Saturday, May 1, 2010

Bangkok, May 1, 2010




I arrived in Chiang Rai on Tuesday morning, and had good meetings with Nancy and some new friends she introduced me to. Then on Thursday morning I left on a 12-hour bus trip to Bangkok.

I had noodles for breakfast in my room, and on the bus, I had a meal ticket at a buffet along the way. You guessed it - noodle soup with pork was the thing of the day. I enjoyed it.

Arriving in Bangkok at 8:30 at night, I was glad I made reservations at "Your Place Guesthouse." near the train station. I like it there because I can tell a cab driver - HUALAMPHRONG and he is supposed to know how to get to the train station. I then just walk to the guesthouse.

This cab driver acted like he knew , but as the trip progressed he started asking more and more people for directions, and even called someone on the phone, and I said to that person, 'Hualamphrong', the train station, and handed it back to my driver.

I understand my pronunciation was probably bad -- but how many things a foreigner with a backpack, at a bus station - says that sounds like Hualamphrong!

Anyway - we got here, and I bought the deluxe package! AC, hot water, attached bath, with WI FI! The works, Cost $20.00, but it is nice -------!

Bangkok is having real trouble - riots and demonstrations - somewhere near where I am. But I have seen none of it , nor any signs of trouble. The police came on our bus coming down here , checking every ones I.D.s, and really questioning young men that looked to be from the countryside. That is who is causing the trouble, the rural folks.

A few pictures. two are houses, one is a canal in Bangkok - there are many, one is on the river - it goes through the city, and one is of the Gold Buddha.

Now the gold Buddha is interesting. Up until 1957 it was just another Buddha, in another temple here in Bangkok. In 1957, they were renovating the temple, and had to move the Buddha while they worked on the Temple. It was a stucco statue - and they were lifting it very carefully
with a large crane, .... and suddenly the crane cable or something broke, the the Buddha crashed to the pavement!

The stucco shattered, but the statue remained. It turned out to be made of 5-1/2 tonnes of solid pure gold!!! The Gold Buddha! It is now ranked as the most valuable historic and religious artifact in the world!!

And no one knew it - til they almost broke it in 1957!! I think that is a cool story!

And with that -- I close this trip. Heading to Moultrie tomorrow.
Enjoyed it - hope you did.
Johnny Ray
May 1, 2010, Bangkok, Thailand

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