Thailand Three-Headed Elephant

Chang Erawan Museum in Samut Prakan Province

The Three Headed Elephant is 29 metres high and 39 metres long.  Add another 14.6 meters to count the building that it is standing on.  The elephants weight is around 250 tons. You can not miss seeing this from Sukhumwit Road on your way to Samut Prakan from Bangkok.

Construction started in 1994 and the finishing work still goes on today.  This was built by a very successful Mercedes Benz dealership owner named Khun Lek Viriyapant.  He wanted to preserve his collection of antiques as a contribution to Thai culture heritage.  Many pieces of his collection are priceless objects of art.  Most of these are in the basement and taking photograhs is not permitted.  

The size of the elephant is phenomenal.  If you look closely, you can see the people standing at the base of the building to the lower left in the photo.  On the inside, there are stairs or a lift leading up the rear legs.  The stairs are the small spiral type and the ceiling is very low.  Watch your head on the way up!

 

On the ground floor there are four pillars with tin plated designs.  Each pillar represents one of the four major religions of the world:  Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity and Islam.  This photo shows one of the pillars going up to the ceiling.  The ceiling is a stained glass window of a world map.  If you could look out of the window you would be looking straight up at the belly of the elephant.

 

 

 

Bowls and spoons are some of the things used to decorate the place inside on the main floor. As you can see by the photos, it was very labor intensive to put this together.  The bowls were broken up into pieces and then arranged in patterns.

 

 

 

 

The photo on the left clearly shows the spoons used for the ears on the elephant.  The rest of the elephant was decorated with pieces of broken bowls. 

 

 

 

This photo contains the Stairs to Heaven.  If you climb the Stairs to Heaven,  you will arrive on the first landing which has access to the lift of the stairs leading up the inside of the elephant statues rear legs.  

 

 

 

 

 

Taken in the belly of the elephant, this photo depicts heaven to the Thai’s.  It is like entering a temple and there are celestial stars painted on the ceiling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These photos only give a small sense of the sights to see.  The museum is definitely worth the trip if you ever travel to Bangkok Thailand.

 

 

 

Bangkok Chinatown

Phahurat Market

During our last trip to Thailand, we had our Thai wedding.  We went to Bangkok Chinatown Phahurat Market to purchse favors for the wedding.  This part of Chinatown is know for fabric and wedding stalls. There was a great selection.

 

 

This photo shows some of the many stalls that were setup for everyone to shop at.  There was row after row of these.  Visit different parts of Chinatown to find many different things.  Shopping is only part of it. Sightseeing is prime as there are many historical buildings peppered throughout Chinatown.  14 % of the buildings are designated as historic buildings.     

 

 

This photo gives you an idea of the size of the crowd that was there.  It was late December and everyone was out getting New Years gifts.  To say the crowd was large is really an understatement.  It was just jam-packed. Thai police were on bull horns warning everyone to watch out for pick pockets. We did not have any problems there at all. Really all one really needs to do is use some good common sense and you should be alright.

 

 

The crowd at one of the cross roads wasn’t too bad.  It was the smaller streets that were packed with people.  It would get so packed that you had to really watch were you wanted to go.  If you did not watch you would get rushed past the place you wanted to stop at. It is only a very small part of Chinatown.  

In the early 1780’s the Chinese merchants were originally moved to this area when Bangkok was settled. Chinatown is best seen on foot.  It really is the only way to see it because the street size is very small.  Sampaeng Lane used to be Chinatown’s main street.  It is not big enough for even a car to drive on.  When the vendors bring in their products by car or small van, everyone must get off of the road to let them pass.

While in Chinatown, you can visit Wat Traimit.  It is a small temple at one end of Chinatown.  The temple houses the worlds largest solid gold  Buddha image.  Weighing in at 5½ tons, the 15-foot tall seated image is worth,  in the neighborhood of,  US$14 Million.  The Golden Buddha is an excellent example of the gracious Sukhothai style that is still very much in favor to this day.  It was cast sometime in the 13th century. Chinatown is also one of the best places to go gold shopping.  Tang To Gung gold shop on Sampaeng Lane is also one of the many historic buildings in Chinatown.  Yaowarat Road is lined with many gold shops.

You can find just about anything you would like in Bangkok Chinatown.

 

Samut Prakan Crocodile Farm

Worlds largest Crocodile Farm and Home of Worlds Largest Crocodile (Yai)

During My first trip to Thailand Ning and I went to go see the largest crocodile farm in the world, Samut Prakan Crocodile Farm. It is just 10 km (7 miles) south of Bangkok. Here is their address if you would like to look them up if you are ever in Bangkok, Thailand.

Samut Prakan Crocodile Farm and Zoo
555 Moo 7 Taiban Road Taiban Sub-District,
Amphur Muang, Samutprakarn
Bangkok, Thailand 10270
Phone +66 2 703 4891-5; 70

The hours of operation are from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM daily.  Admission: Adults THB300; children THB200 at the time of this writing.  The Samut Prakan Crocodile Farm and Zoo was founded in 1950 by the famous Crocodile King, Mr. Utai Youngprapakorn.  Mr. Utai has been the pioneer not only to preserve the endangered species from extinction, but also to provide a continuing flow of crocodile skins to the world market.

 

This is a photo of one of the 60,000 or so crocodiles on the farm.  

Shop for memories, souvenirs or even for crocodile leather or fish skin handbags, belts,shoes, and more….

The Croc Shop means you can take it with you.  It is advisable to see if you will be permitted to bring any animal skins back into the USA.  I think, do not quote me on this, but you will not be allowed to in the USA.

 

 

In the photo to the right is the Worlds Largest Crocodile (Yai).

According to the Guinness Book of Records 1989:

Yai is a Hybrid Crocodile. Body length 6 metres (19′ 8″)
Weight is 1114.27 kilos (2,645 lbs).
Birth date is June,10 1972.
 

 

 

 

Here is a picture of a few more crocodiles sunning themselves.  At one point, Ning was talking with one of the Crocodile keepers while we were on one of the bridges over the crocodile waters and he made a call as they do to feed them.  Before you know it the waters below were filled with crocodiles ready to eat!

 

 

 

 

This photo depicts a man with his arm in the crocodiles mouth.  They put on a show every hour.  You can also see Elephant shows and a monkey show.  There are many other animals to see at the Samut Prakan Crocodile Farm.  They have Australian Cassowary, Ostrich Hippopotamus, Deer and  Monitor lizard.  There is also a Dinosaur Museum with life-size exhibits showing 13 different species of dinosaurs and skeletons plus an audio-visual show narrating stories of animals that are now extinct.

 

My time spent at Samut Prakan Crocodile Farm and Zoo was a very interesting time.  I would recommend it if you ever get the opportunity to visit.

Koh Chang Island Thailand

Chang Park Resort and Spa

During my first trip to Thailand, my (now Wife ), Ning made us reservations to stay at Chang Park Resort and Spa. We got up early to go into Bangkok to get a van that was chartered to take us there. We had plenty of room  in the van due to the fact that only a Thai man and his young son were the only other people going at that time. The drive down was not too bad. It is about 200 miles from Bangkok to Koh Chang Island.    We stopped at one of the many road side rest areas to get some breakfast and made a couple of other stops along the way. It took us about 4 hours to get to where we would board the ferry which crosses the bay to the Island.  The ferry ride was about 30 minutes  and was very pleasant. As always in Thailand the weather was warm but there was a nice breeze coming off of the water.  This photo captures the amazing view of the Island from the ferry.  

 

 

Once we arrived, we signed in and were escorted to our small bungalow. It was clean but I must say it did need a little repair work done to it.  If we go back again I would not hesitate to stay in one of their bungalows again. For the cost of our stay it was very nice and a good value.

 

We were able to go out for a half day snorkeling tour.  We snorkeled off of one of  the smaller Islands that surround Koh Chang.  We bought some bread to take with us and feed the fish that came around.  The water was very clear and we stayed in the 10ft to 15 ft depth range.  They gave us our gear and a life vest.  The life vest was optional.  I will say that the vest made things easier because the fish came right up to you when you had the food out. This photo shows the brown sand and crystal clear waters of the beach.

We also went out for an evening of Squid fishing.  I even caught 5 of them.  The bait used was nothing but a weight the size of a pencil about 2 inches long with the line tide to one end and the other end had 12 barb less hooks on it. Once you felt a little pull you would just pull up the lure with the squid on it and unhook it in the boat. It took a little practice but then once you know what to do it was easy.

 

There are many sights to see and things to do while staying at the resort. We chose to go and see one of the water falls on the Island.  Koh Chang has one of the last undisturbed jungles on it.  It was not too bad of a walk back to the falls we saw. There was a well defined trail to follow.

We did not go, but you can also go for elephant treks on Koh Chang Island. There are two of them. For those who do not know, the word Chang is Thai for elephant.

 

This photo is a spectacular sunset taken from the beach.  It is one of two sunsets we saw during our stay at the Park Resort and Spa. Our trip to Koh Chang Island was a very pleasant one.  The Park Resort and Spa was a nice place to stay.  The people that worked there were very pleasant and friendly.  The food was very good,  American or Thai. The cost was inline for what you got there, too.

Click here to check out Park Resort and Spa 
Click here to see one of the many sights on Koh Chang Island

 

 

 

 

Bangkok Royal Grand Palace

Royal Monastery of the Emerald Buddha

During my first 2 week stay in Thailand, Ning and I went into Bangkok so I could see the Royal Grand Palace. This is the home of  Wat Phra Kaeo.  Wat Phra Kaeo houses the Emerald Buddha, the most revered Buddha image in Thailand.

The photo shown is of that Buddha in winter dress.  The Emerald Buddha is dressed for the 3 seasons: Winter, Summer and Rainy Season.  The costume is solid gold.  His Majesty, the King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Rama 9 presides over the ceremony to change the costume.  The Emerald Buddha is carved from a solid block of green jade.  It was first discovered in 1434 and was covered in plaster to make it look like a regular Buddha image. This was done to protect it from being stolen by other countries.

The king of Thailand,  King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Rama 9 is revered by his people in the country.  He is the longest serving monarch in the world. King Bhumibol started his rain at the age of 18 after the death of his brother the King at that time.  Large pictures of the King and the Queen can be seen all over Thailand.  Every home and shop in Thailand contain pictures of the King and Queen along with Buddha and different Monks from different times in the history of Thailand.  Needless to say, the people of  Thailand are very passionate about Buddha and their King and his family.

This photo shows the entrance to the Temple of the Emerald Buddha.  Like all the Temples in Thailand, shoes and hats must be removed before entering the temple building.  Your dress should be of good taste when visiting any of the temples and government building.  Once in the building no photos are allowed to be taken.  The photo of the Emerald Buddha above was taken just outside of the entrance.

Gardens, like the one shown here, are spread though out the Royal Grand Palace.  As you can see, there is a touch of the Chinese culture with Thailand.

Today King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Rama 9 lives in the residence off of the Grand Palace, Chitraladarahotarn Palace in Bangkok. The Grand Palace is used for royal guests and ceremonies.

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