Final Days in Bangkok

Not long after my flight from Sukhothai landed in Bangkok, I called myself a Grab cab to the river and took a final tour of the city that had been my home for the past five months. I began on the pier across from Wat Arun and noticed that the winter sun was casting harsher shadows on its sides than I remembered. I then walked to the Grand Palace without paying for the tickets and walking inside: I merely strolled all the way to the gate and back again, weaving my way through the crowds of inappropriately clad tourists as they scrambled to buy trousers with elephant prints. I also remembered I had never taken a good picture of the City Pillar Shrine, so I tried my luck after eating some pad thai at a nearby restaurant.

Following a quick stop by the Giant Swing and the Democracy Monument, it felt poetic to end my tour with the Golden Mount, which was the first place I had visited in Bangkok and had been undergoing renovations for most of the time I lived in the city. Now, the scaffolding was finally down, and the golden chedi on top shone in full glory, though I still could not find an optimal place from which to take my picture. In the evening, I visited Benchakitti Park for the first time with my friend Reese and finished with a nice vegetarian dinner.  

The Grand Palace
The elephant Erawan carrying Indra
The City Pillar Shrine
Another view of the same
A roof at the City Pillar Shrine
Wat Buranasiri Mattayaram
Golden Buddhas at a shop
The Giant Swing
The Democracy Monument
The Golden Mount
Buildings above a canal
Benchakitti Park
Another view of Benchakitti Park
A mosque as seen from the bridge from Benchakitti to Lumphini

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