Bangkok// The Grand Palace [part 2]

as promised, the rest of my visit to the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew. [see part 1 here]

let's talk about the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, pictured above. inside there is a Buddha statue carved from a single piece of jade. this statue was housed somewhere in Ayutthaya before the Burmese invasion, and legend says that the monks covered it in plaster to hide its value. the statue was moved, and for years no one realized what was underneath. then one day it was knocked over, cracking the plaster and revealing the Emerald Buddha. now it lives in its own special temple in the Grand Palace, and it known as the most sacred Buddhist site in Thailand.

I don't have a picture of the Emerald Buddha for you. mostly because you are not allowed to take pictures of it, but also because my camera battery died before I made it over to the temple itself. but there was still plenty that made it onto my memory card...

tangent: I had an eye-opening experience the other night. for the first time in my adult life, and certainly for the first time since experiencing southeast Asian culture and visiting Bangkok for the first time... we watched "The King and I." and I was moderately horrified at the misrepresentation of both Thai culture and the practices of Buddhism. so much that I'm struggling to write this post without mentioning it.

but I'm going to try not to preach at you. I'd like to think that my readers are both global citizens and independent thinkers, able to differentiate fiction and stereotypes from reality. and I hope we can agree that - thankfully - globalization has brought us all a better understanding of each other's cultures.

ok, end tangent. back to the pictures.

this golden tiered chedi and its mosaic-covered demon warriors was probably my favorite part of the entire Grand Palace complex. the detail in the armor just blows my mind... all the different colors and patterns. had I not been trying to conserve battery life, I could have snapped pictures of those guys all day.

seriously. this place is amazing. I really don't know what more I can say about it, other than: Thailand is amazing. you should go to Thailand, and you should visit the Grand Palace.

[and you should remember to bring a spare and fully charged camera battery.]

the cup of coffee that fueled the writing of today’s post was sponsored by Hayley. she drinks her tea with 2 scoops of sugar and blogs about life, travel, and adventure over at livin' it up as HayUp.

Bangkok// The Grand Palace [part 1]

the Grand Palace in Bangkok is an enormous complex of temples, museums, and government buildings. we spent a few hours wandering there after our visit to Ayutthaya, until our feet were sore and my camera batteries were dead. I still managed to capture a TON of pictures. enough that this will have to be a 2-part post.

first things first: when you visit the Grand Palace you must follow proper ettiquite. you cannot enter the grounds unless your shoulders and legs are covered. I wore a tshirt + long skirt, but the boys had to rent pants to pull on over their shorts. you should come prepared - either already covered, with a wrap in your bag, or ready to rent.

once you are properly attired and on the grounds, you have to buy tickets to enter the specific areas of the palace. I don't think we made it to everything our ticket covered, but the palace was packed and we still saw plenty. most of our time was spent exploring the area around the Temple of the Emerald Buddha [also known as Wat Phra Kaew.]

when you first enter the temple area, you can't help but notice the three main pagodas which include an enormous golden chedi and the stupa of the library building. these three spires are surrounded by other shrines, statues, and decorated buildings.

the entire temple complex is surrounded by a wall and forms a giant courtyard, with these painted demon warrior statues standing guard at the various gates around the perimeter.

the details in the tilework and decoration on the buildings is simply stunning. the royal family used to live in the Grand Palace complex and it is still used today for important functions - so you can understand why Wat Phra Kaew is one of the most opulent temples in Bangkok.

if you've been to Cambodia this carving might look familiar - it's a model of Angkor Wat. it was one of my favorite things on the pavillion. even though it isn't painted or covered in mirrors and gold, the detail in the carving is just incredible.

and that's all of the Grand Palace that I have to share for today. I'll be back next week with part two, which involves more gold and more demons. until then- happy travels!

Ayutthaya // Wat Maha That + the Buddha in a tree

Wat Maha That was the last temple site that we visited in Ayutthaya. this Wat is by far the most popular attraction in the ruined city. the main reason why people love to visit this particular temple ruin? the buddha head in the tree.

the buddha head was removed from one of the statues when the Burmese sacked Ayutthaya in the late 1700s. it must have fallen or been moved to the base of this wall, and the tree roots grew around it. I always find it interesting when nature starts to reclaim what man has built. what makes this site unique is that the roots have grown to cradle the head but don't cover the face, which almost makes it look... intentional.

proper etiquitte requires you to always have your head lower than the head of the buddha, especially when taking photos. so everyone huddles on the ground around this tree when taking pictures... it's quite a sight. I pretty much had to crawl through a horde of Japanese tourists to get up to the barrier and take this shot. but, worth the dirty knees I think.

the rest of the complex was still impressive [if partially sinking into the ground in spots.] parts were under restoration, but there were plenty of crumbling stupas and chedis left to explore. and buddhas. I hope you guys aren't tired of seeing buddha pictures... because this temple was covered in buddhas.

Wat Maha That is a must-see if you are visiting Ayutthaya, if only for the buddha head in the tree. I would suggest making it your first stop to beat the crowds, and definitely try to get there before noon. we arrived just before several buses of tourists, and had to navigate around group tours as we explored the grounds.

there are other sites to visit in Ayutthaya, but we only spent our morning exploring the ruined city. that afternoon we went back to Bangkok to see the Grand Palace - a giant theological / governmental complex very much not in ruins. [don't worry, there's still more Thailand to come.] until then, happy travels!

Ayutthaya // Wat Phra Si Sanphet

Wat Phra Si Sanphet was the second temple complex we visited on our tour of Ayutthaya. the ruins on this expansive site were once home to the royal palace [in 1350 AD] and a monastic site a century after that.

on the day that we visited, the site was full of children on school trips... including several who asked us to sign a paper stating they gave us a tour, and others who asked to pose for pictures. [obviously I had to take a picture of the picture taking...]

there were also some dogs - easier to spot than the cats at Wat Pho.

next to the site of Wat Phra Si Sanphet there is a more modern temple with a giant golden buddha inside, a decent size market where you can find local souvenirs, snacks, and drinks [we stopped for some coconuts] and also restroom facilities. in fact, this is the place where I lost my squat toilet virginity - a mere six days shy of my one-year expat anniversary. but that's a story for another time...