{"id":33564,"date":"2016-08-22T22:12:00","date_gmt":"2016-08-22T14:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/?p=33564"},"modified":"2016-08-23T11:00:49","modified_gmt":"2016-08-23T03:00:49","slug":"bangkok-airplane-graveyard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/2016\/08\/bangkok-airplane-graveyard\/","title":{"rendered":"Reflections from Bangkok Airplane Graveyard"},"content":{"rendered":"

This was originally intended as a plain (pun unintended) travel post but two things have changed it.<\/p>\n

First, the actual visit to this Airplane Graveyard itself.<\/p>\n

This is not a commercial tourist attraction. It is, technically, a junkyard that happens to house the fuselage and parts of three large commercial jet planes, one of which is that of a B747, Queen of the skies no less, left unceremoniously on this weed-infested land. It is obvious that whatever was the plan for this had not quite materialized and now it stands, sits or actually sticks out like a sore thumb in the low-rise landscape of this rural town in the Eastern outskirts of Bangkok.<\/p>\n

\"BangkokAirplaneGraveyard12\"\"BangkokAirplaneGraveyard29\"<\/p>\n

A Surreal Sight:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Why did I come here? Well, I\u2019ve always hated visiting shopping malls during my travels. My wife Angie knows that the moment we enter a mall, you\u2019d expect my facial disposition to \u2018change\u2019. So, coming to a shopping destination as famous Bangkok, she had to include certain level of \u2018enriching\u2019 activities for this culture and heritage-loving husband of hers.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve heard of this unique site from photographer friends and upon checking with the taxi driver, discovered it wasn\u2019t too far from our route to our hotel in Bangkok. So, here I am, with my 8 year-old, staring at these derelict abandoned plane fuselages. A rare encounter, made even more surreal in a rural Thai town. The initial feeling was one of wonderment mixed with a certain weirdness that no other places I\u2019ve visited, not even mystical Stonehenge, majestic Borobudur or even the mighty Niagara can rival. Yes, weird but thought provoking.<\/p>\n

Just like Stonehenge, it appears out of \u2018no where\u2019. No fanfare, no large signs. In fact, we were just driving past a row of small shop-houses and there, after a row of tall trees, sits the wreckage of these graceful giants that once soar through the skies.<\/p>\n

\"BangkokAirplaneGraveyard16\"\"BangkokAirplaneGraveyard11\"<\/p>\n

We parked in front of its large metal gate and I got our Thai driver to speak to the caretaker \u2013 an old lady who sits inside a makeshift hut of sorts together with two children, which I assumed are hers. At first, she made a sign to chase us away, saying that the owner doesn\u2019t want visitors but after some negotiations with her through my Thai driver, she allowed Dana and I in for 200 Thai Baht each. We were joined by two tourists from Netherlands to tour the Airplane Graveyard.<\/p>\n

Take a virtual tour with us:<\/p>\n