After the sparcity of the monestary, we went to a spa hotel for an overnight stay. Arrived at noon and had lunch then took a 2 hour boat ride (should have only been one hour) up the river. We saw lots of local Thai homes, lovely foliage and lotus flowers floating in the river and people just going about their daily lives. The river was lined with lots more temples too though on a smaller scale - it's amzing how many of these 'creations' are around.
Spent an hour at the pool and then half hour in the gym. Dinner was at 7 and then we drank in the bare and chatted till late (11 - which is late for us)
It was nice to have a little luxury again and to have a nice lie in on Friday.
After breakfast we strolled around the grounds and then left to see a pottery where they make hand painted china, then on to see a 100 year old market which was much different to the other ones we'd been too. Lastly we went to a zoo full of lions, tigers, black panthers living in mixed cages - I didn't like this zoo as they had orang utangs dressed up and he animals just didn't look 'happy'
Week 2 is nearly over and next week will be spent teaching in a local school.
Speak again soon
Lovc Sue xxxxxxxxxx
Saturday, 9 August 2008
Life at the monestary
Arrived at the monestary at11 on Wednesday and first we 'organised'our room ready for sleep and we changed into our appropriate dress for the monks- white top and trousers At 12 we had lunch which was some of the food that the monks had collected from the locals earlier in the morning. It was the last meal of the day a the monks do not eat after midday and before dawn.
At 1pm we had our 1st lesson in Buddhism and learned how to meditate both sitting and walking (not at the same time though) - must admit you do feel quite good after switching off for 30 minutes.
There were loads of dogs and puppies at there and I spent loads of time just playing with them and taking lots of pics.
The rest of the afternoon was our freetime so we wandered down to the local town and I finally managed to post my painting back home and catch up on the internet - you should find more photos under the 'Global Thailand folder now. Found a nice coffee shop and then back to base stopping at the local shop to pick up some provisions for the night.
At 7pm we joined the monks in chanting and meditation which lasted for an hour and a half and then we should have gone to bed at8.30 but we snook out to the local shop for a beer and a chat. In bed by 10.30 and spent a fitful night trying to find a comfortable position on the hard floor. At least we had the mossie coils which reduced the amount of bites and the fans kept us cool
Vim woke us at 4.50 am for us to join the monks in their daily round collecting the food from the locals. The monks carried the huge tureens for the rice and we (the women) carried the baskets to collect the extra dishes of hot food which the locals put in plastic food bags. Each house/shop put a spoonful of ric in the tureen and placed the hot food/biscuits/fruit/water on a plate which the monks handed to Peter - the only man in our group - who then placed it in our baskets. Anothe man followed behing with his barrow to take the food from us once the baskets got full - there was so much food and they did this everyday, now considering they only eat once a day!! I haven't worked out where all the food goes butVim reckons that if you're poor and hungry you can just turn up at the monestary and they'll feed you.
I am interested in the Buddhist way of life but I have lots of unanswered questions which was difficult to resolve as our guide doesn't have the best grasp of the english language and my Thai is even more lacking.
Wim made a fruit salad for uswhen we got back which turned out to be more spicy vegetables with garlic and I really couldn't face these at 7.30 in the morning.
Breakfast was at 9 and the masses of food we'd collected was served up.
After breakfast we swept the huge courtyard before giving alms to the head monk's son (another monk) and saying farewell. He surprised us by giving each of us pendant for using in times of 'stress' for meditation. He was a truly gorgeous looking monk with an infectious smile - it would be a shame if he remains a monk forever - such a waste!!
In Thailand all men have to do 3 months as a monk sometime between the age of 18 and 25, they can then choose to return to a normal way of life or remain in the monestary for as long as they are 'happy' It's a bit like conscription with a better message.
Anyway I enjoyed the monastic experience -bit of a change tomorrow
Love Sue. xx
At 1pm we had our 1st lesson in Buddhism and learned how to meditate both sitting and walking (not at the same time though) - must admit you do feel quite good after switching off for 30 minutes.
There were loads of dogs and puppies at there and I spent loads of time just playing with them and taking lots of pics.
The rest of the afternoon was our freetime so we wandered down to the local town and I finally managed to post my painting back home and catch up on the internet - you should find more photos under the 'Global Thailand folder now. Found a nice coffee shop and then back to base stopping at the local shop to pick up some provisions for the night.
At 7pm we joined the monks in chanting and meditation which lasted for an hour and a half and then we should have gone to bed at8.30 but we snook out to the local shop for a beer and a chat. In bed by 10.30 and spent a fitful night trying to find a comfortable position on the hard floor. At least we had the mossie coils which reduced the amount of bites and the fans kept us cool
Vim woke us at 4.50 am for us to join the monks in their daily round collecting the food from the locals. The monks carried the huge tureens for the rice and we (the women) carried the baskets to collect the extra dishes of hot food which the locals put in plastic food bags. Each house/shop put a spoonful of ric in the tureen and placed the hot food/biscuits/fruit/water on a plate which the monks handed to Peter - the only man in our group - who then placed it in our baskets. Anothe man followed behing with his barrow to take the food from us once the baskets got full - there was so much food and they did this everyday, now considering they only eat once a day!! I haven't worked out where all the food goes butVim reckons that if you're poor and hungry you can just turn up at the monestary and they'll feed you.
I am interested in the Buddhist way of life but I have lots of unanswered questions which was difficult to resolve as our guide doesn't have the best grasp of the english language and my Thai is even more lacking.
Wim made a fruit salad for uswhen we got back which turned out to be more spicy vegetables with garlic and I really couldn't face these at 7.30 in the morning.
Breakfast was at 9 and the masses of food we'd collected was served up.
After breakfast we swept the huge courtyard before giving alms to the head monk's son (another monk) and saying farewell. He surprised us by giving each of us pendant for using in times of 'stress' for meditation. He was a truly gorgeous looking monk with an infectious smile - it would be a shame if he remains a monk forever - such a waste!!
In Thailand all men have to do 3 months as a monk sometime between the age of 18 and 25, they can then choose to return to a normal way of life or remain in the monestary for as long as they are 'happy' It's a bit like conscription with a better message.
Anyway I enjoyed the monastic experience -bit of a change tomorrow
Love Sue. xx
Wednesday, 6 August 2008
Tuesday - Monks
Up at 5.30 to give alms to the local monks who didn't turn up until 6.20!! We gave them rice and something hot (curry?) plus biscuits and water, then they blessed us and moved on to the next house.
At 10.30, more monks came to the eco house for their lunch - they sat opposite us and we had to hand them each of the dishes of food - I did struggle with the fact that the women cannot hand anything to them directly. We have to place it on their cloth and then they take it ----Cheek!
We left them to eat their lunch then came back to clear everything away and again they blessed us and went on their way- I am so very holy now!
The next 2 days are going to be very different as they'll be spent at a monestary in the forest.
We had a trial run this afternoon as we visited the monestary where we'll stay on Wednesday night. The rooms are completely bare with a marble floor and a couple of fans on the walls. We'll have a rafia mat to sleep on with one blanket and a tiny pillow. you'll have to wait for the update on how I get on with life in a Buddhist temple!!
Love you
Sue.xx
At 10.30, more monks came to the eco house for their lunch - they sat opposite us and we had to hand them each of the dishes of food - I did struggle with the fact that the women cannot hand anything to them directly. We have to place it on their cloth and then they take it ----Cheek!
We left them to eat their lunch then came back to clear everything away and again they blessed us and went on their way- I am so very holy now!
The next 2 days are going to be very different as they'll be spent at a monestary in the forest.
We had a trial run this afternoon as we visited the monestary where we'll stay on Wednesday night. The rooms are completely bare with a marble floor and a couple of fans on the walls. We'll have a rafia mat to sleep on with one blanket and a tiny pillow. you'll have to wait for the update on how I get on with life in a Buddhist temple!!
Love you
Sue.xx
Monday 4th - Elelphants
We said farewell to Michelle, Ollie and Sandra for 2 weeks as they're off to look after elephants. The rest of us went to see our own elephants and as ever I had a ride - the ride always has a different charm in the various countries I've been to. I rode on Rayrai. a young 24 year old female elephant, this time the seat was like a bench. Afterwards we went to visit an ancient temple followed by another lovely lunch (floor style) - Yes I took pictures of the food this time and will eventually upload them on to the skydrive. The photos seem to be taking an age to load again.
In the afternoon we visited the elephant village where the elephants go at the end of their working day. We saw lots of little (or not so little) babies close up and loads of the grown elephants were just roaming around the yard so we had to watch our backs and dodge out of the way a couple of times. Watched them being bathed and even fed them too so yet another good experience.
Had dinner by the river Chaopraya though we really weren't hungry but it was good to try new dishes - the fish was amazing - Yas - I'm doing my best to eat as much as I can
It was a long drive back to the ECO house in the jeep which is pretty blowy at the best of times. There were loads of disco buses on the roads -they're brightly coloured with flashing spotlights on them and people dancing inside. I thought it was just the odd one but there are loads of them,
Forgot to mention that on the 3rd night that we arrived Wim bought a birthday cake for the 4 of us who had had birthdays in July - a lovely touch I thought.
Signing out
Love Sue
In the afternoon we visited the elephant village where the elephants go at the end of their working day. We saw lots of little (or not so little) babies close up and loads of the grown elephants were just roaming around the yard so we had to watch our backs and dodge out of the way a couple of times. Watched them being bathed and even fed them too so yet another good experience.
Had dinner by the river Chaopraya though we really weren't hungry but it was good to try new dishes - the fish was amazing - Yas - I'm doing my best to eat as much as I can
It was a long drive back to the ECO house in the jeep which is pretty blowy at the best of times. There were loads of disco buses on the roads -they're brightly coloured with flashing spotlights on them and people dancing inside. I thought it was just the odd one but there are loads of them,
Forgot to mention that on the 3rd night that we arrived Wim bought a birthday cake for the 4 of us who had had birthdays in July - a lovely touch I thought.
Signing out
Love Sue
Monday, 4 August 2008
Thailand Ramblings
Thailand is a country full of ornate temples and shrines. In amongst the old less maintained buildings are these colourful, golden and impressive palaces. Thre is such an affinity as I said before to the king and a picture of the king and queen are on posters all over Thailand and huge monuments are erected to commemorate past kings.
Singburi is very flat and you can only see rice fields and palm trees for long distances. Where I'm staying is almost like an american bayou of mississippi or louisiana. Lots of dogs roam around too. The water has lots of undergrowth along the banks and you see the water monitors floating in the water or scurrying along the bank. In camp we see lots of ghekos and toads when we walk back to our room from the bar. The roads are much more westernised here, unlike Nepal etc the quality of transport is much better. Today (Sunday) I'm writing my notes for the blog in an air-conditioned luxury mini bus with leather reclining seats and a TV. We;re off to see a waterfall which is a three and half hour journey but at least we have comfort.
Shopping is 'strange' - there is the odd department store, opticians or internet cafe but mostly there are local market type shops/stalls. I've been trying hard to find a stationery store to buy some wrapping paper and postcards but no joy so far. Even some of the tourist places we've visited don't have them.
On our way to the waterfall we stopped at the cemetery of the soldiers who died during the 2nd world war and those who died whilst building the railway over the river Kwai. It was a very moving experience to see how young some of the soldiers were - the average age seemed to be between 23 - 25 and so many of them British. Then we went to see the actual Bridge over the river Kwai (the Black Bridge). We walked down across on the tracks - a bit scary as you could see the river through the gaps in the track. AT one point I looked up to see where I was going and the tourist train was coming straight towards me (not very fast) but I had to side step onto one of the viewing platforms at the side.
We had lunch and did some shopping then off to the Erawan falls which has 7 levels. We got to level 5 but it was pretty steep and we were limited to time so came back down to level 2 to swim in the lake with the fish which nibbled your toes. Had icecreams and then the long drive back stopping to look at the sights from a huge dam - it overlooked the river Kwai and the valley below. A really enjoyable day
Singburi is very flat and you can only see rice fields and palm trees for long distances. Where I'm staying is almost like an american bayou of mississippi or louisiana. Lots of dogs roam around too. The water has lots of undergrowth along the banks and you see the water monitors floating in the water or scurrying along the bank. In camp we see lots of ghekos and toads when we walk back to our room from the bar. The roads are much more westernised here, unlike Nepal etc the quality of transport is much better. Today (Sunday) I'm writing my notes for the blog in an air-conditioned luxury mini bus with leather reclining seats and a TV. We;re off to see a waterfall which is a three and half hour journey but at least we have comfort.
Shopping is 'strange' - there is the odd department store, opticians or internet cafe but mostly there are local market type shops/stalls. I've been trying hard to find a stationery store to buy some wrapping paper and postcards but no joy so far. Even some of the tourist places we've visited don't have them.
On our way to the waterfall we stopped at the cemetery of the soldiers who died during the 2nd world war and those who died whilst building the railway over the river Kwai. It was a very moving experience to see how young some of the soldiers were - the average age seemed to be between 23 - 25 and so many of them British. Then we went to see the actual Bridge over the river Kwai (the Black Bridge). We walked down across on the tracks - a bit scary as you could see the river through the gaps in the track. AT one point I looked up to see where I was going and the tourist train was coming straight towards me (not very fast) but I had to side step onto one of the viewing platforms at the side.
We had lunch and did some shopping then off to the Erawan falls which has 7 levels. We got to level 5 but it was pretty steep and we were limited to time so came back down to level 2 to swim in the lake with the fish which nibbled your toes. Had icecreams and then the long drive back stopping to look at the sights from a huge dam - it overlooked the river Kwai and the valley below. A really enjoyable day
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