Look at me getting all hurried and leaving out the best part of yesterdays blog.... I could just squeeze it in here and pretend it happened today couldnt I!!!

So today started with me going for a run in the park across the road ish. I wouldnt normal add anything further to that really but this was a bit of a sight seeing run as well as being a lung burster. I decided to run though Limphini Park as it is the nearest place that has a path not full or close to full with cars and mopeds and tuk tuks. Incidently after spending the day in the main tourist part of town and also having being told that crossing the street in Thailand was impossible I have to disagree. Anyway, this was early enough, about half seven and the place was already mobbed, streets, paths and the parks were full of people coming and going. Over in the park there were loads of people out jogging and walking on the path. There were also loads of people doing exercises and yoga and stretching things, they have the same kind of gym equipment as in Australia and loads of people on that too. I also saw a group of old women practicing their sword play, doing choreographed (I know thats spelt wrong) moves in a little group. There were women doing similar moves but with fans, very movie scene like although if it came to it I would rather have the sword myself than the fan even with it as hot as it is. The park has lots of nice little statues and alters and things and a river/moat running around it. On the way out of the park I saw an Asian fella with a swastika tshirt, very nice young man I am sure, and off back to the hostel I went.

All along the main paths along the streets there are little food stalls where they cook and prepare and serve food. Its mad, I have no idea what any of the food is, apart from some of the obvious ones. The night before I saw the second biggest of the two rats I have ever seen, and not seeing any others would get ya thinking what the food ya dont recognise is!!!! Im sure its not rat, luckily maybe there are lots of cats and dogs around, or not luckily.... yuck, ****DONT READ THE LAST SENTENCE REGINA***** (yea that will work).

Right then, down to the business of the day. We got the sky train to the ferry port (sounds very classy I know). We got a ticket for the day to go on the tourist river boat and got off at a stop to go see a temple. The temple is basically ridiculous. Nothing in the whole world (that I have seen so far) is more ridiculous. I mean this in a nice way. It is the most intrinsically ornate and finely built and decorated set of buildings I have ever seen. We took loads of photos and they are rubbish (I took most of them so I only offend myself). It is quite overcast so I blame the lighting. The buildings are covered in essentially mosaic style tiles and jewels or they are covered in gold leaf. The colours and the shineyness is outstanding. They make catholic churches look like protest churches look like to catholics (that makes sense to me and hope it doesnt offend anyone). Seriously though, the altars and tombs and things (wats they call em), honestly make the best catholic churches look like dry walled shacks. Maybe I cant elaborate anymore than that though. There is also the worlds largest inclined Buddha statue, the dude is just lying down, he is massive, maybe 50-60 metres long and really high, covered in gold. Along the back wall of the tomb he is in you get lots of coins and put one each in little jars. Regina did it so now she is a Buddhist and can eat steak or chicken on Good Friday, sadly she gets no Easter Eggs though as thats against the law to her now.

We then went back to the ferry and on to the next stop where we went to see the Grand Palace. Experience of the use of the word Grand in titles of places would have you skeptical of the potential of this place. The Grand pacific road was more or less rubbish, and we do use grand to suggest something being just above acceptable. This place was more like Greatest than Grand. For a start, the place is so amazing that you cant go in there with a tshirt or short sleeve shirt, no shorts or skirts or even torn jeans. No see through clothing or tight clothing either. I of course was wearing shorts, it is 30 degrees or so so I had to borrow a pair of baggy cotton pyjama style pants... in my favourite purple!!!! We strolled off around the grounds then with a now permanent jaw dropped expression. The first temple had been outstanding, this was out standing, jumping, leaping, running, flying, everything. Best building ever maybe, or buildings as there is a few. Gold and jewels encrusted on almost every surface of every building. So much colour and shine. I just cant describe it and the pictures for here are even worse because this place was even better so its impossible. If you had a helicopter then maybe you could fly around it and get some nice photos.... maybe someone has done that and put them on the net somewhere.....

After the Palace, and sadly giving back my new favourite trousers, we headed for the Koh San road (spelt wrong but sounds right). This is the main backpacker street in Bangkok, so we avoided staying here. It is more how we imagined Bangkok looking than where we are staying, but I for one am glad of where we are. This place has a unique charm to it all the same. As with the whole place really. I think it is time for me to do my reflection piece now, I have been thinking about it all day....

Bangkok is known by many names, one of them is really really long. Some of the others are City of a million smiles, City of Angels..... Many people have an opinion of Bangkok, it being a slease ridden hole of deborchery and sin. This may be true of course, we did see a Thai man present a Thai woman to a fat ugly old Western man, Regina saw a sign which said Twin Special (maybe a twin bed of course). But thats all the slease we have seen I think. Yes the place is dirty, the river is brown and murky and full of rubbish. There is a smell. There are buildings that are essentially a combination of rotten wood and rusted metal. But that is part of the charm of places like this. I can imagine going flying from Dublin or Cork and landing in Bangkok, stop number one, and being horrified by it and thus hating it. It is polluted and scary and really big. For the most part however the people here seem genuinely nice and happy. They actually all do smile at you, and bow gently to you. If you look past the delapadated buildings, and not so far past them that you see a beautiful temple, but somewhere in the middle there is a hidious beauty to this place. It is exciting and everywhere you go you get the sense of this excitement. The women here, according to Regina (she will sign this if needs be), dress and look super cute. They all bustle around the place buying their fake and real designer clothes and bags, and then they go down to street level and buy a bag of some sort of something cooked in something else and served with something else costing the princely sum of 50cents and then eat it on a plastic chair beside the road. Everywhere you go you see business women sitting on the back of mopeds as they are whisked around the city, legs dangling out to the side. I like it here, not because of the last statement but because of all the whole statement. I wish I could say more, my brain wont let me and neither will Regina...

Time for dinner, noodles or rice, what a question of choice!!!! Train to Chiang Mai tomorrow, 12 hours on a train

FOOTNOTE: I forgot to mention this earlier, when we went to the cinema tonight and last night, before the movie started the national anthem comes on, and a little message saying "please stand for respect of the king". Everyone stands up and they show pictures of the king doing some stuff and the national anthem plays. The first night of this Regina nearly choked to death laughing after wards, very disrespectful even if she claims it was coke going the wrong way!!!! They also threw it on the big screen in the train station the next morning at eight in the morning and everyone stopped what they were doing and stood up... weird!!!!