Monday Jan 12

A twelve hour time difference does strange things to your body clock.

I finally hit the bed at 4:30 am, local time, and slept till 10. I decided to see the number one tourist attraction in Bangkok, the Grand Palace.

I decided to walk, it should have been a half hour stroll, but I got lost several times. It surprised me that, even though I asked for directions nobody knew, or didn't understand me. Bangkok is mu ch. cleaner than Delhi and Hanoi, but the traffic is chaotic. I came across several building sites, or as they are locally known, public toilets. The aroma tells all.

I finally got to the palace, and I have to say it is one of the most spectacular sights I have ever seen.

The Grand Palace was built in the 1780's, by King Rama I. It consists of the Royal

residence, one, very important temple, and many other buildings. It is surrounded by a 1900 m wall. Once you are inside there is a series of murals that cover most of the wall's interior. It depicts scenes from the Ramakien, a saga of the struggle of a Thai King against an evil opponent. The scenes are very detailed and quite beautiful. 

The amazing architecture is stunning. Very ornate, and full of whimsical creatures, guardians of the complex. It is hard to describe, it is so unique.

The most important building is a temple housing the Emerald Bhudda, Thailand's most revered representative of the god. It is a statue carved out of a single piece of jade. The temple is the only building that can be entered.

The weather has been a pleasant surprise. Today I t was 28, and 75% humidity. Highs for the week go up to 31 by Friday.

After walking around the implementation for 3 hours I took. A cab ba k to my hotel, and went to bed, at 4, and slept till 10. 

My back is still sore, so I decided to try a massage. This is very popular; there are 3 places within 100 feet of my hotel. It was quite a work-over. I had a massage in Hanoi, and it was a beautiful young lady the gently massaged my body. This was  very different, a real workout. He, not a beautiful young maiden, actually walked up and down my back and legs. The amazing thing, though, was that it worked! I left walking upright, rather than hunched over. It was worth the pains.

Back  to bed at one.

The photos are of the various scenes around the Grand Palace. The odd one is to show that the Walmart nation does travel. She did have a North American accent.

Enjoy, Ralf