Floating Market, Bangkok

This market is about an hour or so out of Bangkok. Took a van then got a boat ride to the market. This canal was ordered to be built by King Rama IV in 1866. The soil around the canal is very fertile and great for growing fruits and vegetables. This is the traditional old style of how the selling and buying of goods occurred. On my tour today was a newlywed couple from Greece and an older couple from Taiwan. We all got along well.

At the Floating Market however, I sampled a small piece of fruit and w/in 15 minutes I was getting sick. I got really hot, sweaty, nauseus and felt like my equlibrium was off. 10 minutes later I was violently ill, throwing up in a bathroom, got rid of everything in my system! I was miserable and scared for a bit there. Called Ric to get some attention and support, so it was good I got ahold of him, he helped and just let me whine....Then I took a nap on the busride to our next stop, had a sprite and a bland lunch of rice and bread. Then I was ok. Something did not agree w/ me. Guess fruit is off the menu now. :(

White Marble Temple, Bangkok

This temple has white marble imported from Italy. One of the monks went overseas to travel and somehow this was part of his discovery to bring back to Thailand.

The Thai Buddha always wears the pointy hat, the Chinese Buddha is the bald, fat guy sitting cross-legged and you can rub his belly. Thai Buddha has long earlobes bc it is based from India. Back then, people wore large earrings that stretched their earlobes.

This temple is like a museum where each statue represents one of the 108 lives of Buddha. One picture depicts him fasting and starving himself. I really liked these different statures, I wish I stayed longer, but it was our last temple and I was pretty tired by that point.

Grand Palace, Bangkok

The Grand Palace was huge. One of the the holiest or most valuable statues of Buddha reside here. It is called the Emerald Buddha, but made of Jade. No pictures are allowed inside the temple. Before you go in, you can dip a lotus blossom into the holy water and tap your head three times. So I did.

Inside the temple, you have to sit on the floor cross-legged or in a kneeling position. You cannot have the soles of your feet facing the Buddha. It was a neat experience to just sit and admire the gold, sparkly shrine w/ the Emerald Buddha at the top. This Buddha has costumes for each season that the King or the King's assistant has to change out, depends on who is available. Honestly, I enjoyed the temples more than the Grand Palace. Oh, it also had 2 platforms for the King to get on an elephant.

More Thailand Tidbits:
Thailand used to be called Siam, which was a Monarchy rule. The name changed in 1932 to Thailand meaning Land of Freedom.

All kids have to wear uniforms to school. The boys have to wear really short hair cuts, less than 5 centimeteres long. Everyone is to look alike. It is mandatory for kids to go to school up to 9th grade, from there the parents pay for extra schooling.

Many Japanese factories here bc of low labor costs. 60% of Thai people are farmers who are typically quite poor, there is a huge gap between the rich and the poor, similar to Mexico. Main exports include seafood, crops/fruits and jewlery. Thailand is the only country in Southeast Asia never to colonize.

You can tell Thai people apart from Chinese or Japanese bc they have tanner skin and larger eyes.

Lots of Chinese defected to Thailand after WWII. Most of the war history of Thailand occurs with Burmese.

Language is based on Sanskrit and has 44 consenants, 32 vowels and one word can have 5 meanings depending on the tone. Ka, ka, ka, ka or ka. Mai, mai, mai, mai or mai. Could be stuck, legs, silk etc.

Very family oriented. Grandparents live w the families to care for the children bc the parents are working. Free to chose your own spouse, no arranged marriages like India.

Street vendors sell drinks in clear plastic bags bc you can put ice in the bags, drink it w/ a straw.

Thai and most asians love white skin, they actually sell "white" lotion to make your skin whiter, unlike Americans or Europeans who think a tan looks healthy.

Lady Boys--cabaret shows, transvestites put on a good show apparently. They are called Lady Boys.

Thai also drives on the left hand side.

64 million people in Thailand, 9 million in Bangkok.

Reclining Buddha Temple, Bangkok

The Reclining Buddha Temple was really cool. All temples require you take your shoes off, so bare feet or stocking feet only. When I first walked in I could hear a cling-cling noise. These are 108 bowls that people drop small token coins into. You can buy a bowl of coins for 20 Baht (donation to the temple) and walk down the line and drop coins into these metal bowls. Why 108?

Buddha--was a real man, just like Jesus Christ. Buddha was alive 543 years prior to Jesus Christ. Our Christian Calendar is 2007 this year bc our dates start at 0, when Jesus was born, that's why the dates prior to Jesus are B.C. So the Buddhist calendar is 2550 this year (not 2007) bc Buddha is 543 years older than Jesus.
Buddha was the son of the King of India. He lived the life of luxury and left that life to travel. He discovered there was so much pain and suffering in the world, he wanted to know the cause of this. What he discovered is that pain and suffering is caused by passion and illusion. He dedicated his life to trying to find Nirvana and stop the suffering. Buddhists believe in reincarnation, Buddha is said to have 108 lives, therefore, 108 bowls in the temple. During these lives, he tried to experience different types of hardship in order to learn. (I think.) If anyone who is reading this and knows more about Buddhism, I apologize, some things may have gotten lost in translation.....Reaching Nirvana means one is not reborn again and stops all suffering. Dropping coins into these bowls I think is similar to how Jesus died for our sins, Buddha lived our suffering, so prayers are said in addition to the act of doing this.

Golden Buddha Temple, Bangkok

The Golden Buddha is a 5.5 ton statue of Solid Gold! It is 700 years old and was covered in concrete to hide the true value. Only 50 years ago did part of the concrete chip off to reveal the gold underneath. It is now on display at the temple.

There are at least 30,000 temples in Thailand, Buddhist Temples. I got to visit three yesterday as well as the Grand Palace, where the King can live if he choses or house Royal visitors. Similar idea to Buckingham Palace in London, it is just one of many homes.

I need to back track a moment, my spa experience. I got a salt scrub, a Thai massage and a facial. The salt scrub is an exfoliant and I have had these before in the states, very nice. Most massages in the States don't do your stomach bc that is an area where people might be self concious as well as storing lots of emotions. She did my stomach and then my bossom...Whoa! Hello! I guess that is a part of the body as well.....very professionally done though. A body is a body. the Thai massage part was interesting. I could have opted for Swedish or Sports but, I can get those any old time back home. When in Thailand, do Thai massage. I wore cotton jammies for this, baggy pants and shirt w a sheet over me. I couldn't believe how much pressure this small woman was putting on me, I can't handle deep tissue so I asked for medium pressure. I realized the little bugger was walking on me!! Thai massage incorporates stretching and pressure points. Thank goodness she was only like 90 pounds! She was walking on the back of my thighs while having hold of my ankles and pulling my feet toward the ceiling.....Uncle! Uncle! I misread the brochure, I thought I signed up for Thai massage, not the WWF Smackdown Treatment. I was worried when I had to roll onto my back, where was she gonna walk now? She didn't, but she did manipulate my body in positions only Gumby can relate to, and I am not a flexible person to begin with. This little Thai Acrobat w/ Hercules Hands. Not that being on the torture stretch rack is enough, Herc proceded to hit my legs and feet and shoulders w/ her fists. Ahhhh, Very relaxing. When I had to shower, I accidentally walked into the closet bc I was so disoriented, Herc says, "hey lady, showa ova here" (actually I heard hey rady) but anyway... I finally got to the right prace. And I am sore today. But at least I can touch my feet to my head now.

Ok, Golden Buddha Temple. When Buddhists go to pray, they can buy 3 sticks of incense (one for the Buddha, one for his scripture and one for the Buddhists Monks)....they also bow 3 times for the same reasons....so 3 sticks of incense, one yellow candle and 4 gold leaves. These gold leaves are very, very thin and square in shape about the size of a dime. Each leaf comes in between rice paper bc you can't touch the gold, it will stick to your fingers. You light the candle and put it in a tray, light the incense and stick it in a big bowl of sand so it stands up. Then you peel back the rice paper and stick the gold leaves to these small statues of Buddha, making a wish or prayer w each one. You also can buy a lotus blossom to include in the offering as well. The gold leaf is to symbolize prosperity. These are all offerings to Buddha, the food, gold, incense and flowers.

We asked if I could take a picture of the monk w his persmission.

My tourguide, Tan, is standing next to a guardian statue of the temple.

The monks are meeting and learning scripture and manner.

Thai men are supposed to go into the monkhood for a period of time in their lives after 20 years of age. They can choose how long, 2 weeks, 2 months, 2 years, a life time etc. They learn Buddha's scripture, manner, meditation etc. They live off of the food the public gives them and they cannot eat after 12 noon. They also have free but modest accomodations funded by donations I think. Recently there has been a problem of young boys that join monkhood for the "free ride" but they are cracking down on that and making sure these men are serious and dedicated monks. They also do not work. Monks can chose which temple they want to be affiliated with and have the freedom to travel to other temples to learn about those as well. Once a boy decides to become a monk for a short time or his life, when he comes home to family and actually all the time for that matter, he is on his best behavior. He cannot play and wrestle w/ his siblings like he did when he was little. The robe and manner are taken seriously.

Bangkok, Thailand!

I arrived in Bangkok quite late at night and I am so glad I arranged to have a tour for the first part of my Thailand adventure. My tour guide was at the airport to greet me and take me to my hotel. His name is Tan and he is very smiley and informative. Today was my day at leisure to catch up on sleep and venture out on my own. Plus, the agent that booked my tour (who is Chinese and lives in Toronto, which is where I had to call) he called when I landed on my cell to make sure I was picked up. So I felt looked after and was glad I had a plan. When I walked outside the airport, it smelled thick and hot, but sweet too. Like flowers, jasmine or fruit....

The flight was 12 hours and I didn't get much sleep. Drunk old man arguing w/ the crew about not being served more alcohol bc they cut him off. Ready to throw him out the window....

Anyway, today I went to China Town. Originally I thought today I would just hang in the hotel and get my bearings, stick close to home. But I ended up waking up early feeling rested and healthy and couldn't wait to explore! I am an adventurer at heart I guess. On the plane I watched a Thai cooking show where an American chef came to Thailand to get inspiration for his recipes back home. One of the dishes for breakfast is a chicken pork rice soup. At a cafe this morning, I ordered it and it was great! They like having lighter meals for breakfast....

Here's what I know so far about Thailand:
95% Buddist, so a very friendly people
Called the "Land of Smiles", I also think it should be the "Land of Soup", they have tons of varieties of soup!

Baht is their money. 33 Baht is equal to $1 dollar...

Kingdom= They have a King. He has been in rule for 60 years and the people love him bc he works for the people. They wear yellow on Mondays to honor him bc he was born on a Monday and I guess yellow is color of honor, not sure yet. He is 79 years old. The King was born in Boston of all places. His father was educated at Harvard. The King's uncle was the King prior to him but had no sons, so his nephew took the throne...

Monks, wear orange robes. I guess they only live on the food that is given to them and they will only eat meat if it is given, they cannot order the kill of the animal. In the cooking show I saw on TV, the monks come out very early in the morning and receive the food and gifts from the public, then they give blessings to these people. Women are not allowed to hand anything to the monks or shake their hands.

I took a water taxi to China Town. Had to catch this water taxi from my hotel, then catch another Express boat to the pier for China Town. I missed that pier by 3 stops, had to get off, wait for the next Express Boat, pay another 18 Baht and go back. Oh well, it wasn't obvious and I just laughed. China Town is interesting, low quality products I was told and a place to barter. I have a cheat sheet for simple phrases and have been using that. Similar to Hispanics, the Thai are very appreciative when you try to speak their language.

At the market, the white flowers were sewn together w/ roses. I don't know what you are supposed to do w/ it, but they smell delicious!! I bought one and wore it around my wrist and just basically kept smelling it all day! Smells like orange blossoms. Bought some hairbands and cute barrets since I will be wearing my hair up here. I don't really need anything anyway.

Tuk-Tuks are the 3-wheel motorized carriages, I haven't ridden in one, some may take you for more money since you are a tourist so I will wait for guidance from Tan.

Khup Khun Kaa--thank you (women end in Kaa, men end in Khrap) :)
La Ka Towrai--how much is it?
Sawasdee Kaa--Hello, prosperity

The water taxi and Express boat are on the Chao Phraya River, very dirty not bc of trash or garbage, just muddy, murky dirty.

I could not identify many of the foods, meats, seafood things at China Town, think mexican market times 100. I thought to myself, "hmmm, what is that? Eww. That's nasty." I won't eat street food from vendors from what I have been advised, restaurants and hotel food will be ok, plus my tour includes meals and I don't think they are in business to poison their clients.

Back at the hotel and have spa afternoon w/ Thai massage and facial. Pampering is cheap here and I plan to take advantage of it :)

Wanaka, NZ

I didn't get a chance to include these pictures before Queenstown. Wanaka is a small ski town also on a beautiful lake. We really liked this little town, good beer and fresh green lipped mussells.....