KMK: Bangkok – Lucky Buddha & Democracy Monument

As my Bangkok adventure continued I began to notice a startling trend with the Tuk Tuk drivers. I would flag a tuk tuk down, negotiate a price with the driver, hop in and speed off to an entirely different destination than what we agreed to.

Surprised, I’d ask where the hell we were and the driver would explain that if I could just spend five minutes in this tailor shop he would get a free gas voucher. Couldn’t please spare five minutes to help him and his sixteen kids who he needs to feed instead of wasting money on gas he could get for free? Fine. Five minutes wouldn’t kill me, right?

So after the tailor shop I’m thinking all that nonsense is done and we can get on about the business of my sightseeing. No, silly me, because next we arrive at the fabric store and then the jewelry store! By this point I just want to strangle the guy and I refuse to get out the tuk tuk until he takes me where I want to go. So after much ado we arrive at “Lucky Buddha” which I don’t even think is in my guidebook. It consists of a nondescript Wat with a few trinkets and glass baubles and some incense and I’m thinking the luck must have run out some time ago.

Thoroughly upset I walked off and decided to go it alone without a tuk tuk. With the traffic so dense and congested I probably made better time anyway. This is how I ran across Democracy Monument otherwise known as the silent sentinel of freedom. The whole thing was commissioned way back in the thirties to commemorate the establishment of the constitutional monarchy. The monument consists of a representation of the constitution, with two golden bowls, with four wings-like towers representing the branches of the Thai military. There are also several relief sculptures.

So my sightseeing continued and I didn’t even have to run a tailor shop gauntlet to do it.

Things To Do