Steve and Cathy's Blog

We come up the Chao Phraya River into sprawling, immense Bangkok and dock around 8:00am. This is the 22^nd most populous city in the world. The city has a registered population of 7 million, but most analysts agree that, because of unregistered immigrants from the north and northeastern parts of the country, the population is more likely to be 15-20 million.

It is Sunday, which is a blessing, because Bangkok traffic is renowned throughout Southeast Asia. Morning rush hour begins at 6:30 and last until 10:30am. Afternoon rush hour runs from 4:30 to 9:30pm. Everybody admits that the city has a huge infrastructure deficit, but our guides insist that people in this city won’t ride mass transit, even though they are building systems to cope with the gridlock. Just like us Americans, they love their cars, hence the Atlanta-like jams.

By being here on a Sunday, we catch a break with the roads. Our 8-hour excursion, Imperial Treasures of Bangkok, begins at 8:45. Our guide is a young man named Chai. He tells us that we will have four activities today: 1) a visit to the Golden Buddha Temple, a canal ride on a typical Bangkok tour boat (Yay!), lunch at a hotel in the middle of the city, and then a visit to the Grand Palace. If time permits, there will be a shopping opportunity.

Chai tells us that Thailand has a population of 70 million, so almost 30% of the population of the entire nation resides in greater Bangkok. It boasts the longest name of any capital city in the world, but even the locals trim it down and call it Krung Thep Maha Nakhon. The full ceremonial name is: Krungthepmahanakhon Amonrattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilokphop Noppharatratchathaniburirom Udomratchaniwetmahasathan Amonphimanawatansathit Sakkathattiyawitsanukamprasit.

I’m not sure why we or anyone reading this needs to have such information, but I thought it might be interesting.

Thailand is officially known as the Kingdom of Thailand, but most westerners will also be familiar with its previous name, Siam. I am going to be lazy and pull a quote from Wikipedia to describe the country’s government: “Europeans arrived in the 16th century, beginning with a Portuguese diplomatic mission to Ayutthaya in 1511. The ensuing centuries saw various European colonial powers vying for control of the region, with Thailand sustaining territorial losses to the French and British, but remaining the only Southeast Asian state to avoid colonization. Starting with the reign of King Ram IV in the mid-19th century, Thailand embarked on a nation-building campaign to modernize along Western lines. This culminated with the end of absolute monarchy in 1932 and the establishment of a constitutional monarchy. However, the following sixty years saw almost continuous military rule punctuated by periods of parliamentary democracy, with the most recent coup occurring in May 2014.”

Our guide mentions nothing about the political turbulence, and I suspect his reticence has to do with the fact that the military is so, shall we delicately put it, influential. But he does talk extensively and quite affectionately about the present king and his predecessors. As the country was indeed run exclusively by the kings until 1932, there is much mention about how these kings adopted Western architecture and culture. Examples of this abound. Given that this is the only Southeast Asian nation never to have been colonized, this veneration of the monarchy is certainly in order. They are very proud of having maintained this independence throughout their history.

Because the administration of Thailand’s government did not come up as a topic on our tours, I borrow once again from Wikipedia to finish the discussion: “The politics of Thailand is currently conducted within the framework of a constitutional monarchy, whereby the Prime Minister is the Head of government and a hereditary is head of state. The judiciary is supposed to be independent of the executive and the legislative branches, although judicial rulings are suspected of being based on political considerations rather than on existing law.

“Since the political reform of the absolute monarchy in 1932, Thailand has had 19 constitutions and charters. Throughout this time, the form of government has ranged from military dictatorship to electoral democracy, but all governments have acknowledged a hereditary monarch as the head of state.”

Chai does mention one interesting thing: there are one million Chinese in Bangkok, and he says that they are very successful because they are “skillful in trading.”   I find that remark curious in that he is very admiring of the Chinese but has singled them out among all the ethnicities in the area.   We have heard this compliment in other countries in Southeast Asia as well.

The economy of the country is huge and export-driven. It has the 22^nd highest GDP in the world, and has the second largest economy in Southeast Asia. It is mentioned that every Japanese and South Korean automaker has established assembly plants in Thailand and export most of what is produced. The country experienced the world’s highest growth rate from 1985 through 1996 at a staggering 12.4% annually. Incredible. Electronics, computer components, electrical appliances, rice, textiles and tourism are also huge contributors.

Well, back to the tour itself. Our first stop is Wat Trimitr where we visit the Golden Buddha Temple. Again I crib, this time from our tour description: “Weighing in at an incredible five and a half tons, and standing over ten feet high, this massive statue dates back to the 700-year old Sukhothai period. During the time of the Burmese invasions the statue was covered in plaster as a protective measure and as time passed, its gold composition was forgotten.”

The statue was being moved to a new location in Bangkok in 1955. When the statue was lifted off its pedestal the ropes being used broke. The statue fell, and some of the plaster broke off. To everyone’s complete surprise, the gold underneath was revealed. Once it had been analyzed, it was found that the body of the statue is 40% pure, the volume from the chin to the forehead is 80% pure, and the hair and the topknot, weighing 45 kg, are 99% pure gold.  At current prices, that puts the value at well over $200 million in just the gold alone, let alone its religious and historical value, which obviously is incalculable.

It is housed in a small temple, and one must remove socks and shoes and be appropriately clothed to enter. No video recording is allowed, but photos may be taken. It is a religious shrine, and people are there to pray and leave remembrances. It is crowded but we are early. Later in the day, the place will be mobbed.

The surrounding buildings, of which there are dozens, are dazzling. I will put a few photos here. Because of the scale of the place and the crowds of people, it is hard to do it justice. Over the hundreds and hundreds of years of building these temples, so much effort, artistry and value has been placed in the shrines that it is a wonder to behold. It is a great credit to the people of these countries where Buddhism has been practiced that, despite war and much history of Internal political conflict, these magnificent structures have been not only spared but been maintained.

After about forty-five minutes, we are ready for our next adventure, a trip on the Chao Phraya River and some of the canals running off of it. This river is packed with boat traffic. It is a major commercial artery, a means of transportation within the city, and a major league tourist attraction. It is a great way to see Bangkok, get a sense of how the city is blending its past with its future, and feel the vibrancy of this community. Huge skyscrapers, beautiful temples, barges being towed by tugboats, tour boats of all shapes and sizes are there to view.

Then there are the Longtails, boats that Steve became obsessed with photographing. Our guide says that they developed shortly after World War II, but no one is sure by whom or why. They are colorfully painted, narrow boats about forty or fifty feet long used to take tourists for excursions or to provide locals with transportation. The feature that makes them unique and from which their name is derived is the power plant. The captain sits or stands in the rear, holding on to a long pole from which he maneuvers this enormous diesel engine. The drive shaft of the engine extends directly from the transmission into the water, and the propeller and drive shaft, as well as this huge engine, are turned to steer the boat. These totally overpowered boats crank! We are putting photos of one craft below that will serve as an example of the hundreds of them we see.

Our next stop is a very nice hotel where the hundred or so Oceania guests who are on this tour will be treated to a fabulous buffet lunch. There are several buses full of us tourists, and our guide wants us to be there first, so we arrive around 11:30. That was good advice, because within fifteen minutes, the place is packed. We sit with a delightful couple from the UK named Steve and Dee, another couple from Denver named Steve and Marcy Hannah, and a pair of other couples whose names we never do get. It’s a very pleasant hour.

After lunch, we actually walk about half a mile to the Grand Palace (aka Royal Palace). As mentioned before, Thailand avoided being colonized, in large measure because of good leadership from their kings. To this day, the Thai people adore their royalty and ascribe much of the country’s success to the reigns of these people. Our guide describes the various periods of Thai history in terms of which king was in power at the time. Presently, King Rama X presides. King Rama I was the one who moved the capital from Thonburi to Bangkok when he became king in 1782. King Rama V is credited with modernizing Bangkok during the Victorian era in England, which he visited and by which he was significantly influenced. [This king was the son of the King Rama played by Yul Brynner in “The King and I.” Our guide told us that the story of the English governess instructing the royal children is partly true but the movie is not shown there because the King would never have had a relationship with an English woman as portrayed. Women lived completely separately in the Grand Palace.]

The Grand Palace was indeed begun by King Rama I in 1782, and was added to significantly by subsequent kings. Not only had it served as the royal residence, but most administrative offices were located on the 54 acres surrounded by four high walls; this is, until 1932 when the absolute monarchy ended. Now the palace serves as an enormous tourist attraction and venue for important royal gatherings.

Our guide warns us that up to 5,000 people a day visit here, so he pleads us to stick close to him throughout the tour. He then hands to each of us a piece of paper with his name, cell phone number and a message written in Thai. If we do get separated from our group, we have this piece of paper to help us communicate with the locals, who will be happy to help us be reunited with the group. What a clever idea, no doubt born of frustrating guide experience.

Indeed, the entrance is packed. Not only are we westerners here, but thousands of others from all over Thailand. This is a very, very important place in Thailand, a place everyone wants to visit. It is also home to The Emerald Buddha, so it is a religious shrine as well. When we have our opportunity to do so, there are so many people there and the time to actually join the mob moving through the chapel where it resides is just more than we want to deal with. We are content to let Chai describe it and its significance to us.

Chai leads us around explaining everything we are seeing. As with the other guides who are Buddhists, they do a wonderful job of describing everything we see. Truth be told, 99% of what he says zips right over my head, but it does pique my curiosity about Buddhism. The legends, the artistry and the beliefs are imaginative and interesting, but it will take far more than a walk through of some temples for me to comprehend what it is about.

We are going to put some photos in here now, and try to explain what they are, as much for our own edification after the fact as anything. Of course, it was hot as hell, crowded like you wouldn’t believe, and our time to wander around was limited to about an hour and a half. Ninety minutes to see the hundreds of buildings, statues and artifacts of this dazzling complex is not enough. Nine hundred minutes, maybe.

We depart the Royal palace around 4:00pm, and our last stop is a huge, upscale, multi-story and AIR CONDITIONED (YAY!!!) shopping mall. Cathy and Steve cruise through one store and find a couple of very interesting things to purchase. Then we just browse, thankful beyond words for the air conditioning. Our bus picks us up around 4:45 and we head back to Insignia. What a fantastic introduction to this busy world-class city. So much information and culture to absorb, and more tomorrow.