Bangkok Day 2

Wow. It's only 4:30 and I'm exhausted.

We woke up early this morning for a tour included with our trip package.  The hotel had a fairly good breakfast buffet, and then we got in a minivan with quite a few other people and headed on a tour around town.  We got bits and pieces, but the guide was difficult to understand and we were both tired.  We did get to go to the temple Gabe wanted to see - Wat Arun - which was very impressive.  The view from the top was both amazing and terrifying... each step on the staircases was about a foot and a half tall by six inches deep.

We then took the ferry back across the river and got to go see a gem store! The same one we had been taken to yesterday! It was about as interesting the second time around... But we talked with our tour guide and will be going to the floating market on Wednesday before we leave.  It's another tour she organizes.

After the gem store, we went back to the Grand Palace and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha.  It was really pretty.  The amount of work that must have gone into constructing the temples is ridiculous.  Everything was covered in gold and gemstones and just astounding.  Hopefully the pictures will do it justice.  (They'll be uploaded when we get back to Singapore.) The whole place was interesting but hot.

We had to rent clothing to be properly covered for most of the buildings... Gabe had long pants and I got a floor-length wrap skirt.  It was hot, but it was funny to see everyone in all these strange clothes... Nearly everyone had stuff.  The clothing was free, you just had to put down a deposit. 

By the time we were done, we were starving. There were some street food stands opposite the Grand Palace, so we headed over and I got some fried rice and Gabe had pad thai.  Both were delicious.  I also got a giant swirly potato chip. It's a potato spiral cut into a spring shape and then fried. It was amazing, though hard to eat. 

Now, we're back at the hotel for a bit. We got a bag of pineapple to share (very tasty) and checked up on the interwebs.  Soon, we'll head back to the tailor for fitting, and then we're going to see if our tuk-tuk driver can recommend a club. Hopefully tonight will be equally interesting.

ดีตอนเช้า
Dī txn chêā
(Good morning)