Chris and I enjoyed various sightseeing opportunities during
our trip near Bangkok, the “Venice of the East”, and gained a much deeper
appreciation of Thai traditions, culture, and people. Here are a few of our favorite places we
visited:
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Tiger Temple: Chris and I had such an unforgettable
experience at the “Tiger Temple” near the Burmese border of Thailand. It was originally built in the1990’s with
lots of natural animals surrounding the mountainous region. In 2000, the Buddhist monks got their 1st
tiger who was 2 months old and had lost her mother to poachers. Over time, the temple provided “exile” to
other displaced tigers, and today it has 104 tigers on the property! Although tigers are now protected by the Thai
government, there are only 3,000 tigers left in the wild today. Bengal tigers, or Indochinese tigers, only
have 250 left in the wild, and they are in high threat of extinction. The Tiger Temple follows a strict routine with
the tigers each day, including rigourous exercise each morning to tire them out
for visitors to come on the grounds. The
Tiger Temple raises money to feed the tigers an average of 4-6 cooked chickens
a day by welcoming tourists in to spend time with the tigers. Chris and I couldn’t believe our eyes when we
arrived on the grounds, and there were monks laying with the tigers under shady
trees. We were given specific
instructions of how to behave around the tigers, including petting them very
firmly and only from the mid-back to the tail.
We were then allowed to walk a tiger on the leash towards the canyon,
and were forewarned that if a tiger decides to mark his territory while we are
walking him, close your mouth quickly so the spray doesn’t get us (!). Thankfully that didn’t happen. We were amazed how gentle the tigers seemed,
and we asked if they were sedated or drugged in any way, but we were assured
this was their natural state, that they had been exercised in the morning, and
tigers sleep an average of 18 hours a day.
Then, for an extra fee, Chris and I had the opportunity to “exercise”
the adolescent tigers who do afternoon activities as well. We got to give our 500 lb tiger a bath, and
he was so soft! It was really fun and
surprisingly relaxing. We then fed him
some chicken, and I about lost it…but the lady sensed my nervousness and came
over to hold the chicken with me in my hand, and the tiger promptly licked my
hand to take the chicken…my heart was in my throat but I made it and exhaled…whew. From there, we went into an enclosure where
tigers could play in the water with us holding plastic bag “balls” on long
sticks to playfully tease the tigers. I
still can’t believe we were completely enclosed in this space with 9 tigers
roaming freely around us. It was
incredible! For more pictures of our experience, check out
this link: http://pix.kg/p/8154305151105%3A1026808826/scl
Bridge Over River Kwai:
We went to a WW2 museum and walked the new Bridge over River Kwai. We have a renewed appreciation for all the
POW’s endured during their captivity. The
Japanese attacked Thailand the day after Pearl Harbor in December 1941. They offered to build a train line through
Thailand, and as long as the Thai supported Japanese in their war efforts, they
would not harm the Thai people. In June
1942, 61,000 POW’s came in inhumane cramped conditions by train from Singapore
to Bangkok, a 5 day journey with almost no food or water. From there, they walked in 95 degree heat
overnight for 20 days, 300 km, Northwest from Bangkok to near the Burmese border. These POW’s along with 200,000 Asian workers
spent 16 months building a 415 km train line to connect West into Burma and
India and beyond. Living conditions in
the working camps were unimaginable, with very poor food rations and medical
assistance. Of the 61,000 POW’s, 16,000
died building the railroads, and 100,000 of the 200,000 Asian workers died as
well. Every kilometer of railroad
represented 38 lives lost. Survival rates
saw a correlation with access to good clean water, the medical skills of POW’s
within the camp, and the correlating season: rainy season breeded further disease
along with increased work hours and less food.
In 1943 the bridge was abandoned for an iron bridge, which was
repeatedly bombed and damaged by the Allies.
The Grand Palace: This was a gem to see. The grounds were filled with ornate painted
porcelain mosaics and gold ornamental intricacies throughout the
buildings. The Grand Palace was the king’s
official residence from 1782 to 1946. It
houses the Emerald Buddha in its temple, which is considered to by sacred and
can’t be photographed. More pictures from our visit here can be found through: http://pix.kg/p/9154305151105%3A1508736325/scl
Wat Pho: Wat Pho is Bangkok’s oldest and largest temple,
built in the 1780’s by Rama I. Inside the temple is the largest reclining gold
gilded Buddha, 150 feet long, and fills the entire building. Many farang guard sculptures are throughout
the complex, depicting Westerners, and there are many serpents and other
protectors leading to building entrances It also is a center for public
education, where it currently houses a traditional medicine center and the Institute
of Massage. Thai massage is known for
pulling and stretching the limbs and torso to relieve tension and other various
ailments. Chris and I were lucky enough
to have 4 massages during our stay in Bangkok, and an hour long massage was
only $10 or 300 Baht! More of our pictures from Wat Pho can be found here: http://pix.kg/p/1254305151105%3A1946611192/scl
