Lumpini Park is the first public park and one of the largest green spaces in central Bangkok.

Lumpini Park is an inner city green zone that was originally a royal reserve for the Thai Monarchy but in 1925 King Vajiravudh (Rama VI) declared it a public space. The park is named after the town Lumbini, Nepal where Siddhartha Gautama was born before he became The Buddha. The park is 58 hectares (142 acres) making it Bangkok’s biggest park. The park is a popular place for Bangkok residents ranging from families with children running around on weekends to elderly practicing tai chi on weekday mornings.

Large Lake

The primary feature of Lumpini Park is a large artificial lake that is surrounded by well-maintained lawns, walking paths and wooded areas. Inside the lake are fountains spewing water into the air that are not only visually attractive but also are pleasant to listen to when the water comes crashing back onto the lake’s surface.

Primary features

Scattered throughout the park are many interesting features that add to the experience of visiting the park. These park elements can be see while walking along the numerous sidewalks and paths. Some of these are in the following photos.

Statue of King Rama VI and the Chinese clock tower

Friendship Pavilion a statue of a woman and child

A sculpture that I found particularly intriguing was a table with an empty turtle shell in the center circled by zodiac inscribed turtle eggs and two chairs facing each other.

Activities in the Park

Lumpini Park is a popular spot for Bangkok residents doing outdoor activities such as jogging, light workouts, aerobics, playing games, listening to music, learning social dancing and reading books. One of the busiest times is in the early morning or late evening when there are groups of people practicing Tai chi. The lake is enjoyable to walk around but there are also swan paddleboats available to rent by the hour.

Accented with Flowers

The park is very busy with people doing activities and there are lots of interesting features that will catch you attention. There is so much happening in the park that it is easy to overlook the colorful flowers that accent the other features.

A park with dragons?

OK, they are not actually dragons but there are huge dragon-like lizards roaming all over the park. The Southeast Asian Water Monitor is the second largest lizard species in the world, slightly smaller than the Komodo Dragons. They can grow heavier than an average adult and longer from nose to tail than a person is tall.

It is almost impossible to miss these giant lizards because they are literally everywhere. They can be seen swimming in the lake, in the grass near the water’s edge, sunning on the concrete and even hanging out in the trees.

Caution should be taken around these creatures! They seem to be comfortable around people and mostly ignore the activity of the local residents but they are wild and all wildlife has a comfort zone that they don’t like people invading. They typically move slowly but they can move quickly when they need to and I would not want to be on the receiving end of a swing from their powerful tail, scratched from their long sharp claws or worst of all to be bitten by their spikey teeth that are venomous.

The Dust on My Shoes

City parks are always on my itinerary when I visit a new city. Most city parks are much less crowded than the famous tourist sites that people come to the city to see. They are peaceful places that make for a good place to relax between the seeing the more crowded attractions. As an added bonus, city parks are good places to see some of the local wildlife like the huge dragon-like lizards that can be seen in Lumpini Park.

I enjoyed walking around the lake and checking out some of the park’s interesting features. I liked the feeling of being in nature but still seeing the urban skyscrapers rising up above the tree line.

I would recommend visiting Lumpini Park if you are someone like me that enjoys a little bit of “Urban Nature” during your travels.

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