The afternoon of our last day, we visit The Grand Palace and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha.
Wat Phra Kaew —The Temple of the Emerald Buddha was consecrated to house the Emerald Buddha by King Rama I in 1782 when Bangkok was founded. The Emerald Buddha is a relatively small Buddha carved from a single piece of jade. At one time it sat in a temple in Chiang Rai, but was seized during conflict in the 16th century and taken to Vientiane in Laos. In the 18th century, when the capital of Siam was relocating to the Bangkok area, the Thai army marched on Vientiane, sacked it, and returned the Emerald Buddha to Thonburi. The general who lead that conquest and later became Rama I, moved the capital across the river to Bangkok and built the Wat Phra Kaew to house the re-patriated Buddha.
The Emerald Buddha is clothed in robes that vary with Bangkok’s 3 seasons – cool, rainy, and hot (or as the Thais say: hot, hotter, and fuckin’ hot). The King returns to Thailand to preside over the ceremony for the changing of the robe at the beginning of each season. Photography is not allowed inside the temple, so you will have to imagine a grand, golden interior with large gilded Buddhas and other statues, all rising high up at the back end of the temple and culminating in a golden platform on which sits a surprisingly small Buddha which would be gold except for the robe covering it.
The area around the Temple three large “chedi” (stupas) of different styles that commemorate various events. Statues of ogres and other creatures from Hindu mythology adorn the terrace around the chedi.
Murals of the Ramakian – On the inside of the wall around the inner temple compound is a magnificent mural with 178 panels painted in the time of Rama I that tells the Thai version of the Ramayana – the Hindu epic that tells the story of Rama’s efforts to recruit an army of monkeys and recover his wife, Sita, who had been kidnapped by a kingdom of mythical ogres. The mural has recently been restored to all of its gilded glory.
The Grand Palace — Chakri Mahapasat – “The Grand Palace” – was built 100 years later (1882) next to the inner temple compound on the extended palace grounds, all of which were enclosed with a massive white-painted wall. The Grand Palace was built in a European style but capped with a roof that mirrors Thai architecture. The Palace is guarded by a small detachment of ceremonial military guards, who conduct a pageantry of changing the guards on a regular schedule. The interior of the Palace is closed to the public.
The Grand Palace is no longer the home of the Thai royalty. A new palace was built outside of the downtown area. State ceremonies (e.g., the elaborate funeral for King Rama IX) are still held at the Grand Palace, but when the royal family is not at its home in Munich, Germany, it resides in the new palace.
