President Barack Obama on Sunday launched a three-day tour through
Southeast Asia in Bangkok, where his motorcade departed the airport and
made the trek along wide open highways into the center of the city, then
past the Government House which was decked out in bunting and a large
sign reading “Welcome to the Honorable Barack Obama.”
We arrived outside the Wat Pho Royal Monastery, a colorful and ornate Buddhist temple in the Phra Nakhon district.
Reporters were led to the open archway of a room with a golden Buddha
and dark marble floors. This was the Eastern Viharn Phra. A faux tree
towered behind the statue and the ceiling was painted red with gold
medallions.
A few minutes later head monk Chaokun Suthee Thammanuwat, wearing a
bright orange robe over one shoulder, led Obama, dressed in dark gray
suit, and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, in a royal blue
pantsuit and gold necklace, into the room.
Reporters couldn’t hear what they were saying as they circled the
Buddha; the monk appeared to be explaining things for a few minutes
before they left.
We were then taken to another large hallway dominated by a huge
reclining gold Buddha, which stretched the length of the building.This
was the Viharn of the Reclining Buddha, and we were instructed to remove
our shoes before entering. Again the monk led Obama and Clinton for a
stroll past the giant figure, which dwarfed them all.
Our third stop was in the courtyard where the trio strolled past a
number of colorful spire-like columns. This was the Phra Maha Chedi
Group. The place was empty of tourists for the president’s private tour.
This reporter overheard Clinton say: “What a peaceful place,” and
Obama responded: “If you have 80,000 people here it’s not so peaceful.
This is kind of a treat.” Obama was making a joke about the budget,
saying to the monk, “Yes we’re working on this budget, we’re going to
need a lot of prayer for that.” And they laughed.
The motorcade left about 10 minutes later, headed for the hospital to visit the king.
