Getting tortured in Wat Pho

Saturday February 15th

Today started with a disappointment.  As I now have a slight case of Delhi Belly, we planned to go to our new favourite café to have waffles for breakfast.  When we got there we discovered that they don’t open until 10.00am.  Drat!  We couldn’t find anything ‘safe’ to eat nearby, so made our way to the ferry in the hope that there would be something near the ferry pier.  Foiled again!  We also got ripped off again.  It’s really difficult to understand how to catch the ‘public transport’ ferry as there is no clear signage and the only people on hand to ask are those selling tickets for their longboats or private tourist boats.  We ended up paying 40 baht for a ticket which would have been 15 baht if we’d caught the right boat.  We now know we needed to be looking for a boat with orange stripes down the side and an orange flag and ignore all the ticket booths. On the 'real ferry' payment is made on the boat.  Lesson learnt.

We arrived at the pier near Wat Pho, our first destination for the day.  John had a nice pork-on-a-skewer snack and I bought some fresh pineapple to tide us over until we found something more substantial.

Wat Pho was absolutely amazing.  It’s main feature is the huge gold reclinging Buddha.  We knew previously that it was gold and that it was reclining, but we didn’t know that it’s gigantic.  It’s about 43 metres long and 15 metres high.  Throughout the Wat Pho complex there are over 1000 Buddhas of various shapes, sizes and materials.  The buildings are very ornate, decorated with gold and shiny mosaic tiles.  The second best thing about Wat Pho (after the reclining Buddha) is that it is the home of a Thai massage school.  I abandoned John for an hour while I got tortured back into shape.  It was excrutiatingly painful but I came out feeling looser in the joints and muscles than I’ve felt for years.

 

Two good looking gentlemen at Wat Pho

The Reclining Buddha

Wall paintings.  These very detailed painting adorned
the walls of many of the buildings

The feet of the Reclining Buddha.  There are 108 panels
each containing a picture of inlaid mother-pearl

Ornate mosaic decoration

In the grounds of Wat Pho

Gold and mosaic everywhere

Once we’d had our fill of Wat Pho, we headed for the nearby Grand Palace.  As we were walking towards it, we came across a group of English tourists who were walking away from it.  We asked them how far to the entrance and they said it was not much further but they’d just been told that it doesn’t open until 1.30pm so they were going somewhere else.  This is one of the tuk tuk / taxi driver scams.  They tell visitors that the attraction they want to see is closed for the day or doesn’t open until later and then offer to take the victim to another attraction, thereby earning themselves a fare.  It’s very disappointing that the very people who rely on tourists for their income can tell blatant lies and be unhelpful to people who have come to visit their city.  The fourth precept of Buddhism is to avoid lying, so they’re obviously not taking in the values of their religion.

We came to a gate which looked like it could have been the entrance, but wasn’t.  There was a recorded message being played which stated that the Palace opened at 8.30am and warned visitors not to be diverted or delayed from their visit by people at the gates.  The English tourists obviously didn’t hear this message or they wouldn’t have been walking away in the heat and humidity.

On a more happy note, there were many shops across the road from the real Palace gate, including a Subway.  We thought that would be a good ‘safe’ choice for lunch and the airconditioning was very welcome too.

The Palace is jaw-dropping.  It is a complex consisting of many buildings, all of which are highly decorated.  We first went into the Pavilion of Regalia, Royal Decorations and Coins.  The items on display could have funded the eradication of world hunger, but were very impressive.  The collection includes jewellery, ornate utensils, swords, coins and medals.  We then went to visit the Emerald Buddha – which is actually a jade Buddha.  He has three outfits, one for each of the seasons, Summer, Rainy Season and Winter.  The costumes are changed three times a year in a ceremony presided over by the King.  The building which houses the Buddha is absolutely gorgeous and the Buddha sits on a golden throne.

 

Scary dude at the Palace

One of many buildings making up the Palace complex

In the grounds of the Palace

Once we’d finished roaming around taking photographs we’d had enough of the heat and humidity, so we made our way back to the hotel, this time catching the 15 baht ferry.  We had the added bonus of getting doused by a wave that washed over the side of the boat.  Two Japanese tourists got it right in the face, but we just got a nice cooling splash on the back.

The next couple of hours were spent by the pool with Kindles.  John ordered a Pina Colada for me, but as it was Happy Hour, they gave me two for the price of one.  I didn’t really want two, but what’s a girl to do??

Once our grumbly bellies told us it was dinner time, we went to the Vietnamese and Vegetarian Restaurant down the road from the hotel.  The food was delicious and very reasonably priced.  Definitely a recommendation.

We finished off the day with another stroll around the main street, stopping off once more where the Chinese Theatre people were doing another performance.  I think that Chinese singing is an acquired taste.  A very well dressed young man asked if we were enjoying it and I broke the fourth precept of Buddhism and said that we were.  We then thought that he said that he was Police and it wasn’t until later, back in the hotel room, that I realised he probably said that he was pleased.