Krungthepmahanakhon Amornrattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilokphop Noppharat Ratchathaniburirom Udomratchaniwetmahasathan Amonphiman Awatansathit Sakkathattiyawitsanukamprasit

the 32 m. high Standing Buddha at Wat Indraviharn

Wondering what that means? It's the full ceremonial name for Bangkok, and the rough translation is: "The city of angels, the great city, the residence of the Emerald Buddha, the impregnable city (of Ayutthaya) of God Indra, the grand capital of the world endowed with nine precious gems, the happy city, abounding in an enormous Royal Palace that resembles the heavenly abode where reigns the reincarnated God, a city given by Indra and built by Vishnukarn".  As you might have guessed, it's won the spot in the Guinness Book of Records for the world's longest place name!

Aron and Kevin

We're enjoying ourselves here, especially now that we have company:  our good friend, Kevin, has joined us and we're thrilled to have him along!  And he's just as excited to leave the cold weather behind for two weeks.  And what a winter escape - the heat in Bangkok is intense.  We think it's probably the hottest place we've been, with Kuala Lumpur being the only contender for the top spot. Another thing to get used to is that Bangkok is just crawling with tourists, especially on the famous Khao San Road, where it can be fun to sit and people-watch.  You know the saying "All roads lead to Rome"?  It should be changed to "All roads lead to Bangkok".  Everybody comes here.  The three of us are already looking forward to leaving this high-octane, slightly frenzied metropolis behind.  Time to find a relaxing beach and forget about the hustle, bustle and choking exhaust fumes.

catfish fighting for bread crusts

But since we're here, we've found that the best way to see the city is on the water.  The Chao Phraya river slices through the heart of Bangkok before emptying into the Gulf of Thailand.  Almost like a major highway, this wide river is full of cheap and efficient river ferries, private tour boats, long tails, chartered vessels and tugboats hauling barges.  The river is full of catfish, and feeding them seems to be a favorite pastime for Bangkokians, with vendors selling huge bags of day-old crusts at the pier.  Gaping-mouthed, a writhing mass of catfish eagerly clamor one over top the other in search for a waterlogged piece of bread.  The largest ones are upwards of 15 lbs. and Aron thinks he saw one monster that looked about 50 lbs.

at the Grand Palace complex

We saw the Grand Palace complex, which encompasses the royal residence and throne halls, government offices, the Royal Monastery, several museums, temples and the famous Temple of the Emerald Buddha.  In the 1400s, a nondescript plaster statue was discovered in northern Thailand, and brought to a monastery.  One day the abbot noticed a piece of plaster had flaked off the nose, revealing what he thought was emerald, and the name stuck even though it's actually jade.  We're not sure why many people express disappointment when they see the Emerald Buddha.  Resplendent in a gold costume, one of three depending on the season (summer, rainy & dry), we thought the Emerald Buddha was a sight to behold. Granted, at only 66 cm tall by 42 cm wide, he's a rather diminutive Buddha, but he's carved from a single piece of stone.  As usual, we have no photos inside any of the buildings, as photography is only permitted outside. 

a very small portion of the Royal Monastery galleries

The grounds of the Royal Monastery are encircled by highly decorated galleries, a welcome change of pace from the surging crowds and blazing sun.  The frescoed walls are painted with scenes from the Ramakien, Thailand's national epic.  Interestingly, this story is derived from the Indian Ramayana tale (as was the dance-drama we attended in Bali) and is the mythology of the work of the gods in the lives of men.