Suthat. This particular temple is considered one of the six principle temples in all of the country. It was started by King Rama I and took three reigns to complete. The bot is considered one of the tallest in Bangkok and the buddha is the largest buddha from Sukhotai and the ashes of the current King's brother are enterred there. It is a huge seated buddha. The hall itself (the paintings) are fading but there was scaffolding and it was obvious that parts had been restored.

There was also something called the Seven Great Sites; which were all different depictions with differing statues, boddhi trees, offerings. There was also an older monk and he was doing some kind of blessing; people would just go and sit in front of him. They would always walk away with a small bowl of water. It reminded me of a baptism of sorts.

I walked out of there and once I had successfully crossed the ridiculously placed crosswalk (mom.... you know the trick right ... like in Havana, find a local and just do what they do!). The man realized what I had just done and sort of gave me a smirk. As I was walking away, he pointed out this shop to me. It was a buddha factory!!! I thought of you dad because there was the smell of fiberglass; oh the childhood memories! There was this huge storefront with all kinds of buddhas all wrapped up in plastic just waiting to be sold to temples. There were also lanterns that people use to light the incense and candles, alms bowls ... everything.

So then back to the hotel. I grabbed a fruit smoothie at the skytrain (my new favorite ... beetroot and passion fruit) and stopped at the Tops supermarket and grabbed supper (and more mangosteens for tomorrow ... have I said that I just love these).

Wat Phra Kaew .... take two!

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