It is finally time for Jen and Naresh to join us in Thailand! The flight from Siem Reap was really smooth, and it was interesting to arrive into Bangkok for the second time in eight weeks. The first time was at the very beginning of the trip, when everything was so new. This time, we understood Thailand much better and could get around with no problem (including avoiding the ever-present taxi rip-off).

We got to the hotel at around 11PM. We confirmed that Jen and Naresh would be in the room next to us, and once we settled in, just to make it a little more fun for them when they arrive, we left a few welcome notes on and under their door. We waited for a couple of hours, but when they hadn't checked in, we figured we would just pass out and catch them in the morning. Just as Bev dozed off, I heard the tumblers on their lock turn. I headed over just to say hi, and we ended up staying up until well after 3AM catching up. It was good to see them and hear about home and their travels to Tokyo en route to Thailand.

We had a sweet suite (how's that for a homonym, Rachel?). Our rooms had adjoining doors, so for the rest of the stay, we kept the doors open and went back and forth at will. We also enjoyed complimentary cocktail hours at the hotel, along with a really nice breakfast spread. We have come to appreciate free amenities like these on the trip very much. Oh, and Internet is free as well, outside the room.

Since we had such a late night on night one, we planned a light first day. We took Jen and Naresh to Pratunam Market to check out the insanity of a Thai market. After hoofing it a bunch in the market and environs, we all got a one-hour foot massage (for four bucks each).

We then duked it out with a cab driver for the right fare to Chinatown. Bev was relentless and even threatened to get out of the cab on the spot. The cab drivers here are supposed to use a government-regulated meter, but instead, they like to quote you a "good" price that is "same same" as the meter. Needless to say, when the guy finally used the meter, it was at least half of what he had quoted us. This was one of our many encounters of the Thai concept of "same same." It sounds like 2 equal items, but in reality, the full phrase is "same same, but different!" Live and learn.

Once in Chinatown, we had a dim sum lunch, explored the markets, and checked out a few Confucian halls. We took a quick break for some street side Thai coffee (the guy's technique reminded me of Sunderraj whipping up his famous piping hot afternoon coffee….mmmmmmm.) Sunder - I'm looking forward to your coffee and a gin & tonic when we get back. I'll whip up the roasted veggies. Deal?

We also introduced Jen and Naresh to the wonders of Thai pharmacies, where you mention an ailment, and they whip out dirt cheap meds. Need prescription antibiotics, muscle relaxers, anti-inflammatories, or sleeping pills? A Thai pharmacy is ready, willing, and able to sell them to you for rock bottom prices. It is a little scary, actually, since with antibiotic resistance, these pharmacies don't help things by doling them out left, right, and center to anyone with a sniffle. Okay, I'm off my soapbox.

We also passed by plenty of Chinese herbal medicine shops, where the cures come in glass jars with no explanations or expiration dates. Anyone know what dried seahorses are good for? If only I spoke Chinese or Thai, I might have been able to find out.

Later that night, we went out for Naresh's birthday dinner. We went to a new place we heard about that had great atmosphere. But, here's the thing about restaurants in general in Thailand and specifically in Bangkok. The quality of the atmosphere is usually inversely proportional to the taste of the food. The rattier the hole, the more delicious the food is. So, the place was good to look at, but the food was okay and the service bad. We plan on taking Naresh and Jen off the beaten path to hole-in-the-wall places to really experience things here and enjoy some great food from a Thai mom's kitchen.

The next day we did some serious sightseeing. We saw the Grand Palace, Wat Phra Kaew (home of the famous Emerald Buddha), and Wat Po (home of the famous giant reclining Buddha).

The sites were surprisingly exquisite. We have been to many a wat and palace on this trip, but we saw the granddaddies of them all on this day. The Grand Palace is the king's former residence, but the star of the show is really the adjoining Wat Phra Kaew. It is a sprawling temple complex dedicated to a tiny, but historic, 75 cm. emerald statue of Buddha. Inside the main temple, the diminutive statue is surrounded and practically dwarfed by lavish gilded decorations.

It is so famous that three times a year, the King himself comes to the temple to change the Buddha's robes. The walls of the temple are covered in beautiful detailed murals depicting the Thai's equivalent of the Hindu epic Ramayana, called the Ramakian. In the areas around the main sanctuary, there are a variety of magnificent structures. We rented an audio guide to explain all the sites. See the Bangkok II photo album for some pictures.

The Buddha statue itself has an interesting history. For hundreds of years, the Buddha lived a ho hum existence while it remained hidden in white plaster until in the 15th century a fall caused the plaster to chip off, revealing the emerald Buddha's true identity. It remained in Thailand until the mid-16th century when it was stolen by Lao invaders. In the mid-18th century, the King of Thailand waged war on Laos and retrieved the Buddha. It remained in the former Thai capital for years before it was moved to Bangkok and Wat Phra Kaew.

After the palace and wat, we strolled around in search of a pad thai street vendor. Sadly, we couldn't find one, but we did find a hole-in-the-wall street side restaurant that we popped into for lunch. The décor was non-existent, but the food was great! Naresh finished his plate, tried my green curry rice, ordered some himself, and killed that plate, too.

On our way in to Swensen's for dessert, I spotted a woman selling Thai kanom (desserts) that looked just like the ones we made with Mae-Wan near Nakhon Phanom. I said a few Thai words to her, asked her how much (25 cents for four), and told her that I love Thai sweets. We bought a few and everyone tried them. They weren't as good as Mae-Wan's, but they were tasty and instantly brought us back to Northeastern Thailand when we taught at the village and then stayed at Andy's house to make and sell Thai sweets.

Anyhow, we finished our snacks and had enough time for one more temple. We planned on seeing Wat Arun, just across the river and south of us. We had to figure out how to get to the other side of the river, at the pier we needed. We made a valiant attempt, but we simply ended up on the cross-river ferry that just moves people back and forth across the same spot on the river. We tried again, and we ended up further down the river but on the wrong side. We were close to another temple that was high on our list, Wat Po, so we decided just to go there instead. We were glad we did.

Wat Po houses the largest reclining Buddha in Thailand, has the largest collection of Buddha statues, and is the original home of higher education in Thailand, including a school teaching the art of Thai massage. It had been a long day already, so we mostly just checked out the reclining Buddha, which was huge (see the Bangkok II photo album).

After enjoying the temple, we made our way home successfully on the first try on the ferry. Woo hoo! We pulled up to a pier that I thought was pretty close to the hotel, but everyone else thought we could get one closer. So, I told them I would race them, jumped out as soon as the boat docked, and sprinted to the hotel. They all headed on to the next pier. I got there first, baby! Of course, I was sweaty and disheveled, and they looked dry and comfy. Did I mention I got there first by around 90 seconds? Hmmm…not sure who won that one, but it was worth the expressions on Thai folk's faces as this crazy farang sprinted through the streets like a madman. For context, Thai people are relaxed. Sabai sabai. So, you almost never see a Thai person rushing for anything, much less sprinting through the streets.

Tomorrow, Jen, Naresh, and I will head out for a tour of Ayuthaya, the former capital of Thailand. Bev is ancient-templed out, so she'll stick around Bangkok and knock out a bunch of planning and Internet time along with a little relaxation and reading by the pool.