Bangkok, Thailand

I have to admit that this was not my favorite stop.  It was a long 2.5 hour drive to and from the city and the traffic is absolutely horrendous.

It is, as usual, a mix of new and old......

 

 

But that traffic.........

They don't have as many motorbikes as Vietnam so the most efficient means of transportation is a tut-tut.  This embellished sort of motorbike usually holds one or two passengers......

However, it is cheap and they will take as many people that can fit as in this one where I counted 6 students jammed into this one tiny vehicle.....

There is the usual Chinatown and Indian areas as well as this flower market....

And this Buddha selling area with shop after shop selling Buddha's for the large population....

Once again we visited a Buddhist temple. I have to admit I'm starting to get templed out but this one held a particularly large one, was a much older temple and the architecture was very different......

 

 

 

 

In front can be found the Red Swing, a famous landmark in Bangkok.....

We saw the Pavilion where the King received Queen Elizabeth.  It is a large beautiful park area surrounded by Thai buildings.........

Everywhere can be found pictures of the royal family who are revered by their people.  You cannot lick a stamp with their image on it and whatever you do not drop some money, which holds their image, and step on it to keep it from getting away, that would bring the house down on you.  Their pictures are posted on buildings, in front of temples, in the middle of the road, everywhere.  And very respectfully in ornate frames....

 

 

There were beautiful and very interesting architectural elements throughout the city center, very Thai....

Then we made our final stop at another temple that held a marble one.  However we caught a break since this very large temple was holding an induction ceremony for a novice monk and allowed us to take pictures of the ceremony.........

 

 

Throughout the city can be found these Spirit Houses in all shapes and sizes, on street corners, in yards, on roofs, wherever they can put them asking Buddha and the spirits of their ancestors to look over them......

After fighting our way back through that horrendous traffic we made our way back to the ship and were happy to get there.  Especially since we had been warned of terrorist activity in the area and which became a lot more evident at our next stop!