December 12th Log

Dec 12th Pics

Ok, here's the bad thing about going to bed at 8 p.m. - you wake up at 3 a.m. with nothing to do. But, it was a huge blessing in disguise. I had incorrectly set my alarm clock; otherwise, I would have missed my tour. Lucky me. The van pulled up around 6:30 a.m., picked up a few people at a few other hotels, then took us to the coach. It was a nice coach bus with air conditioning and a toilet. We headed north of Bangkok towards Bang Pa-In. We saw many condominiums along the way and plenty of rice fields.
 
DSCN0534 DSCN0538 DSCN0539 DSCN0536

Our first stop for the day was Bang Pa-In, the summer palace for the Kings. This area had many buildings, all in different architectural styles. I even climbed to the top of what looked like a lighthouse. We were here for about an hour. Before entering any temple, we remove our shoes. I'm getting used to that pretty quick. For the lazy ones among us golf carts were available to rent.

From the Lonely Planet Guide Book to Thailand

"The postcard stereo type here is a pretty little Thai pavilion in the center of a small lake by the palace entrance. Inside the palace grounds, the Chinese-style Wehat Chamrun Palace and the Withun Thatsana building, which looks like a lighthouse with balconies, are the only buildings open to visitors. The latter was built to give a fine view over gardens and lakes. There are various other buildings, towers and memorials in the grounds plus an interesting topiary garden where the bushes have been trimmed into the shapes of a small herd of elephants."

Bang Pa-In

DSCN0548 DSCN0565 DSCN0570 DSCN0567

After getting back on the bus, we headed to the Ayuthaya Historical Park. This is a rather large set of ruins dating to the twelfth and fourteenth century. It is a Unesco World Heritage site. The temples are scattered all over the city. Where we stopped is probably one of the more famous sites (I don't know why it's famous, it just is). There was also a temple with a huge Buddha image inside. If you wanted, you could take a ride on elephant.

Ayuthaya

DSCN0602 DSCN0606 DSCN0608 DSCN0611

After that, we made another stop at a large stupa with stairs that you could climb up. New rule: don't climb up stupas with steep steps. Easy to get up, hard to get down. Plus, I was a little out of breath and sweating like a pig. Fortunately, all the stops we were at today had bottled water for sale; I think I drank at least five bottles just today.

DSCN0622 DSCN0628 DSCN0630 DSCN0633

Having done enough walking and being in the heat for one day, we headed to the river cruise. Lunch was part of the price, but drinks were extra. The food was very good, but the soup was too spicy. Plenty of desserts were available. After lunch, we had a nice, leisurely cruise down the Chao Phraya. I saw many more temples along the way. Just before we got back to the pier, we were lucky enough to see some dragon boat races. I couldn't tell who won, but I think the guys in the yellow boat did.

River Cruise

DSCN0636 DSCN0653 DSCN0659 DSCN0664

The drive back to the hotel was easy, as far as Bangkok goes. My room was clean and my laundry was ready. I'm going to have dinner, then get on the Internet. Another great day.

 

Daily Log Dec 12th Pics

Home