The day we visited the Grand Palace in Bangkok, we woke up at 6:30 am so that we could catch the 7:30 ferry. It was already very warm when we went outside. The ferry ride was only about 10 minutes. There were a lot of locals using it to go to work. This was the morning we were caught in the middle of the crosswalk when the national anthem came on at 8:00. I knew everyone was supposed to stand still, but I didn’t expect the cars to stop as well, so we quickly finished crossing. The song stopped shortly thereafter.

We are almost never early for anything but somehow that day we were the first in line although there were a few other people lingering near the entrance before we arrived. They started letting people in at 8:30. After we got our tickets (500 Baht / USD $15.59 per person), we went straight to the Emerald Buddha Temple (Wat Phra Kaew); no photos allowed inside the temple. Although the ticket is for the temple compound and the Grand Palace compound, once a visitor steps into the palace compound, he/she cannot turn around and return to the temples. The morning had been cloudy and the photos didn’t turn out as nicely as I had hoped. So we waited for about twenty minutes before crossing over to the Palace Compound hoping the sun would come out.

Thousands of Tourists

There were thousands and thousands of tourists, most of them from China. I heard a Chinese lady asking the local tour guide in Mandarin if he really has three wives. He said yes, and that the law in Thailand allows that. All three wives have child/children now and it is not fun anymore, but it was very fun when he was younger. He repeated that multiple times. So, if you’re thinking of having multiple wives in Thailand or somewhere else, know that I take no responsibility if polygamy turns out to be illegal in Thailand. Better yet, learn from that fool; it’s not fun later on.

The only building in the palace compound we were allowed to enter was a museum. Later, we realized we were the last people allowed entry. Don’t know why they would open the museum for only about 1.5 hours and then close it. The young man who was waiting for us to leave practiced his English by reading the English text on the wall posters.

King Rama IX Museum

The current king is King Rama X (Roman numeral ten). The museum is largely devoted to his father, King Rama IX (King Bhumibol Adulyadej), a very beloved monarch. Based on what I’ve read, the love, loyalty and, reverence his people devote to him are well-deserved. Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the U.S., and educated in Switzerland, King Rama IX is the longest-serving monarch of Thailand – 70 years. He passed away in October, 2016, and the country observed a one-year mourning period.

This link to the Bangkok Post has many pictures of this beloved king. www.bangkokpost.com/nation-in-mourning/

Map of Places Visited