Bangkok: Dusit Zoo and Snake Farm

Dusit Zoo

We both love wildlife, and as we travel it is becoming clear that its our main interest in all the places we visit. The Lonely Planet guide book didn't rate the Bangkok zoo very well, but we went anyway, and it was actually quite good.



Not 100% sure what this is, maybe a mega-guinea pig? Whatever it is, it is the size of a meduim dog and very cute - according to Princess!



The ever-regal tiger. We both love the big kitties, wish we could give them pats and cuddles... Dusit Zoo had lots of tigers, lions and other big cats.



This is a black leopard. Though not visible in the small picture, he still has leopard spots faintly visible in his coat.



I think these are iguanas. There are so many reptiles over here its hard to know, and I didn't take a photo with the label - duh! The zoo had all sorts of other animals - Parrots, macaques, monkeys, orang-utans, zebras, turtles, pandas.

We also met another GIBBON! He was also very cute, but behind bars so we couldn't play with him. He did reach his little hand out between the bars to hold hands though which was very sweet. Gibbons really seem to like contact with humans. That's lucky because we like contact with them too!

We had a fun day wandering around looking at all the animals we had never seen before. Every Zoo we have visited is a little different, so it's interesting to compare them. Singapore Zoo is still number 1 though!

SNAKE FARM

We also visited a snake farm, run by the red cross society. These people know and love snakes, and it is a professional and humane site. As explained to us, they have 2 purposes: to collect venom to make the anti-venom needed all over the country, and EDUCATION.



They have all the varieties of snake found in Thailand, including these Burmese Pythons.



In the open-air cages, the enclosures are like little igloos for the snakes.



This organisation collects venom by milking snakes. Their head is held as in the picture, and their gland (behind their ear) is milked - the venom comes out of their 2 teeth, like a syringe!

Before the live show, we sat through a slide show talking about snakes, showing how horses are used to produce anti-venom. The horses are infected, and their immune system makes the antibodies, which are then separated out of the blood. We assume/hope that the horses are not actually affected by the venom!



As the snakes don't get to kill much (no venom) they are force fed to keep them alive. They won't eat food that isn't moving, so the handlers actually stuff them with food! This snake got several large portions of chicken stuffed into his mouth with long tweezers. We were amazed at the volume he had without even
exploding!



Here is our second go at snake handling, and we felt much more comfortable this time. The people definitely knew what they were doing, and the building behind us has all the anti-venom we could need, should something go wrong...

Bangkok: Phallus Shrine

OK, no snickering in the cheap seats! We went and visited Bangkoks phallus shrine, known as Chao Mae Tuptim. (Goddess Tuptim Shrine)

It is hidden away in the back corner of the Bangkok Hilton (the actual one, not the prison!) down through the hotel's parking area past the hotel's workshop. It took us ages to find, as our guide book didn't mention how well obscured it is.

After embarrassingly trying to convey what we were looking for, we finally found a security guard who could point us the right way.



As you can see, there are carvings of all shapes and sizes.



Legend has it that women who pray here in an effort to become fertile for pregnancy may get help. They are to return if their wish is fulfilled, and place yet another phallus at the shrine in thanks.



This is the main shrine, with all the carvings around it, and littering the path on the way in. The shrine is still in use - it had a flame still going, and offerings of food, money and incense on its altar.



An interesting excursion for an afternoon in Bangkok!

Bangkok: Ancient City aka Murang Boran

One of Bangkoks' under-rated tourist attractions is Ancient City. We took a local bus out to the edge of Bangkok, then swapped on to a taxi-ute. As we didn't really know where we were, the locals on the bus were kind enough to look out for the signs for us. At the appropriate point on the size of a huge dusty highway, we were dropped off and waved to go across a big bridge to find the entrance.

Which we did. Easy to find, no problems! We wandered in and picked up a tandem push bike to see the park. Now what is this park, you might ask? Well its a park that is in the geographical shape of Thailand, and in the correct locations, are mini replicas of Thailand's temples and shrines and the like.



Unfortunately, we haven't seen many of these in the flesh, so comparisons can't be made. But these are still beautiful structures, and most are large enough to walk around in! Notice anything odd in this picture above...?



The kitty faction of the legion of stray animals finds comfortable and warm spots...



Here you can see Toolman looking around. Shoes off, as per Thai ettiquite. The insides were as ornate as the outside, with full Buddha statues and meditation mats in front.



The intricacy of the finishings is amazing, even in this supposedly "small scale" replica. I doubt the full size one could be any more intricate! This one above was set on a lake with lily leafs floating, making it look even more grand.



We wonder what the full size version of this was like, as this is an entire island, with a Wat you can walk inside, and a eel/snake/shark thing wrapped all the way around. It had satellite islands with other animals - I'm unsure of the exact symbolism, but it was impressive anyway.



Heres' Toolman seeking counsel from a group of sage-looking fellows..



Again, we were staggered by this apparently scale model. This seemed as big as a regular Wat, so the real item must be big. Again, the intricacy is amazing.



Unfortunately, we don't know the names of most of these structures. The park is quite large, and would take all day to walk around (and tire you out no doubt), but cycling was pretty gentle. Lucky, because its so hot!



Another beautiful, but unnamed, Wat.





This is a wax model of a structure. It was so large, that we didn't believe it could have a full scale counterpart until we saw the pictures. Wow!

Toolman found a model that was set on a hill and wanted to climb it - Madeline wanted a rest so Toolman braved it on is own up the stairs...



Up the stairs were about 5 levels of courtyard, this being the top one.



As you looked out from the top, you could see all around including Bangkok in the distance. Well worth the walk!



This was an impressive statue, laced with symbolism (that was lost on us...), but cool none-the-less.



And a Buddha tower...



This was a great way to look at Thai styles, as there were at least 100 models of the various monuments. The most obvious feature is the pointy, almost koru-like, edges of roofs etc. Really enjoyed it.

Having looked around all day, we headed back to the highway, to try and flag down a taxi-ute for a lift back to the bus. No problems... but where do we get off? The bus had stopped at some random road and we didn't think to try and remember where it was. We had to guess the distance, get off and wander around looking sheepish until someone spoke enough english to point us to the the right bus stop. Thankfully, a guy working at a 7-11 (thats a Dairy for you kiwis...) got us back on track, and we headed back to Bangkok right for rush hour. A slow ride! But at least we made it there and back within our budget.

Bangkok: Wats

Thailand has its fair share of Wats (temples) and Bangkok's ones are impressively ornate. We spent time checking out all of the main ones. There are quite a few rules or customs that have to be followed when visiting a Wat.

Firstly, you must be dressed appropriately. This means no shorts or short sleeved shirts. In some places you could even hire 'cover up' clothing which was quite handy for those a little skimpily dressed.

Secondly you must always take your shoes off before entering a Wat. This reminded us a lot of Maori culture where you have to take your shoes off before entering a Marae.

Thirdly when sitting in front of statues of Buddha you should not have your feet pointed towards him as this is a sign of disrespect. Feet are considered the lowest and dirtiest point of the body which makes sense as they are! You are also not meant to take photos of people with Buddha as a backdrop.

We were happy to follow all of the above to show the upmost respect to Buddha at all times. Most other Farangs seemed happy to follow these customs as well which was good, although a few blindly wandered round in singlets and shorts.

The two shots below were taken at Wat Traimit.



This is the home of the Golden Buddha. He is 3m tall and is a 5.5 solid gold image. He was quite incredible and gleamed amazingly!



Wat Pho is the largest and oldest Wat in Bangkok. It hosts the largest collection of Buddha images in Thailand. It is also home to the Reclining Buddha (see below). He is 46m long and 15m high. For this reason it was very difficult to get a picture that shows all of him! He has the most amazing feet which are elaborately decorated in Mother-of-pearl.



We also visited Wat Phra Kaew which is on the same grounds as the Grand Palace (where the Royal Family of Thailand reside). This Wat is home to the Emerald Buddha, who was a favorite for Princess. He has 3 different gold costumes which are changed by the King according to the season, and is not actually made of Emerald, but jade or jasper quartz. The clothes must clip on.



He first appeared on record in 15th century Chiang Mai, so he is pretty old! There have been a few raids and thefts of the Jade Buddha between the Thai, Laos, Burmese etc. so he has quite a history and resided all over the place.. Photos were not allowed, so this is a stock photo we found on the internet.



The Wat was so elaborately decorated. The work that must go into maintaining these Wats must be HUGE. There seemed to be workers everywhere, fixing up bits and pieces, sweeping the grounds etc. It is obviously very important to them to keep these buildings looking magnificent.



Pictured below is a detailed shot of the above Wat. Aren't the colours and stying beautiful!



The buildings are like something out of a fantasy world. This was a golden Chedi (bell-shaped statue) that stood outside Wat Phra Kaew.



These are often walked around (clockwise) to ward off evil, and to praise Buddha. Symmetry is big in the design of these kind of things.



It's good to be the King! Pictured above is The Grand Palace. The King and his family live here for the majority of the year. Security was fairly strict around the building with lots of armed (AK47 type armed!) guards around. The Palace was also surrounded by the most amazing sculptured trees.



We decided to save Wat Arun (also known as The Temple of Dawn) until last. This was the Wat that we both found the most spectacular. The central Prang (or tower) is covered in a mosaic of broken, multi-hued Chinese porcelain. Apparently this is quite a common type of temple ornamentation.



In the photo below you can see a ladder which a bold Monk has climb, possibly to ring the bells that were up there, and to dress the Buddha statues. A very scary climb, anyway. Check out the strong statues who look like they are holding the temple up!

The most exciting thing about this Prang is that you could climb it. It was a rather scary climb with the most steep stairs you could possibly imagine. Princess made the mistake of wearing a skirt which blew up constantly so the whole of Bangkok has probably seen her knickers!



Wat Saket was the other Wat we decided we must visit, even though we were feeling slightly wat-ed out by this stage. It is an artificial hill, known as Golden Mount, that has a beautiful Chedi (bell) on the top. The photo below shows the Wat in miniture.



The site was going to have a different Chedi on top, but the artificial hill gave way part way thru construction During King Rama III. The hill was left till till King Rama IV decided to fix up the ruins and build this Wat with Chedi.



Here's the real thing. a spectacular golden sight. Its actually lots of little gold tiles, like a huge golden disco-ball... sort of.



The views of Bangkok were stunning from up here. You could truly see what an amazingly huge city Bangkok really is. But yes, there was a lot of stair climbing involved to reach the top!

If you look at the model above, you can see the staircase we are descending. Visiting all these Wats was an amazing experience. The intricacy, devotion and sheer man-power put in is mind-boggling. It is wonderful to visit buildings that are so old, and have so much history - we don't have this scale of history back in NZ. (160 years, then its all Maori, or offshore...)

Bangkok: Aquarium

In the basement of the flashiest mall in Bangkok, the Paragon Shopping Center, there is a full size aquarium! There must have been some serious planning, as the aquarium was very large and well kept.



This is Toolman next to a giant crab. The tank was cylindrical, and the crabs are big. There were lots of small tanks on the way in, will all manner of tropical fish, small crabs, seahorses etc. as well as a few large tanks like this. You could walk 360 degrees around this one!




For some reason, they had a display with fishtanks made out of improbable items. Example 1: a Chrysler. Yep look closely and ...






..its full of fish! There were also microwaves, fridges and other whiteware. Like always, if you click on any pic you can go to the complete set of pictures and see all the photos!




Who is that bubbling up from the bottom of the fish tank?




The aquarium also has a huuge tank full of coral, fish and sharks. We took a glass bottom boat ride over the top, and walked around the outside also.




This picture doesn't really convey the enormity of the tank, but it is big! We watched divers jump in and feed the sharks thru this window. The sharks are smaller then the divers, so they are considered threats instead of dinner...



The divers had microphones, so the (external) MC was chatting with the divers realtime - kinda weird, but cool.






There was also a display on jellyfish. The above picture was really cool looking - the jellyfish have lights and a projector running behind, giving a psychedelic look as these live jellys float about.

All in all it was a pretty impressive place. Its location was random, but that's one of the great things about Asia, things are so different!

Timely update - Thailand

So, as you have probably noticed, the blogging is lagging behind our adventures a bit. We are working on the blog for our adventures thru Thailand, but just so you know,we are about 35 days into our Thailand adventure. We have both celebrated our birthdays recently, and are currently in Bangkok checking it out. Stay tuned for details.

So you all know, our loose plan as at 20070908 is:

Mid-September: head to Northen Thailand (aka Chang Mai)
25 Sepember: Cross into Laos just before (second) visa runs out.
Visit Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and back thru Thailand with our 3rd and final 28 day visa. Exact details not sussed yet but within this time frame.
Mid October: Shanghai, China
Late October/early November: Bejing, China
Mid/late November: India...
15 December: fly to Heathrow...

Love and miss you all.