Beautiful entrance of the royal grand palace
Tinkling golden bells
Bees and lotus
 
A typical temple custom
The most sacred emerald Buddha
Palace building with Ramakien story paintings
Reflection of superb architecture
 
Opening in front of the Chakri Maha Prasat Hall
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I continue by foor along the outer wall of the royal palace, caught up by a Thai who surprises me again by speaking Thai to me. I quickly think it's just a technique seeing the speed at which he tries to get me to go here or there. When he stops to point out a direction, I keep on walking while remaining polite. 400 meters later, I turn at the corner and think I should have asked my way perhaps, but it doesn't matter. At an entrance, the guard tells me the temple is closed until 1:30pm because of a ceremony. I don't even ask yself if I believe him or not as he quickly follows up on an exactly similar series of questions as the guard in the morning. Without hesitating, I walk to the next entrance where I enter with the other tourists... The royal palace's entrance is specatcular: a big green lawn opens up a view on a series of temples pointed towards the sky in an explosion of light and color. I find my way to the the first of the palace, which is made up of several sections, built under the reign of the succesive kings of the Chakri dynasty, of which Rama IX is the heir and current king of Thailand. This is where the emerald Buddha is kept - a jade statue which is the most revered icon of the country. The king changes its rich golden outfit three times a year, depending on the seasons (cool, dry and humid). The atmosphere inside is quiet and respectful - one can hardly see the small statue. A Thai woman invites her western boyfriend to lean three times towards the floor with his hands in a prayer gesture - he half-heartedly does so, hesitating between skepticism and amusement. Outside, the wind has a cooling effect and blows some golden leaves against bells hanging from the roof, creating a lovely sound in this calm place. Small bees are active on water lilies decorating the sides of staircase - a countryside scene almost. The next big part of the palace is where the king is crowned. Further away, another big building is imposing, and hosts a weapons museum, typical of palaces. I quickly walk by, perhaps too used to seeing these military demonstrations. In the last part of the palace, I finally visit the Dusit Maha Prasat Hall, the oldes one of the site, built by order of Rama I in 1782 when he transferred the capital from the other side of the river. Although full of history, these massive constructions do not inspire me, and I move on to the collection of coins and royal treasures, quite well presented.
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Bangkok 