One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster. The bars are temples but the pearls ain't free

(This is a picture I took in 2004 of the Emerald Buddha.  It is also the first photo I've ever put on my blog!  Yeah me!)

The Grand Palace and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha will probably be the first tourist destination we visit in Bangkok. That will be early morning Saturday, less than 12 hours after we land. I don’t know if my nephew is going to be coherent enough to enjoy it after 29 hours of traveling, but he will be there!

The Grand Palace in Bangkok was built starting in 1782, and was the official residency of the Kings of Thailand from that time until the middle of the 20th century. It is a sprawling complex of beautiful buildings, temples, offices and gardens. It also contains the Temple to the Emerald Buddha, the most important icon in Thai Buddhism.

The Emerald Buddha is actually a small Buddha statue made of jade. Legend has it that it is either a 1,000 years old and came from India, or it is 500 years old and was found following a plaster Buddha being struck by lightning and the Emerald Buddha was under it. Either way, it is a beautiful, small, green statue of the Buddha that is the centerpiece of Wat Phrakaew (“Wat” means “Temple” in Thai.)

We have to also take off our shoes to go into the temples. I remember what looked like hundreds of pairs of sandals on the steps leading into the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. And how these would have been stolen had it been in the west. But in Buddhist Thailand, it is the norm to leave your shoes/sandals in front of the temple and not expect them to be stolen.

I wouldn’t do the same thing with my iPod or digital camera, of course. I ain’t crazy!

The art work on the outside and the inside of the complex is phenomenal, and is quintessential Thai in it’s intricacy, color and detail. I hope I can put up a picture here that will show the beauty.

One of my favorite places that I went to in Bangkok was this small garden off to the side of all the busyness of the palace and temple. It was quiet, it was beautiful and it was reflective. And I am looking forward to sitting in the middle of this garden and reflecting on having my nephew with me. And my good friend Eltee.

Here is a link to the Grand Palace and Temple of the Emerald Buddha: Grand Palace and the Temple os the Emerald Buddha