Yesterday was a quiet day- it was good to lay back a bit after very busy days. Bob and I went to Lumpini Park early in the morning- a wonderful city park with lots of green space and many locals… numerous tai chi groups, beautifully kept gardens, runners and walkers, older citizens enjoying breakfast picnics, monitor lizards, and much more – I loved the vitality and energy of it all!

Monitor lizard – many reach 4-5 feet! We saw two wrestling in the water- either fighting or mating- not sure which??

 

After our walk in the park, Marina had a Hindu Puja ceremony performed by Rajani– a form of Hindu worship and blessing – offering gifts to the gods and Marina, and blessing Marina on the new chapter of her life.

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Today Bob and I went to the Grand Palace and then wandered through neighborhoods and alleys. The Grand Palace is spectacular – the gold, the colors and the architecture were amazing! The longest mural in the world circles the perimeter of the temple area depicting the history of Hinduism, and the temple is the most holy temple in the country– housing the Emerald Buddha ( actually made of jade). And there were lots of Chinese tourists too!

A common site around Thailand- removing shoes before entering a temple ( and other places as well). Those are my blue and pink running shoes…

Many of the Grand Palace buildings are covered in a very thin 24 carat gold veneer. Spectacular!

The monks enjoy the temple area as tourists!

Yes- another selfie!

Bob wandering down an alley- we thought this was a market area but it turned out to be an alley of homes. I loved this alley!