I don’t have as much to report this time, because we’ve been doing a lot of this…

Bangkok

After our adventures getting out of the Philippines (see last post), we were ready for a slower pace. But first we went to Bangkok, a crazy and hectic city! 

We only spent a couple of days in Bangkok. We particularly enjoyed our street food experiences as well as the night markets – such inexpensive and delicious food! In general, we’ve eaten well on this leg of the trip: seafood fritters, lemongrass soup, Pad Thai (obviously), crab meat curry in coconut milk, Tom Yum Goong, banana pancakes, mango sticky rice, fresh coconut milk, Thai iced tea  – you get the idea.

Our big excursions included the Grand Palace: a stunning complex! Most of the exterior surfaces are covered with a staggering amount of gold embellished with blue glass and mirrors, to create mosaics that are particularly striking when the sunlight hits. 

You can’t go in most buildings, and the exteriors are so impressive anyway that we just wandered around. It was in the mid-90s and really humid, so we ran out of energy quickly. I didn’t take the time to compose my photos thoughtfully, so these aren’t my best. If you haven’t been, then you’ll just have to see it in person.

We also toured Wat Pho, a temple with a huge, gold, reclining Buddha. At an impressive 15 meters high and 46 meters long, it’s worth seeing in person. Again, we felt too hot and lethargic to explore every nook and cranny of the temple grounds.

Finally, we visited Wat Arun. This gorgeous tower (called prahng), includes floral mosaics made largely from shards of Chinese porcelain. Construction dates from the 1800s, when the city had strong ties to Chinese merchants – the porcelain shards are the discarded ballast from Chinese ships.

Phuket: Phuket City

We flew to Phuket City and spent one day there. The architecture reflects its historically significant role in trade, particularly with Portuguese and Chinese influences. Refurbished buildings are painted in really vibrant colors. We enjoyed exploring interesting shops, restaurants and funky street art.

In Thailand, there are shrines on nearly every street to either the Buddha or to the monarch (both current and former). While in Phuket City, it was a national holiday commemorating the previous king’s cremation – which happened a few years ago in an elaborate $90 million ceremony. It is actually illegal to say anything negative about the monarchy, and Thai citizens have encountered serious jail time for criticisms posted on Facebook.

Phuket: Kata Beach

Then we were off to the beach for a week. In a nice change of pace, our only decisions each day were selecting our beach activities and where to eat. Because it’s the tail end of the low season, we scored some beautiful hotel rooms at ridiculously low prices.

Kata Beach had the perfect vibe for us. We snorkeled and built sand castles. Elise took a surfing lesson, and I went scuba diving. I had a massage on the beach, and Elise went horseback riding.

The downside of visiting Phuket in low season are the crazy monsoon rains. One minute, you’re enjoying the beach, then three minutes later you’re caught in a torrential downpour. So, we spent a couple of days lazily enjoying our hotel balcony while watching the storms – nature’s way of forcing us to rest and allowing us to catch up on logistics.

And now we are returning to Bangkok to prepare for an adventure in another country involving temples and monkeys! But we’ll be back in Thailand soon.