Vimanmek Teak Mansion
Trip Start
Unknown
1
23
27
Trip End
Ongoing
Bangkok,
Thailand
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Tours of Vimanmek take place every half hour from 9.45 a.m. to 3.15 p.m. You first enter a small building where security checks your bags. You are not allowed to take beyond this point any bags, mobile phones and cameras. Lockers are provided though I felt it was a bit below the belt that they charged us 20 baht for using the locker.
By the end of the 19th Century, the Grand Palace was starting to become too crowded with new buildings springing up all the time to house the ever extending royal family. As King Rama V was starting to find it too hot and uncomfortable staying here, he decided to move to a new location on what was then the outskirts of the city. He called this area Suan Dusit which means Celestial Garden. The first permanent building was the Vimanmek Mansion. This is reputedly the largest teak mansion in the world. Apparently only wooden pegs were used to join the pieces of timber. The mansion was originally used as a summer palace on the island of Koh Si Chang.
Ananda Samakhom Throne Hall
But King Rama V ordered it to be relocated to Dusit Palace. This was then completed in 1901. The Hor Pavilion
Before you join the compulsory guided tours, you have to take off your shoes. Also, make sure that you are dressed politely as this is a royal palace. Our guide informed us that the house is an interesting blend of Thai and Western architectural styles. The building has two right angle wings with an octagonal building at one end which served as the residence for the king. Altogether there are 31 exhibition rooms containing collected art work and personal effects of the royal family. You can even visit his bed chamber. I enjoyed the tour though we were moved along at a rather fast pace. I would highly recommend people to visit the mansion as it gives you a unique glimpse into the world of a Thai king of the past. It is a shame that we weren't allowed to take picture both inside and outside of the house. Once the tour had finished, and we had collected our bags and shoes, we then continued exploring the grounds of Dusit Palace.
Scattered around the grounds are a number of smaller buildings which were used as residences for various members of the royal family. Some of these have been turned into museums. These hold collections such as photographs, clocks, fabrics etc. Of particular interest to me were the photographs of royal ceremonies and also pictures taken by the present King. There was also an exhibition in the elephant stables. For all these buildings you weren't allowed to take in cameras, mobile phones and bags.
Vimanmek Teak Mansion
Like before we were provided with lockers to use. The last major building we visited using the Vimanmek Mansion ticket was the Abhisek Dusit Throne Hall. This beautiful building was completed in 1904 and served as the throne hall for the palace. Inside is an exhibition of art and craft. Ananda Samakhom Throne Hall
Our final stop was the magnificent Ananda Samakhom Throne Hall. This is situated at the southern end of Dusit Palace. This was where countless thousands of Thai people wearing yellow shirts greeted His Majesty on the balcony last year. Today the place was practically deserted. It seemed like most people were just coming for the mansion. It is a shame as they missed a treat. Strangely, you are not allowed to take pictures of this building from the lawn. Nor inside. If you want a better chance to look around, then you should come on Children's Day (the second Saturday in January) as the grounds are more open to the public at that time. Also, the nearby Parliament House.
King Rama V ordered for this grand reception hall to be built near his new palace. It took eight years and wasn't complete until 1915, after he had already passed away. The hall was constructed in the Italian Renaissance and Neo Classic style of architecture. The exterior is decorated with marble from Carrara, Italy. The building is about 112 metres long and 49 metres wide. It is topped with a large dome in the center which is surrounded by six smaller domes. The outside is beautiful. The interior can only be described as breathtaking. I only wish we were allowed to take pictures. But, as usual, we had to deposit our cameras and bags in some free lockers. Before I forget, one interesting aspect is that women MUST wear skirts. So, if you go there wearing trousers then they will lend you a wraparound. By the time we had finished we had been in the grounds of Dusit Palace for nearly three hours. I think most people spend less than one hour here. We were hot and tired. There is more to see in this area of Bangkok but we already had enough. I think when the weather is so hot you don't want to cram too much into your day. But, if you want more in this immediate area then you could consider Dusit Zoo or the nearby Marble Temple.
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