BANGKOK GUIDE The Main Attractions The Grand Palace ADMISSION FEES: Ticket costs 350 ฿ each and consists of 3 main parts : 1) The brown-yellow part is for the Grand Palace and is valid only on the day of purchase. (A guide book will be given to each visitor at the entrance to the temple.) 2) The white part is for the Vimanmek Mansion Museum. This part of the ticket is valid for 7 days from the day of purchase. 3) The pink ticket is for The Royal Thai Decoration and Coin Pavilion, which is on the right hand side before the entrance to the temple Rama I, on ascending the throne, moved the centre of administration from Thonburi on the west side of the river to this side of the Chao Phraya; and built the Grand Palace serve as residence and offices--the various ministries, one of which still remains in the palace walls. The Wat Phra Kaew (The Chapel Royal of The Emerald Buddha) regarded as the most sacred Buddhist temple (wat) in Thailand. It has all the features of a monastery without the residential quarter, for monks do not live here. The Assembly Hall (Ubosoth) is the monarch's private chapel, hence the partition on either side of the main altar used as a retiring room. The “Emerald Buddha” is carved from a block of jade. It is an object of national veneration and crowds come to pay respect. The Emerald Buddha sits on an altar of gold representing the aerial chariot of Hindu gods. This was discovered in Chiang Rai in 1464. King Chaichetta moved his capital to a newly built town of Viang Chan taking the Emerald Wat Pho Buddha until the King of Thonburi sent a punitive expedition which brought it backWhen King Rama I built the city of Bangkok and the Grand Palace, the Emerald Buddha was installed in the chapel. In front of the high altar Rama III set up two standing images of the Lord in dedication to his royal predecessors. There is one other effigy, the Samphutthapanni Buddha image, held in high veneration and placed in front of the high altar, installed by King Mongkut, Rama IV, when he was a monk. The murals within this building are: above the windows is the life of the Buddha commencing with the south west corner on the right of the high altar with his birth, childhood, youth and renunciation in search of Truth; on the east wall fronting the high altar is the temptation and enlightenment (the figure underneath the Buddha's seat is Mother Earth; continuing along the north wall the mission and death. Between the windows are some of the birth-stories and behind the window panels are the Proverbs. £1 = 48 baht (฿), call it 50 ฿ to the £, or one ฿ = 2p 1 The panels of the doors contain exquisite inlaid work in mother-of-pearl. They all depict episodes from the Ramakien. (The Thai version of the Ramayana) Within the complex are many buildings in styles of the various reigns, including 12 smalls pavilions surrounding the Ubosot. The Phra Sri Rattana Chedi is on the left, Phra Mondop (Library) is on the middle and on the right the Prasart Phra Thep Bidorn is situated in The Upper Terrace. On this are four main monuments: the Reliquary in the shape of a golden chedi; the Repository of the Canon of Buddhism with its mother-of-pearl cabinet that displays the palm leaf scriptures at various times of the year; the model of Angkor Wat crafted by Royal Command of King Mongkut (Rama IV); and the Royal Pantheon where statues of past sovereigns of the ruling dynasty are enshrined. Scattered round these monuments on the terrace are fanciful mythological animals. To the north of the terrace is the Scripture Library, the west facade of which is said to be the finest in Bangkok; the gabled Wiharn decorated with tiles and porcelain; and the mausoleum containing the crematory relics of the Royal Family. Behind the Assembly Hall on the west side are two small chapels housing effigies of the Buddha. The Chapel Royal ground is enclosed by galleries, the murals of which depict the story of the Ramakien of the first reign version, starting at the east gate with the war waged by Rama of Ayodthaya to rescue his wife who had been abducted by Thotsakan (Ravana), King of Longka. Phra Maha Monthian consists of three main buildings, namely: the Audience Hall of Amarin Winitchai, where ceremonies of the Court take place in front of the throne surmounted by its canopy of nine tiers of white cloth and backed by a boat shaped altar fronting the door leading in to the inner chambers. Paisal Taksin Coronation Hall with the coronation chair and the octagonal seat where the monarch receives the people's invitation to rule, either side of an altar containing the symbolised figure of Siam traditionally invoked for the good health of the state. Below this is the antechamber to the Chakrapat Phiman building which was the residence of King Rama I, Rama II and Rama III. It has subsequently become customary for the sovereign to pass at least one night there after the coronation to signify his taking up official residence. Entering the living apartments of Chakrapat Phiman by mounting a series of steps we come to a hall, at the left of which on the east side is the royal bedchamber. On the west of the hall is a reception chamber where are now kept the regalia and other paraphernalia of kingship. The Chakri Maha Prasat Hall group was built for King Chulalongkorn, Rama V (1868-1910). Only the reception portion is now used with two wings decorated with galleries of portraiture. In between is a central throne-hall formerly used for the reception of foreign envoys and decorated with four canvasses of diplomatic receptions - the reception by Queen Victoria of King Mongkut's ambassador in London; Louis XIV's reception of the mission sent by King Narai of Ayutthaya in the Palace of Versailles; King Mongkut's reception of the French Envoy; and the reception at Fontainebleau by the Emperor Napoleon III of a Siamese Mission. The Dusit Maha Prasat Hall was built by King Rama I as an audience hall with a throne of mother-of- pearl surmounted by a nine-tiered white canopy, the mark of a crowned king. In front of this group is the Disrobing Pavilion—Arpornphimok. Rama I intended that the present building be used for his Lying- in-State as it has the same height and dimensions as the hall for the Lying-in-State in Ayutthaya. It is still used for the Lying-in-State of kings, queens and honoured members of the royal family. This Hall is also used for the annual Consecration Day Ceremony (Phra Ratcha Phithi Chat Mongkhon). The Borom Phiman was built by Chulalongkorn, Rama V, and renovated by Rama VI in the western style. It was also used as a royal residence by King Rama VII (1925-1935), King Rama VIII (1935- 1946), and the present King Rama IX. At present it serves as the Royal Guest House for visiting Heads of State. On interest are a quadrangular dome over the inner chamber, with frescoes depicting the Siamese conception of the Vedic gods of India held up as the guardians of the Universe. Beneath the Vedic gods are written the Ten Kingly Virtues for the monarch's observance. It commands the beautiful view of The Chapel Royal of The Emerald Buddha. To the south is the Chapel of the Crystal Buddha, a gem afloat on waves of green lawns, and to the west a gabled pavilion, the Mahisorn Prasat built by King Rama IV to enshrine the relics of his august father, King Rama II. Wat Pho Wat Pho is a Buddhist temple located adjacent to the Grand Palace, known also as the Temple of the Reclining Buddha. The temple is also known as the birthplace of traditional Thai massage. Prior to the £1 = 48 baht (฿), call it 50 ฿ to the £, or one ฿ = 2p 2 temple's founding, the site was a centre of education for traditional Thai medicine, and statues were created showing yoga positions. Adjacent to the building housing the Reclining Buddha is a small raised garden, the centrepiece being a bodhi tree which is a scion (cutting) of the original tree in India where Buddha sat while awaiting enlightenment. During a Rama III restoration of an earlier temple on the same site in 1788, plaques inscribed with medical texts were placed around the temple. The temple was restored again in 1982, and in 1962 a school for traditional medicine and massage was established. Wat Pho is one of the largest and oldest wats in Bangkok (with an area of 80,000 square metres), and is home to more than one thousand Buddha images, as well as one of the largest single Buddha images: the Reclining Buddha (Phra Buddhasaiyas). The Wat Pho complex consists of two walled compounds bisected by Soi Chetuphon running east–west. The northern walled compound is where the reclining Buddha and massage school are found. The southern walled compound, Tukgawee, is a working Buddhist monastery with monks in residence and a school. The Wat and the Buddha are popular tourist stops, but around the back are the monks’ quarters, where quiet lanes house monks praying and going about their daily work. Also, taking the back entrance to the Wat from Maharat Road instead of the grand front entrance along Thai Wang Road leads you to a quieter area without the throng of tourists lining up to see the reclining Buddha.