Bangkok: Day 2 Continued

After breakfast we wanted to go see the Grand Palace and possibly take a ride along the Chao Praya River.  I knew that because yesterday was the Queen's birthday and Mother's Day that the holiday would be observed today as well, which meant the Palace would be closed to the public.  Despite this, we asked the hotel front desk to call us a cab anyway.  Unfortunately the sky trains don't reach the Ko Ratanakosin area where all the touristy attractions are.  Maybe this will change in the future.

I don't remember what it cost us to get there, but it was real cheap -- probably no more than 120 Baht, or $4 USD.  Just make sure you always ride a taxi with the meter running.  If there isn't a meter or the driver refuses to use it, then be sure to negotiate a price before you get in.  Even though our cab driver didn't speak a lick of English, he was very nice and friendly and let us know where to stand and hail a cab when we wanted to get back.

It was probably 10 AM and man, there was a lot of people mostly from tour buses -- and it was humid!  Probably the most humid we've felt since we arrived in Thailand.  For being a holiday, there were a lot more people than I had anticipated.  And it turned out the Palace was open after all -- there were a lot of Thais selling sarong rentals and tickets to get inside the Palace, none of which we accepted.  It was just way too crowded.  I thought maybe we could snap some photos of the Palace from the outside, but I didn't realize there was a huge, white wall that surrounded the entire complex.

The wall surrounding the Grand Palace

Queen Sirikit of Thailand

We decided to walk around the Palace, and of course encountered many men who tried to sell us tours to Wat Pho, some Thai factory, and other places.  They were very insistent -- one even followed us, but we just brushed him off like the rest of them. 

"No thanks, not interested."

We walked until we ran into a man selling ice cream, which was just what we needed to temporarily cool off. 

Bread & ice cream, Asian-style

We walked, passing tuk-tuks along the way ... 

And kept walking onto a bridge that took us over the Chao Praya River where we ran into another man selling fruit ...

My sisters, Sahara & Gigi

My mom couldn't resist fresh pineapple, guava, and watermelon

The Chao Praya River

Found ourselves at a local produce market, which was definitely off the beaten path ... oh, the assault on the nostrils!

Then into a local neighborhood whose narrow lanes were lined with bikes, food stalls, and children playing.

Then finally came across a temple whose name we didn't catch ...

Me at a temple whose name we don't know

As we walked, we saw the top of Wat Arun, one of Thailand's most well-known landmark, its Khmer-style tower glistening in the sun.  It felt so close yet far away as we didn't know which path to take to get there.  So, we followed the monks ...

When in doubt, follow the monks!

Getting closer to Wat Arun!

And so we made it!

We were quite impressed with Wat Arun -- so big, majestic, and complex.  Photos don't do it justice.  You must go there to experience its beauty in person.

My family and me at Wat Arun

It was a long, unpredictable walk to get here and we hadn't even planned on coming to Wat Arun, but I'm sure glad we did.  It's different from other Buddhist temples, and probably the most beautiful.