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Bangkok, Thailand

September 27 & 28, 2007 - Joan & Lena have been visiting and we headed to Thailand to see Grandpa Bob (Joan's Dad) who has been living in Bangkok for the past 10 years. 

The Suvarnabhumi Airport Bangkok's new airport	Gotta have a sign	Bangkok Skyline Can you see the JW Marriott hotel? That's where we stayed.
Traffic...what do you notice? There is a lot of traffic, but they all stay WITHIN THE LINES! What a concept!	Kids in the lobby	Fam in the lobby Waiting for Gr. Bob
Near the hotel We were surprised at how "clean" Bangkok was compared to Delhi. I'm sure many people would argue against that, but then you've never been to Delhi. :)	Up to the skytrain This was so clean and modern. It made the DC Metro look ancient and filthy.	Buying skytrain tickets
Dave & Gr. Bob	Fam at the River	Gr. Bob, Dave & Joan
Sinking boat? This boat was pulling 3 large freighters at the same time. It looks like it was a bit much.	House on the water	Also exhausted We had a red eye flight and paid for it all day.
Buffet dinner at the hotel The cute Thai girls are Gr. Bob's caddies	Colorful cabs Day 2 -- heading out to see some sights	Scary guard... at the Grand Palace complex
3 spires	Ange & Lena	Another temple shot
Beautiful manicured garden	A blue temple The detail work is amazing. It was shocking to see so much gold everywhere. There was very little gold left in Indian architecture after the British left--just a sad fact of life.	D on guard
More gold...	Opposites	Ornate spire
Feast for the eyes It was incredible to see all the detail. It soon became overwhelming.		Fam at a Temple
The Emerald Buddha It's actually jade. When it was discovered again, it was covered in plaster and a piece chipped off his nose revealing the green, which they thought was emerald. He has three "outfits" that the King of Thailand changes with the seasons: rainy, hot & cold.	Green mosaic temple	Wall mural This amazing mural circled the entire perimeter. They had artisans touching up the gold paint in several sections. It was quite beautiful.
Mom & Z ...not taller than me... yet!	Fam at the Grand Palace The King resided here up until a few years ago, we couldn't actually go in it, but they had a really cool weapons display to the side of the steps.	Closer
Tree trimming I love the gardens here!	A Royal Guard Impressive, but he'd react more than the famed British guards	Lying in state... This is where the Kings and other dignitaires "lie in state" after their passing. Also, where the coronations take place.
Z loves coconut!	Lena on guard	Head of Reclining Buddha
Dave & Ange... and Buddha	A face shot...	From the head It is 151 feet long and 49 feet tall.
From the feet	The feet are inlayed with Mother of Pearl depicting 108 auspicious characters from India and China	Prayer buckets? Not quite sure what the reason behind this is, but there was a little bowl of coins that you could drop in each kettle...we decided it was either for prayer or to give away your sins. There was one coin for each bucket--exactly.
Look at the frog	A roof at Wat Pho If you speak English you'd say "what foh?" Which we totally got a kick out of saying until the cabbie corrected us saying "Wat Po". I like our way better!