Can foreigners visit the funeral urn ?

[Thamesbank]

My wife is convinced that I will be allowed in to the hall where Thais pay their respects to the Late King.

But all I see on the daily news is only Thai people.

The few foreigners that I have heard of visiting are ambassadors etc.

Can anyone give a definitive answer ?

 

[worldpunter]

 Interesting post . As one who went last October to the Palace with my wife to show respect at his passing I vowed I would not put myself in that position again .

   If you were there [ on the saturday ]  the crowds were tremendous , lack of transport to leave later in the day , even though taxi / motosyke were free [ try getting one  ] 

   I told the wife can she go with her friends next month and I will sit it out . She flies from the UK to thai to attend as will many thai's I know . I don't think they expect to get into the resting place though but to be a few hundred metres away and pray is enough 

[davidge]

Thais only.

I went at Christmas & booked a private guide for Grand Palace etc etc, but was told farang were not allowed - except Steven Seagal and other luminaries.

BTW, if your wife is going she needs to be prepared for a long wait. The guide & I were talking to a Thai family who had just come out. They'd arrived at 3am and were leaving at just gone 10am.

 

[Thamesbank]

Thanks, we were up there a few months back, there were thousands waiting

2 minutes ago, davidge said:

Thais only.

I went at Christmas & booked a private guide for Grand Palace etc etc, but was told farang were not allowed - except Steven Seagal and other luminaries.

BTW, if your wife is going she needs to be prepared for a long wait. The guide & I were talking to a Thai family who had just come out. They'd arrived at 3am and were leaving at just gone 10am.

 

So if I was to travel up, I wouldn't be allowed into the serious areas ?    

 

[davidge]

This was as close as I could get:

[davidge]

3 minutes ago, Thamesbank said:

Thanks, we were up there a few months back, there were thousands waiting

So if I was to travel up, I wouldn't be allowed into the serious areas ?    

 

The Grand Palace was open (though it probably won't be next month for 'the' week?) so I could go to the usual places and stand next to the people queuing with just a rope between us. As you can see from the photo, it wasn't possible to get particularly close to the building with the urn etc.

[Thamesbank]

2 minutes ago, davidge said:

The Grand Palace was open (though it probably won't be next month for 'the' week?) so I could go to the usual places and stand next to the people queuing with just a rope between us. As you can see from the photo, it wasn't possible to get particularly close to the building with the urn etc.

Not really going up for the Grand Palace this time, only to visit the building holding the urn.

Don't think they will let me in, even being with my wife

[davidge]

The people in this pic are just at the end of their queuing and about to go into the building to view the urn. They are just to the left, out of shot, of the first photo I posted. They were using another entrance. The one in the first pic was obviously for dignitaries.

[davidge]

2 minutes ago, Thamesbank said:

Not really going up for the Grand Palace this time, only to visit the building holding the urn.

Don't think they will let me in, even being with my wife

From what I was told, no. I guess you could try and see? Obviously, dressed in black etc etc. The queue starts outside on the street where there are check-in areas. People are then brought in groups to various staging points, before joining the queue inside the Grand Palace. I'm sure they'd tell you outside on arrival if you were allowed in.

[Thamesbank]

Yes, we saw people queueing to enter by a different entrance

[Thamesbank]

1 minute ago, davidge said:

. I'm sure they'd tell you outside on arrival if you were allowed in.

Sounds like it would be a "no"

But then I would have to hang around until the others have finished - could be a long wait

[davidge]

Just now, Thamesbank said:

Sounds like it would be a "no"

But then I would have to hang around until the others have finished - could be a long wait

A very long wait. You'd really need to have somewhere else in Bangkok to go for 6 or 7 hours. 

[davidge]

One thing, as this is Thailand, it could have been just that the guide didn't really want to wait or even thought that I wouldn't want to wait. I'm sure you know how things can work.

I have to say though, that with all the people I saw waiting at all the various stages there were no farang in sight. 

 

[Thamesbank]

20 minutes ago, davidge said:

I have to say though, that with all the people I saw waiting at all the various stages there were no farang in sight. 

 

Same as what I have seen.

But the wife saw 1 farang (probably a vip) so she thinks I will be allowed in.

Thanks again for your advice

 

[fakebook]

To be honest I prefer to spend my time elsewhere.