A right royal cover up!

We had decided to give the convention a miss on Monday morning, and take a trip by Tuk Tuk to see the Golden Buddha and the Grand Palace. Most Thais are Buddhist, a religion I don't really understand and must find out about, and there are many temples here and throughout Thailand. This one is one of the most famous, in a courtyard of Thai buildings, very well kept and of course teeming with Tourists and worshippers.

The temple itself was very impressive, built on three levels - it is the top level that contains the Buddha, an statue that is some 15 feet high, and over 700 years old. Made of pure gold, it weighs over 5 tons, and is worth some £30 million, and is the largest golden budda in the world.

As is the way in all tourist traps, there are many vendors about, and I take great pleasure in bargaining with one of them for a postcard pack for which she was asking 130 baht, (about £2-60) I offered 20, (40p) and after walking away a couple of times she sold it to me for that price. She was happy, she had made a profit, and I was, it was quite cheap by western prices.

So on to the Grand Palace, an impressive complex of royal residences and temples, surrounded by high walls, about 2000 yards square.

The Grand Palace was built in 1782, at a time when the country was rich and powerful, and contains many monuments including a depository for Buddist sacred scriptures inscribed on palm leaves, and a Royal pantheon which contains statues of past monarchs.

The King here is revered almost as a god, pictures of him are on almost every street, and talking to the people tells us that he is greatly loved.

The surrounding walls are covered with murals telling the story of the kingdom of Siam since well before Christ. However because of the number of tourists here  it is almost impossible to get a good picture- so you'll have to make do with the one below!

We were unable to take a photo of the Emerald Buddha, one of the highlights of the palace, as the guards in the Royal Monastery were watching carefully to make sure that we obeyed the rules, which included sitting in a way the one's toes did not point at the Buddha.
This is one of the most venerated sites in Thailand, people flock from all over to pray here.The Buddha is raised on a golden throne, and is clad in a costume that is changed three times a year according to the seasons. The changeover is presided over by the King himself.
The Buddha is carved from Jade and was discovered in 1434 in Chiang Rai, in the north of the country. On the walls of the chamber are murals depicting selected events from Buddha's life.

Thailand has many attractions of great antiquity, which are very well preserved and displayed. As we travel through the city and on the rivers we can see many of them, both ancient and some quite modern, but all beautifully kept. However, some of the other sights are a little less attractive, including how Rotarians on holiday dress when they are forced to cover up to in Royal Palaces! The things one sees when one hasn't got one's gun..........