Where in the World is Aria Giovanni?

Bangkok Day 1

My sister and I arrived in Bangkok right before midnight. After we cleared immigration, collected our bags, and cleared customs we had a car waiting to take us to the Shangri-La hotel Bangkok. A shower and a bed was just what we needed to get ready to go go go once morning arrived. Our hotel was situated on the Chao Phraya River and in the morning we hopped on a boat going upriver to the Grand Palace. It was surprising to me how many wats you pass along the way not only while traveling on the river but also in general while out and about in the city. Religion is an important part of the Thai people’s lives with Buddhism being the predominate religion in Bangkok. We arrived a few blocks from the palace and took about 3 hours to tour the grounds. Every building is ornately decorated in jewels, gold, and bright colors. Afterwards, we grabbed a tuk tuk and went to visit a few Buddhist temples across town. The fare is low in exchange for stopping at a few “shops” along the way. The drivers of the tuk tuk’s get gas tickets in exchange for bringing tourists to shop whether they buy anything or not. Since we were not pressed for time this was not a problem. After a long hike up to the temple and back it was nice to purchase at the adjacent temple a frozen towel which is a washcloth soaked in water and then frozen. It is your saving grace when you are hot and overheated to cool down with a frozen towel…there is nothing like it. My sister and I then parted from our driver and tried to find a few Mosques that were on the map. Well, after getting lost in the windy roads of town we decided to just visit the one close to our hotel instead. The only good thing about us getting lost was that we happened to come upon a man selling chicken satay from a little cart. I must say it was the best satay I had during my whole trip and my sister would agree. We then headed back up towards our hotel and went for a walk in the local street markets. It was interesting to check out and try some of the local foods, fruits, and sweets. We ended our first day back at our hotel taking a dip in the pool and having a simple dinner on the water. Too tired to do anything else we made it an early evening and got some well needed sleep.