SEA starts with a 'Bang'

For once I'll actually have a relatively short blog post, as I only started off Southeast Asia with Bangkok before switching countries. I was prepared for the crowded and busy atmosphere of Bangkok after India and just spent a couple days exploring the downtown/tourist centered core. Get ready for lots of temple pics. I know, I know, there was so much of that in India.. but these ones are totally different, I promise! As always, it's hard to go back to traveling on your own, but I hit the jackpot in a hostel full of other solo travelers that I spent my time with. Two thumbs up!
Our first exploration was the big one.. the Grand Palace and Temple of the Emerald Buddha...

The temple area is the most intricate, called Wat Phra Kaew in Thai..

As you can see, it is fantastically ornate and beautiful..

And the Palace itself is also beautiful, even if we could only view it from afar...

It was also incredibly crowded and so so hot. India was hot, but walking around in Bangkok was so humid! Back to multiple shower a day life! After the crazy crowds at the Grand Palace, exploring the smaller Wat Pho was really nice...

And just as beautiful...

It is also home to the massive reclining Buddha..

Ok, so the last temple spot was Wat Arun..

Then we also spent some time in the streets of China Town...

Wandered through a beautiful park..

And stumbled upon another temple (sorry, may have lied before.. But this one was unique!)... There was a prayer ceremony happening inside and it was so interesting and peaceful to observe..

You can also see the photo of the late king in front of the temple, one of many that are seen all through the city!

Lastly, we enjoyed checking out the street food, market, and night life around Khaosan road. Bangkok is an interesting city, but many areas are incredibly tourist-y and had this feeling of 'just check it off to say you did it'. Which is never the most fun for a travel destination. The temples were unlike anything I've seen before, I ate so much pad Thai, and I met a wonderful group of people.. but I was ready to check out what Cambodia had to offer!!