Fun in the City- Bangkok Staycation

We decided to head into the city for a few days for a last minute vacation before school started back up.  We live about an hour outside of the city and it just isn't always the easiest to make it there.  We have had an ongoing list of things we have wanted to do in the city and decided to make a few days out of it.  Every time we spend time in the city, we say we need to do it more often.  I hope we actually follow through this year because there are so many great places to check out.

I found another amazing condo through Airbnb.  I am having some great success with this site.  The condo I found had 2 full bathrooms and one with a tub, two bedrooms, full kitchen, washer and dryer, and an amazing view of the river.  Ben and the boys kept making fun of me because I could not stop watching the boats on the river.  I was captivated by then.  I must have lived on a boat in another life.

The first night in the city we headed to Chamchuri Square to try out the Dialogue in the Dark exhibit. I was told about this exhibit and knew that this was something that I wanted the boys to experience. The exhibit is located on the 4th floor of the Chamchuri Square in NSM Science Square.  The science museum is free, but there is an admission for Dialogue in the Dark .  This is recommended for children ages 10 and up, but they will do a short little 2 minute test to see if children younger than 10 can handle it.  My 5 year old was worried that it was a haunted house and my 8 year old wasn't quite sure about it either, so we stayed behind and hung out in the science museum while Ben and Greyson experienced what it is like to be blind.  They had to navigate through a "city" for an hour and a half. They had to buy food, make change, and even get a tuk tuk!  Ben and Greyson said it was an amazing experience and highly recommend it.  I hope I am able to get back to try it at some point.

This picture of the King is made out of Legos. 

After the science museum, we headed to Asiatique for dinner and shopping.  The boys had to stop for gelato.  SO Yummy!.  We didn't stay long and thankfully left when we did because it started pouring. We made it back in time to our condo to watch fireworks at Asiatique from our balcony!

Day two in the city was spent by relaxing at the pool during the day.  I was too cold to get in the water.  I have become a complete baby about water since living in Thailand.  It was 85 degrees out and I had goosebumps.  I am going to freeze to death when we come back to the States!

That afternoon we headed to Impact Arena for the main event of our Staycation.  We were getting ready to see Cirque du Soleil's Quidam.  Almost everything we did on our trip would not allow cameras, so I actually do not have many pictures from this vacation.  I actually had to turn in my brand new camera before I could even enter the arena.  Thankfully, I got it back after the show.  I was a little nervous though.  I cannot say enough about Quidam.  If you ever have a chance to see Cirque show, do it!  You will not be disappointed.    I loved the message behind this show too.  It was about a little girl whose parent's were always too busy for her due to job, stress, and technology.  The boys even picked up on this theme. It kept the boy's attention the entire time.  It was so good and I am so glad I have finally been to a Cirque performance.

For day 3, I had plans to make it to a couple Thai museums, but we only made it to one and I cannot say enough about this one either.  We visited the Dusit Palace or the Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall. This building looks nothing like other buildings in Bangkok.  It was designed by Italian architects and the building itself is a work of art.  The Throne hall houses pieces of artwork that have been made for the King and Queen for important celebrations, birthdays, & anniversaries.

I wasn't sure what the boys would think of this, but they loved it.  When you arrive, you are given a little recorder that tells information on every piece that is in the hall.  Britton loved typing in the number and listening all about the artwork.  I cannot even come close to describe the craftsmanship of the art that is in this building.  Most of the pieces are mind boggling.   Hundreds of artists worked for years on most of the pieces.  This museum was so well done and all of the guides were very kind. You need to have on respectful dress when entering this building.  Pants and short-sleeved shirts for men and children and women need to have on a skirt.  I was in pants and they made me buy a sarong before going in to the building.  You also have to leave all of your possessions behind in a locker.

Hanging out at a bookstore after lunch at the mall.

That night we finally, after years of wanting to go, made it to Siam Niramit.  It is a Thai performance about the history of Thailand.  It  discusses the different regions of Thailand.  I was actually glad that we did not see this performance earlier in our stay in Thailand.  I really understood most of what was going on and we have visited all of the regions that were in the play, so we had a point of reference for the story.  This was also very well done.  The lighting, costumes, and sets were all stunning.  This was another one of the places that we could not take pictures at.  And don't think you can sneak a picture. They have people watching with lasers and will shine them at you if you even start to take a photo with your phone!

Our last morning in the city was spent at Neilson Hays Library for story hour.  The boys listened to the amazing story teller read two stories about pirates.  Then they put together a pirate craft.  It is always a good time and I really wish we lived closer to the library to be able to do this more often.

That was our little staycation in Bangkok.  It was a lot of fun and I am already looking forward to planning another weekend in the city to discover a few more of the hidden gems that we have missed over the past few years.