4th Jan exploring Bangkok.

How better to start exploration of Thailand's capital than jump aboard a Tuk Tuk- a sort of cart on wheels pulled by a motorbike, quite nippy and quite often overturned!
We visited the Grand Palace a huge complex of temples, more were added by successive kings as they fancied. The main temple Wat Phra Kaeo is home to the Emerald Budda (actually made of Jade) which is Thailand's most sacred site and draws visitors from worldwide.  The whole place was spectacular, individually set apart each building would have been impressive, jumbled together with sometimes only a few metres of space between them as they are is stunning. Guarding each entrance are big Yaksha Demons, on the inside wall of the main temple complex is a long painting depicting the story of the Ramayana, painted before paints actually existed so all the colours were natural and now re-touched in the same way.
It would have been possible to spend hours taking in the details of the statues and things such as doors embedded with mother of pearl, 1 temple was completely gold covered in thousands of tiny tiles each covered in gold leaf. 
Then onto Wat Pho another sort of complex containing the Temple of the Reclining Budda 45metres long, gold plated, soles of feet inlaid with mother of pearl, even more temply-statue-budda-ey things surrounded, beautiful settings.
After lunch of noodles, Oh presented me with a coconut to drink. Green, large and full of milk they bear little relation to English ones which are much older, the coconut meat is more jelly-like in these. Then aboard the boat (you have to leap on quite quickly, health and safety be stuffed!!) to Jim Thompson's house. Man famous for putting Thai silk on the map, building a traditional house (well actually moving it from the north of Thailand) and then disappearing into the jungle whilst visiting friends never to be seen again.
Foot sore, hot and exhausted after a short rest it was time to sample Thai street food under Oh's guidance and then experience a foot massage given in a deckchair at the side of the road, lovely!