...Grand Palace. National Museum.

Headed off to the Grand Palace this morning. Had a really nice walk there from my hotel. Was brilliant as I got a better idea on what real Thai life was like as I went down a non-tourist street and through the University. Was so nice to not get harassed by sellers or tuk tuk drivers.

When I got to the Palace someone tried to scam me by saying it was closed until 1pm for Buddhist Day and that in the meantime he could take me to other attractions. Luckily I didn't fall for it and got to see the grandeur and splendour of the Palace.

The grounds and the Palace are unbelievable, so elaborate and ornate with really colourful buildings and interesting staues. There were lots of elephant statues to commerate the elephants that King Rama I brought over to the country and helped them to win many battles and wars. Plus there were lots of mythical beings like angel birds and demons.

One of the really fascinating things was a painting/murial that stretched along the sheltered walls of the outside buildings depicting battles and Thai history - it was so detailed and elaborate.

In the afternoon I went to the National Museum to understand more about Thai culture. There was tons of information on Thailand's history, which was quite intense to try and absorb a all in one go but I found the outer buildings really interesting as they housed lots of Thai artefacts ranging from costumes, puppets, games, death chariots, ceramics and art.

I really liked the costumes and puppets but my favourite exhibit had to be the mother-of-pearl inlay, which is quite an old technique in Thailand. I couldn't believe how detailed and intricate the designs on the items were.

One thing that I'm pleased I found out is why their offerings to Buddha are so expensive considering many peopleare quite poor. The reson why their offerings are so expensive is because their gifts are comparible to the wealth of the knowledge of Buddha.

I also found out why the revere the King so much and this is because he is a very generous King helping to support the country. He even pays for many of the school uniforms out of his own pocket, lets people use his own private medical team when he is visiting their area, plus helping to support the country in many other ways.

Photo: Golden Kelly Chedis

[Next blog entry: Bangkok Saturday July 7th 2007]