The coronation ceremony for Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn ended today in Bangkok with a large boat parade. The 67-year-old monarch – also known as Rama X. – was rowed on a golden gondola across the Chao Phraya River. The river was closed to other traffic. Tens of thousands watched the unusual spectacle on the shore.
Many were dressed in yellow – the color of the royal family. At his side, the monarch had his fourth wife, Queen Suthida, after the official concubine was violated. The couple sat on the most magnificent gondola of all, a boat more than a hundred years old, with its own name: Suphannahong. It consists of a single piece of teak wood of 45 meters in length.
A total of 52 boats were on the river. 2,200 oarsmen had to do extremely hard work. The rhythm was drumming. In addition, Buddhist chants sounded. The real crowning was in May. Even in Bangkok, where people from the royal family are used to pomp, such river processions rarely occur.
