THE NUTS AND BOLTS OF THE JOURNEY...
Our vacation started early on the morning of Wednesday, August 22nd. We flew from Sioux Falls to Chicago, and then Chicago to Seoul, Korea (approximately 14 hours). As hard as it was to sit on a plane for 14 hours, what really sucked was getting back on a plane after our short layover in Seoul. But, after another 6 hours in the air, we arrived in Bangkok, Thailand. When we arrived in Bangkok, it was approximately 9pm on Thursday, August 23rd. Although it was a long journey, we both agreed we'd do it again in a heartbeat to go back to Thailand. We loved it that much.
Thailand is all one time zone, twelve hours ahead of the Central Time Zone. So, if it was 10am here at home, it was 10pm on the same date in Thailand. This made it easy for us to FaceTime with Stella while we were away. When we were waking up, she was just getting ready for bed. When she was waking up, we were usually in the hotel getting ready to go to dinner.
We stayed in Bangkok until Monday, August 27th, and then flew to Phuket. We stayed in Phuket until Friday, August 31st, and then flew home through Seoul and Chicago.
WAT PHO
While in Thailand, we visited a number of wats (pronounced like the English word "watt", as in a 60 watt light bulb, for example). "Wat" is the Thai word for a temple built in the Thai style of architecture. Wat Pho (pronounced WATT POE) is located in the historical disctrict in Bangkok next to the Grand Palace, and is actually more than just one temple. It's comprised of two separate walled complexes containing various buildings, temples, and gardens. The southern complex is a working Buddhist monastery where monks of all ages live and go to school. The northern complex, which is the complex we visited, houses the famous Reclining Buddha and the Thai National School of Massage. There are over 1000 Buddha images found within and on the walls of Wat Pho. Here are some of our pictures of us walking around inside the complex...
Feel free to judge how greasy we look in these pictures... and all the pictures to come. The weather was pretty hot and humid the entire time we were there, even though this was the end of the rainy season. I can't imagine the humidity during the summer season. Cole kept an extra shirt in our backpack to change into during the day, and we had our laundry done on the first day in Phuket so that we could wear everything again.
There are a lot of stupas on the grounds. We'll discuss these later when we share our pictures and experiences from the Grand Palace. If the curiosity is killing you, I suggest you consult Google.
Wat Pho also goes by the name "Temple of the Reclining Buddha". This reclining Buddha is housed in one of the buildings within the walls of Wat Pho. This particular Buddha is one of the world's largest, at 15 meters high and 43 meters long. I admit that before we left for Thailand we had not done much research on Wat Pho or the Reclining Buddha, but based on its name alone, I was half expecting a statue of Buddha with his big fat belly, lounging in a Lay-Z-Boy, one hand buried in a bag of Ruffles, and the other hand loosely wrapped around the TV remote. (I learned in Thailand that the fat, "rub-my-belly" images of Buddha are actually the Chinese depiction of Buddha - more on that in a later installment.) As it turns out, the name "Reclining Buddha" is actually somewhat crap, because Buddha isn't reclining at all. He is lying on his right side with his legs extended. He's got one arm holding up his head, and the other arm stretched along the side of his body with his hand resting on his ass. I think he would more accurately be described as the "Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition Buddha," although I don't think I'll bother writing the Thai government to suggest a name change.
Women are required wear closed-toed shoes, have their shoulders covered, and their legs covered to below their knees while inside a temple. It was just way too hot and sticky to dress this way all the time, so I kept a scarf, some leggings, and a pair of flats in our backpack to throw on when we ventured inside the temples.
The reclining Buddha's feet are 3 meters high and 4 and a half meters long. The bottom of the feet have 108 panels displaying the various symbols that identify Buddha, such as white elephants, dancers, and flowers.
There are also 108 copper pots located along the wall behind the reclining Buddha representing the same characters of Buddha that are displayed on his feet. People who pass through that walkway leave coins in each of the pots because it is supposed to bring good luck. As a Christian this may have been a sacreligious act for us to partake in, but as they say... when in Rome! They used to collect the money from the pots as a way to raise money for the monestary, but now a few women who work on the grounds collect the coins at the end of each day, sort them into small dishes, and hand out the small dishes of coins for visitors to put in the pots the next day. I figured Jesus wouldn't mind us participating in this tradition since we were using borrowed coins.
After the reclining Buddha, we walked through the complex to the traditional Thai massage school. Unfortunately, we have no pictures of this experience. This is not because we were really off getting X-rated massages in Patpong (the sex district made famous in the movie Hangover 2), and wanted to leave no evidence. We were just both too busy relaxing to be snapping photos.
The massage school itself was one of the most tranquil places you can imagine - the perfect atmosphere for a little R&R. The building was a rectangle, the ends of which were open to the outdoors so that the breeze flowed through the entire length of the building. The walls traveling the length of the building were made of one-way glass, so that the patrons could see out, but people on the outside could not see in. It felt like you were getting a massage in the great outdoors, but not as hot and sticky. The open building is lined with rows of huge massage tables that are only about one foot off the ground, like barracks. We both questioned whether we would feel comfortable getting a massage in this giant room where other people were also being massaged, but all patrons wear "massage pajamas", which are essentially a tank top and shorts version of medical scrubs, so there is no nudity. The massages were awesome, and because massages are such a common part of the Thai culture and lifestyle, we paid $8 for an hour massage for each of us. As you could've guessed, we got massages almost every day.
After experiencing all Wat Pho had to offer, we walked along the street and found a small cafe to enjoy a very late Traditional Thai lunch. Cole sampled some of the local beer, but because I'm pregnant I had to abstain. This was a common theme throughout our trip.
That about sums up our first Thai adventure. Look for the next installment soon!
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