Bangkok!

So, Sarah is planning on living in Thailand. Unfortunately, Shane has to return to NY to work, so they can afford Thailand so Sarah, sadly, will have to return with him. However, not without finding an Asian market where she can attempt to recreate the delicious flavors they have grown accustomed to! The Thai markets are open almost 24 hours a day and have the most delicious foods, especially fruits that we have never even heard of: longon – a grape type flavor in a small kiwi colored shell; Durian – smells so bad you are not allowed to bring it into air-conditioned buildings but tastes sweet and delicious; lamputan – red and fuzzy shell with a sweet fruit inside; dragonfruit – white fruit with black dots; and many more whose names we cannot remember. All are grown locally and are cheap and delicious!!

We arrived late to Bangkok thanks to the typhoon so we headed straight to our Thai massage. Thai massage is a combination of deep tissue massage, stretching, pulling at the joints and chiropractics. It was incredible! After the massage we checked into our hotel and headed downtown to dinner at a local restaurant. The restaurant kept its fish in large tanks and then killed some and placed them on ice that evening. We were able to chose our fish by pointing at the exact one we wanted, then the waiter took it to the back where the chef would either flash fry, bbq or broil the fish and serve it with rice and cooked vegetables. It was delicious! After dinner we walked around the night market and got a small sample of Bangkok’s night life.

The next day was a full day of touring. We visited Wat Trimtir where the newly discovered 5 ½ ton golden Buddha was discovered; Wat Po, the temple of the reclining Buddha and Wat Benjamaborpit, the white marble temple made with a combination of Italian marble and Thai architecture. We also went to the Grand Palace, the former residence of the King and Queen of Thailand and saw the emerald Buddha temple, where the small Buddha made completely of jade is displayed. We took a tour by river barge through the canals of Bangkok which are extensive and still very much a function of everyday life. People commute by canal, there were several floating stores and restaurants and even a post man barge! On the tour we stopped at the Royal Barges museum where the barges of the King are housed. These were once used in battle and for royal processions, they are still functional and used for special occasions. We also stopped at the Temple of the Dawn where the King, after Burma had seized Bangkok, fled away in a barge and ended at this point when the sun began to rise. He created a temple and named it temple of the dawn. We climbed to the top (up very steep steps!) to see fantastic views of the city.

At the end of the day we visited Jim Thompson’s house and museum. Jim Thompson was born in Delaware but fell in love with Thailand after WWII. He built a traditional Thai house and started the Jim Thompson silk enterprise that introduced the world to Thai silk. He disappeared in Malaysia when he was 61 years old never to be seen again, but his industry remains and continues to provide silk throughout the world.
After our very full day, we headed off quickly to the Bangkok train station to hop on our overnight train to Chaing Mai.