Wednesday 12th March - Day 38

A Wat is a Buddhist temple and it apears there millions of them in Thailand. Okay, maybe not millions, but quite a big number.

I will visit three today. On my way to the Grand place, I stop to look at my map and someone approaches me, you can guess what happenned next. "It's closed today," he says. "Let me see your map." He points to three good temples to see and even helpfully negotiates a fare with a tuk-tuk driver for me. It should be a ride for about two hours.

We visit the first temple and some 'local' starts talking to me and suggests I could pay for my trip by buying jewellery in Thailand and selling it in England at big profit - yes, sure mate !

The Tuk-tuk driver wants to take me to a jewellery shop, I reluctantly agree, but just for ten minutes. He takes me to another temple on my list where I see a huge figure of a reclinig Buddah. It's in a hall about twice as big as an average gymnasium and with a really high ceiling. There's a lot of gold paint that must have gone into painting it. Then it's off to a palace, but on the way we have to look at another shop. Another ten minutes wasted. At the palace I stay inside for about forty-five minutes having a good look. Once outside I look for the tuk-tuk. He's abandoned me - the toe-rag. Apparently, so a taxi driver tells me, my two visits to shops meant he gets two free fuel vouchers from the shops and this will pay for the whole day, so I've been abandoned as he goes in search of more lucrative fares. At least I hadn't paid him. The taxi driver will take me to the next place I want to visit for a discount fare of 20 baht (about 33p) if I visit another shop. Oh well, why not. This time I get to see a huge standing Buddah, about a hundred foot tall.

I start walking to the Grand Palace and I stop to look at my map. This time a guy suggests I should go on a boat trip as the Palace will close soon and I will get more out of the boat trip. I'm the only person on this long boat. I almost fall into the water trying to get on the blasted thing. An hour later I get off the boat somewhere near the Grand palace having spent a bit too much on a boat ride.

I've done enough for today. Another trip to Khosan road for food in the evening, walking past the girls with the big feet. I try food from the stalls - this is living on the edge. A tuk-tuk driver shows me a picture of his younger sister, he must be very proud, but I'm not too keen to tuk-tuk drivers; I like them as much as I like mosquitoes. No, I think I prefer mosquitoes.