Happy Birthday Kim!
Bangkok Cruising
It was "interesting" this morning because after Kim opened the birthday card I gave her she called her twin sister Karrie to wish her a happy birthday but it was only 6:30pm the day before their birthday because of the time change here in SE Asia :) Since Kim's last birthday we have cruised thru France to the French Riviera...experienced the magic of Harry Potter World.....saw the Kentucky Derby winner race in the Florida Derby....watched our Florida Panthers win their second Stanley Cup....cruised the stunning glaciers of Alaska.....visited wineries in Napa Valley....and now traveled through fascinating Southeast Asia visiting Vietnam, Cambodia & Thailand!
After breakfast the group met in the lobby and our Viking guides took us on a canal cruise through Bangkok for a little over two hours. It was interesting to see along the waterfront the luxury hotels alongside temples, alongside such poor living homes. The "big stop" of the morning was at the Wat Arun temple where we explored around the grounds for about 45 minutes. The Buddhist temple name translates to the "Temple of Dawn." They are uncertain when it was built but it was at least in the early 1600's. The tallest tower is 270 feet tall and there are four levels that can be accessed by steep stair cases. But tourists can only now go to the second level due to several accidents years ago. It was an impressive temple for sure!
This afternoon.....there was nothing planned or offered by Viking. But in one of the most unique things we've encountered in our many travels, the hotel offered some excursions - complimentary to guests. So Val & John signed the four of us up on one Kim had mentioned seeing. We met "Mu" - our guide - in the lobby at 1:30 and the nine of us headed out by boat (everyone seems to travel by boat, and it's so much more convenient!). He took us first to a local temple that is to honor turtles! There he gave each of us a long stick and some raw meat and we fed the huge turtles in the pond. They were most appreciative. And then walked a short distance to a local gentleman who's specialty is paper-mâché - and he is known for his work with "pigs" because of a local legend about them and a nearby temple. First he showed us how to make them and then he had four pigs ready and waiting for us to uniquely decorate. What was most ironic for Kim and I is that on nearly every trip we try to find a Christmas ornament from our trip. We've yet to find one on this trip with only a single day left. These pigs......are designed to be kept and used as Christmas ornaments! And to further personalize "our pig" he wrote our last name in Thai on our pig. We LOVED that the tour was all about local life! A really cool afternoon - you just never know what you're going to experience all over the world!
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