Twelve New Experiences

1) Seeing Ruins! I got to visit Sukhothai which was of the ancient capital of Siam. It was incredible to cycle and walk among the ruins, to learn about the history of Thailand, of Buddhism in this nation.  

2) Thai Nicknames. English translations of Thai names are complicated. For example, Supatchareporn, Watcharaphong, and Thaowatthanarungroj are a few popular student names. Rather than going by these names though, all students, and all Thai people for that matter, have nick names. Some examples include: Moss, Milk, Cream, Dodo, Golf, Stamp, Tang, Cake, Noname. Although I am now very familiar with the nick name system, I still had to bite my cheeks this morning to keep from laughing when a lady at a coffee shop told me in all seriousness that her name was Pancake.

3) Driving a motorbike! Yes indeed folks, I have ridden a motorbike and my pink helmet is dandy.

4) Going to the JUNGLE! Lan Sang National Park is only 20kms from Tak and Connor and I had a fabulous time hiking in the mountains and swimming in the waterfall.

5) Being called a hippy. On our way back from Lan Sang, we were walking on the road when a man stopped us and, in a confused tone asked “You two walk?… You two are Thailand hippies!” 

6) Saying hi to monks! Or, as my new Chinese friends here call them, “the men with no hair”.

7) Going a month without eating a potato. This was not my favorite of experiences.

8) Counting in Thai. The #5 is pronounced “Ha”. For shorthand, instead of writing LOL (laugh out loud) like students do in Canada, Thai students write “555”  meaning “hahaha” when laughing at a comment.   

9) Buying toasted bread with sweetened condensed milk and sprinkles. A student from my school and her family set up a little stand just outside my apartment where they sell these concoctions nightly. Thais love condensed milk and seem to find a way to put it on or in everything.  

10) Drinking hot soy milk from a plastic bag. This is a typical Thai treat and there are many vendours at the downtown market to satisfy your hot milk cravings.

11) Going to bed and waking up to temple music. I live across the street from a large Buddhist temple and this past week there was a father’s day (or 3 day) celebration in honour of the king’s birthday. The king is held in very high regard and worshiped here.  There must have been a number of musicians as the traditional music began late one afternoon and did not seem to stop until 3 days later.   

12) Christmas in Thailand. This will be my first Christmas away from home and celebrating in a country where Jesus is unknown. It is truly hard to not be with family at this time of year. It is also heartbreaking to be among a people with so little awareness of a God who loves them so deeply.   

Here are some pictures from our trip to the historical site in Sukhothai:

My Island craving finally satisfied. 

We returned to see the sites at night:

Village life in Sukhothai.

Fish farming 

And now some shots from Lan Sang National Park:

Eighteen monks came to school the other day to receive merit offerings from the students and staff. Here are some photos from their visit:

Monks at the market.

Ruins and Radios

Waterfalls in Lan Sang National Park

After leaving Lan Sang, Heather and I went to eat at a restaurant. We asked for food but they shook their heads and pointed in a different direction. It was early so we assumed they opened later and continued walking. Then a young girl called us back saying they’d cook for us and they sure did.  We enjoyed two fantastic omelettes. Afterwards, we went to pay but they wouldn’t accept it because we weren’t actually at a restaurant... we were at someone’s house! So instead they took pictures and laughed at us.

Sukhotai

It was about a 10 km bike ride from the ancient city of Sukhotai to the present city which has a population of 37,000. We biked along the highway. Now in Thailand they have a tradition that when you see a foreigner you honk the car horn as loud as you can. I no longer like that tradition...

It was Sunday so we biked to the only church in Sukhotai. The convenient thing about having only one church in town is that you simply type in church under destinations on google maps and you have directions to church.

The congregation had about 15 adults and a whole bunch of children. The only person who spoke a little broken English told Heather and I that they've set up a Christian radio station and are broadcasting to the people in Sukhotai. I was quite impressed as that is a large undertaking for a small church.

Then came my startling radio experience in Tak. Heather and I were at our favourite restaurant when all of a sudden the Christian song Dare you to Move by Switchfoot started playing on the radio. I was thrilled and without thinking ran to the waitress and asked in English what radio station was playing. The waitress burst out laughing because she thought I suddenly had the urge to buy a radio and happily told me hers was a Sony.    

Sukhotai was the first Thai kingdom, and where one of Thailand’s four great kings reigned from. His name was king Ramkamhaeng. He spread Theravada Buddhism throughout Thailand and also commissioned the creation of the Thai alphabet. There is a large statue of him at the world heritage site. I arrived at the statue and was looking at it when a few other men arrived. Then the men got down on their knees and started worshiping this dead king. They left and more adults started worshiping this statue and bringing their children to teach them to worship it as well. These people truly worship man made statues. Quite glad that my God cannot be contained in a statue, or even a temple as the song “Cannot Keep You” by Gungor so powerfully expresses.

Sukhotai's King Ramkamhaeng's
(Reigned:1278-1298 AD)

Orange        Sukhotai Kingdom

Light Blue     Lavo Kingdom

Red               Khmer Empire

Yellow          Champa

Blue              Dai Viet

Purple           Lanna Kingdom

Sukhotai Kingdom 1238-1583

The first wild boar I've ever seen with a halo.

Typewriters still exist!

Banana Boats and Flying Lanterns

Connor and I had the privilege to go and observe the Loi Krathong Sai festival here in Muang Tak. Loi means ‘to float’ and a Krathong is traditionally a little banana leaf boat which is set to float down the river as a thanks offering to the goddess of water, Phra Mae Khongkha.  Thousands of kratongs which are now also made from coconut shells, bread and plastic can be seen in the evenings floating down the river. Tak is particularly famous for Loi Krathong Sai, as it is a week-long festival here rather than simply a one-day celebration. Inside the kratongs people place candles, incense sticks, flowers, notes of forgiveness, money, and sometimes hair and nail clippings. The candle is to recognize Buddha as light, the releasing of the kratongs with hair and nail clippings is to symbolize the releasing of negative thoughts as well as to ask for personal blessings, and overall, the festival is to thank and ask pardon to the river goddess for polluting the river.

Thousands of vendors set up shop for the festival to sell food, clothing, balloons, plants, fish, dogs, and even tractors! (this made me feel quite at home J) The week is filled with concerts, fireworks, parades, competitions, shows, as well as “khom loi” which are floating lanterns in the sky. The floating lanterns are part of another festival, Yi Peng, which falls at the same time as Loi Krathong Sai and so they combine them here in Tak. We took in some of the 4 hour parade, opening ceremony and saw the launching of the royal kratongs into the Ping River.

It was so interesting to be at the festival and to see the Thais seek forgiveness, worship, and celebrate. There was so much preparation involved prior to the festival done by every business, organization, school, and family. Time, energy, and resources are poured into this annual celebration which is anticipated with much excitement by the Thais. This being said, it was also quite evident that the true meaning of Loi Krathong has been forgotten by most. Little value is placed on the reasons behind the festival, and the focus becomes the fun and ‘feel good’ aspects. Being there, I couldn’t help but reflect on the biggest celebration in my own culture which is just around the corner. Similarly, the true meaning of Christmas has long lost its place in our Canadian celebrations. Are we excited to celebrate Jesus Christ coming to earth, or are we just excited to celebrate? I’m reminded of Isaiah 29:13 when God says “These people come near to me with their mouth and honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men”. Christianity is not about religion, tradition, or specific acts that God desires us to do, but rather, because of His deep love for us, Jesus desires our hearts.  

Thanks again for reading!

~Heather

Cultural Tidbits:

-December 5^th is the king’s birthday here in Thailand and is therefore celebrated as Father’s Day. It is a national holiday and there is no school. King Bhumibol Adulyadej turns 85 today and is the world’s longest reigning head of state.  

  

The Thai flag in lights!

Kratongs come in a variety of sizes and styles.

A royal kratong

Floating lanterns for sale.

Launching a lantern.

A little taste of PEI in Thailand

The floating stage with photo of the king where many of this week's celebrations took place.

And now some shots from the parade:

Coconut shells are used as instruments.

All of the bead work and detailing in decor are done by hand. 

 

 
Here's a clip from a concert: