Last Days
So it's been a couple weeks since I got back from Thailand and I've really been procrastinating writing this. Anyway, here's my thoughts on my final days in Bangkok.
The day after Ayutthaya, Tara and I went to the Erawan Museum. It was really far away from where they live, but that's because the traffic was awful that day. Neither of us had been there before, so it was an adventure to walk around there and see what we wanted to.
We were both a bit confused when we got there because it wasn't a museum like we're used to. It was really more of a bunch of shrines to different gods, hopes, and figures. We didn't know that going in, so we dressed in shorts, instead of pants. Normally, that wouldn't be a problem, except that when visiting a temple or sacred site you're supposed to have your legs and shoulders covered. So we had to use skirts that they provided to cover ourselves in order to enter the shrine areas.
The thing the Erawan Museum is most well-known for is the three-headed elephant statue. It's a giant structure on top of a tall building that itself is a shrine. We were able to go into the building and admire the beautiful artwork and architecture inside. There were four pillars in there, each dedicated to a different religion. There was a Christian pillar, - depicting the life of Jesus - a Hindu pillar, a Buddhist pillar, and another one which I forgot and no amount of googling will help with. We walked up into the three-headed elephant then, which housed many different ancient Buddha statues. I appreciated that there were plaques near each which told where they were from and how old they were. Unfortunately we weren't allowed to take pictures of the statues, but they were beautiful.
The day after Ayutthaya, Tara and I went to the Erawan Museum. It was really far away from where they live, but that's because the traffic was awful that day. Neither of us had been there before, so it was an adventure to walk around there and see what we wanted to.
We were both a bit confused when we got there because it wasn't a museum like we're used to. It was really more of a bunch of shrines to different gods, hopes, and figures. We didn't know that going in, so we dressed in shorts, instead of pants. Normally, that wouldn't be a problem, except that when visiting a temple or sacred site you're supposed to have your legs and shoulders covered. So we had to use skirts that they provided to cover ourselves in order to enter the shrine areas.
The thing the Erawan Museum is most well-known for is the three-headed elephant statue. It's a giant structure on top of a tall building that itself is a shrine. We were able to go into the building and admire the beautiful artwork and architecture inside. There were four pillars in there, each dedicated to a different religion. There was a Christian pillar, - depicting the life of Jesus - a Hindu pillar, a Buddhist pillar, and another one which I forgot and no amount of googling will help with. We walked up into the three-headed elephant then, which housed many different ancient Buddha statues. I appreciated that there were plaques near each which told where they were from and how old they were. Unfortunately we weren't allowed to take pictures of the statues, but they were beautiful.
View from in the elephant.
Inside the three-headed elephant. The old Buddha statues lined the sides of the room.
After we left the Erawan Museum we had lunch and then went back to the house. That night, Carson was in a school-sponsored production of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, where he played Mike TeeVee's dad. It was really funny and adorable.
The next day, Friday, Tara and I ventured to the Jim Thompson House. Jim Thompson was an American who was stationed in Thailand after the Second World War and decided to stay and make his home there. He helped revive the Thai silk industry and carried on the traditional modes of making the fabric. He bought a bunch of Thai-style houses from Ayutthaya province and set them up in Bangkok to live in. He had many antiques stored there, which you can now view inside the house. This was another place that Tara had never been, but we decided we liked it more than the Erawan Museum because there was a mandatory guided tour because you aren't allowed in the house without a guide. Because of the antiques, we weren't allowed to take pictures inside the house either. The crazy thing about Jim Thompson is that in 1967 he took a trip to Malaysia and decided to go out for a walk in the Cameron Highlands and disappeared without a trace.
After that, we went to a little gift shop in a nearby hotel where I bought a recreation of a French map of ancient Siam. I hope to hang it in my classroom one day. Then we took the BTS (Bangkok Mass Transit System) Skytrain to a mall. This mall was unlike anything I'd ever seen. I had been to a mall near the house with Jeremy on Tuesday, but this place was crazy. Both places were huge, like over 5 floors of shops and just packed with people. Jeremy had told me that there are only two companies who own malls in Thailand, and there are malls everywhere, so they must be rolling in the dough. It struck me that a lot of malls in the US are going out of business due to competition from online shopping, but here they were still a booming business.
Central is one of the groups who owns malls, and I believe both of the ones I went to were operated by them. The one I went to with Tara, though, was themed. It was sort of supposed to be like an airport, I guess. Each floor was named after a different world city and the walls were decorated with famous landmarks and imagery to mimic that part of the world. Each floor played different music, although it didn't match up as well with the theme. I bought a lot of unnecessary things, but that's okay.
My last day there was Saturday, although I technically left at 12:30 Sunday morning. We spent the day going to another mall, which had a floor that sold a lot of tourist-y things so I could pick up any last minute gifts and other knick-knacks. It was pretty cool there. I did a little bargaining - I got the price down 50 baht, which is like a dollar, but still. I got a knock-off backpack and a couple t-shirts and souvenirs and then we went back so I could pack up my stuff. Don't tell my mom because she'll be jealous, but we got another at home massage that day too ;). That night, Jeremy dropped me off at the airport and I headed back home. (I also got to spend nine hours in the Tokyo airport which was super fun and not boring at all - note the sarcasm.)
All in all, my trip to Thailand was soooo amazing and such a wonderful experience. I wish I could go back tomorrow, honestly. Thanks again to Jeremy and Tara for letting me stay with them and giving me this incredible opportunity!
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