Wat Kanlayanamit

Wat Kanlayanamit is a temple complex downriver from Wat Arun. We saw it from across the river and decided to try and find it after visiting Wat Arun. It was a bit further than I thought, but after a bit of walking, crossing a canal (klong) on the drawbridge and going to a couple of smaller wats, we found it! They had a huge bell that Ms. A was so excited to ring and put the donation in the box.

After seeing the Buddha, Reed and Ms. A were blessed by a monk. Ms. A saw a group of people being blessed and she wanted to do it also. She wasn't too sure after he sprayed water on her. It was cute to see her do a wai to the monk. I felt a bit uncomfortable taking a picture, I've read that you should ask permission to take their pictures, but it is inappropriate for women to talk to monks. I also thought it was a bit sacred for the Thai people, so I took a picture after the blessing.

We fed the fish with the pigeons catching the crumbs. As we walked to the dock, we were surrounded by children asking for 5 or 10 Bahts (form of currency). An old lady offered her bowl to Ms A hoping for a donation, but Ms. A thought she was giving her the bowl, so she took it. We gave the bowl back and left.

Wat Arun

On April 26th we visited the west side of the Chao Phraya River. Our first stop was Wat Arun or the Temple of the Dawn. When we entered, I was amazed at the porcelain and ceramic on the buildings. Rama III expanded the wat during his reign. He requested that the local people donate ceramic shards to use in the expansion. There are also little porcelain plates on the exterior. The wat is 282 feet tall. The central prang. has three sets of stairs that get progressively thinner and higher. We walked up two sets of stairs, Reed and Ms A went up the third one, I was a bit unsure about being up so high!

The grounds also have a chapel where the Buddha resides and a set of bells are to the right of the chapel. Ms. A had a wonderful time ringing the different bells and hearing the different tones.

Wat Po

After the Grand Palace, we visited Wat Po, a temple with the second largest reclining Buddha in Thailand. The Buddha is 151 feet long and 53 feet high. His feet are inlaid with mother of pearl telling of the 108 laksanas (characteristics) of Buddha. The donation bowls also represent laksanas of Buddha. Visitors can drop coins in the bowls for luck.

It was raining a bit and Ms. A had a wonderful time splashing in the puddles and checking out the fish and turtles. There were several other buildings within the complex, with a few other Buddhas. We had an enjoyable time looking at the architecture.

Wat Po was the birthplace of the Thai massage. Reed was excited to experience THREE of those wonderful massages. He said the next morning that he had the best night sleep since we moved to Penang.

Waterways of Bangkok

Bangkok was built along the Chao Phraya River. It means River of Kings. We rode the Chao Phraya Express Boat to see most of the sites. Our first ride was on the tourist line which had a guide who told us various things along the river. It was quite convenient having the boats to shuttle us to the sites. After we arrived at the dock, we would walk, ride a tuk-tuk, or catch a taxi to our destination. We could have hired a longtail boat, but decided against it, they are hired for blocks of time and usually take people into the inner canals, which we were not interested in doing.

Ms. A loved the boats. We had a great time.

Grand Palace

For our first full day in Thailand, we visited the Grand Palace. We walked to the ferry dock and caught the water taxi that took us to the correct dock. The Palace was amazing. It was built by Rama I and others kings added to the complex. The area also is home to the Wat Phra Kaew or Temple of the Emerald Buddha.

We toured the grounds and had a wonderful time. The buildings were breath-taking. After touring the Wat, we walked over to the other portion of the grounds. It was interesting to see the influenced of the Italian Renaissance on the buildings combined with the Thai roof design. Here is some more information about the various temples.

Ms. A had a wonderful time splashing in the puddles (it rained while we were there and felt like home only hotter).

Also for a bit of definition:
Chakri = The Dynasty of the most recent kings of Thailand
Rama IV = King Mongkut depicted in The King and I
Wat = Temple
Wat Phra Kaew = Temple of the Emerald Buddha
Chedi = A mound-like structure containing Buddhist Relics= Typically, the remains of a Buddha or saint.

Elephant Dance

We arrived safely back from Thailand this afternoon.
I will post pictures and movies once they are organized (416 pictures and 21 movies), but I couldn't resist sharing this movie from the Dusit Zoo in Bangkok.


We found out that the elephant rides were further north than we wanted to go. So I was pretty excited to see these Asiatic Elephants at the zoo. They even 'danced' to the African music nearby. I was even more tickled when Ms. A joined in the dance. Reed and I think that the elephants may have been rescued from a show or circus because the dancing didn't seem typical.