Thailand: Water Taxi to the Grand Palace

After our lazy week on Koh Tao we had to get some real sight seeing in before it was time to go home.  We decided to take a water taxi down the river to downtown Bangkok.  My favorite part of riding down the river was that we were able to get a nice glimpse of the beautiful and unique buildings and boats of Bangkok.

We got off the taxi, and after a quick stop at the jewelry store for some adorable Christmas bracelets (for the girls, of course), we had to make our way to the Grand Palace.  To get there, we walked several blocks, took a tuktuk (a three-wheeled golf cart of sorts), and finally grabbed a couple taxis.  As usual, Austin was a little celeb among the locals.

To enter the Grand Palace you must be modestly dressed (covered shoulders and knees), so the guys in shorts had to rent these fancy pants.

My mom was kind enough to take care of Austin so Toren and I could really enjoy the beautiful buildings within the Grand Palace.  The Grand Palace is where the king lived (And would be living if his health allowed him.  Currently he's "living" at the hospital.).  It's filled with big entertaining courts and worship buildings.  The highlight was seeing the emerald Buddha (which we learned is actually made of jade, but those that first discovered it though it was emerald and the name stuck).  We couldn't take any pictures inside, but it's one of the more sacred places to worship.  We had to take of our shoes, sit down, and we could not point our feet toward the Buddha.