Hello again, Blogonauts!

When I'm on my own, I often simply follow my nose more than a set itinerary. Sometimes that means walking toward a curious scent, other times my nose turns toward an intriguing trinket or a mysterious marvel, and still other times I simply find myself somewhere I didn't expect. Bangkok offered all these opportunities and more.

I returned to Bangkok for a lengthier stay very late on February 4, two days following their highly disputed election day.

My guesthouse was in the Phra Nakhon district, an area that fronts the river and contains the royal palaces and several sights I wanted to visit. I thought this would be a safer option. Even though the political parties seem deeply divided, neither side is at odds with beloved King Bhumibol, who has held the throne for an astonishing 68 years. Protesters seemed most interested in disrupting the party in control of parliament, which meant blocking traffic and bollixing the bureaucracy.

My hotel was fairly basic, but the room was air conditioned. The owners spoke only sparse English, a limitation that was demonstrated when I asked one for a recommendation where to find dinner at nearly 10 PM. She proceeded to take me back to my room and show me how to operate my air conditioner. Something was lost in translation.

When I did finally find an open restaurant, the family's pet rabbits were running freely about the dining room. Nonetheless, the green curry was delicious. It tasted like chicken.

Bangkok is a wondrous city, and far more modern than Yangon or Mandalay. However, it falls short of deserving its self-accolade as the "Best City in the World."

I prefer cities that are easily walkable, and many of the attractions in Bangkok are too far apart to reach by foot, or because of midday traffic, reasonably to reach even by taxi. Nonetheless, there are some genuinely fun ways to get around.

First there is the water-bus system. The river is extremely busy and the riverbank architecture is a combination of scenic and functional. The ferry system is rather difficult to fully grasp, because rates vary throughout the day. However, some ferries cross the river and others motor upstream and down. River crossings cost the equivalent of about a nickel. Riding along the river costs somewhere in the vicinity of a dollar, but I easily used it to reach the Saphan Taksin Skytrain Station.

The Skytrain is exceedingly modern, efficient, comfortable, and crowded. It carries passengers quickly above the knotted traffic, and so has helped keep Bangkok functioning, even during the "Bangkok Shut-down" protests. (Bangkok also has a subway train system, but my travels did not warrant using it.)

Navigation on my iPhone was once again fully operational, and thanks to it I found a genuine shortcut walking through the back streets from my hotel. The hike to the National Museum was lengthy. I, of course, made it supremely longer by wandering through market stalls and even crossing the river to visit more stalls and a temple on the other side.

However, I eventually arrived at the enormous National Museum. It was easy to spend a couple of hours there, first touring the history exhibits (with labels in both Thai and English), and then the other buildings that contained both religious and royal paraphernalia.

After the Museum, I visited Wat Pho.

What fo'?

Because that afternoon the local monks had commandeered the Temple of the Emerald Buddha that sits on the grounds of the Royal Palace. It made more sense to visit there the next day.

Wat Pho is comprised of several lovely temples, but the most striking one holds a GARGANTUAN reclining Buddha image. Buddha's death (as just about any story about the Buddha) is depicted repeatedly in art. The golden reclining Buddha is not just napping, but instead is shown deceased. This we know because his feet are shown together. Reclining Buddha images with the feat separated indicate he's simply been caught catching 40 winks.

I returned to the hotel before going out for dinner on street filled with restaurants near the famous Khao San Road.

I had intended to summarize my entire 3-day Bangkok visit in one post. Clearly that plan has changed. So watch for an upcoming story of finally reaching the Royal Palace, the Emerald Buddha and then climbing Arun Wat ... plus shopping.

Blog to you later!