Visiting "Downtown" Bangkok

Today Fr. Sergio and I had the opportunity to visit some of the sites of downtown Bangkok and to visit some of the sites which are important to the Thailand version of Buddhism. If you want to understand the Thai mentality, you have to begin by looking at what makes up their history and their culture… and Buddhism is so intertwined in this culture that it would be difficult to understand it without having at least a working knowledge of Buddhism.

We decided to take a boat bus into the city this morning, and we really made a good decision: it was pretty peaceful and it gave us a chance to see the city and the people from a different angle than would be possible in a taxi. Once we arrived in the city, we moved around using one of the typical local methods of transportation in the city. A tuk-tuk. (As you watch the video, you’ll see other tuk-tuks go by and you’ll have an idea what they look like.)

I have to admit that I was completely surprised by the huge number of Buddhist monasteries all over the place! I knew there would be some, but you can literally see form one monastery to the next in downtown Bangkok! We visited several. Here I am in front of one of the Buddhas. Don’t worry – taking pictures isn’t a problem; people come in and will talk on their cell phones, eat, smoke, etc. in the temple. It is NOT the same idea that we have of Church (as a PIME priest explained to us). And I thought it was really cute that n case you’re not sure that that particular Buddha will bring you the luck then they have several more in the back that you can pray to (and, of course, make a donation to) who might bring you more wealth and happiness. But if you can only choose one, they hope it will be wealth!

An interesting part of the Buddhist prayer ritual is to buy a little piece of gold leaf which you then apply to one of the Buddha statues so that it will bring you good luck, and your generous gift makes Buddha look good and thus happier.

We also visited the Golden Mountain. This was a pretty neat monument, and it is really high. We did climb all the way to the top in order to get a good view of the city, stopping along the way to ring the bells and gongs. (No, I wasn’t making a religious gesture, I just liked the sound of the bells… and especially the gong!)

I wish I had paid more attention, because right now I can’t exactly remember the dimensions. But we also went to visit the “reclining Buddha”. A common mistake is to think that this is Buddha sleeping. No. This is a representation of the precise moment of his enlightenment. Get a good look at this guy, especially his head. (And they say I have a big head!!!!!)

And the bottom of his feet and sandals are comprised of inlaid mother of pearl.

We had hoped to be able to visit the famed Palace compound, but unfortunately it wasn’t possible. Today there were two special ceremonies and for this reason it wasn’t possible to visit: 1) the Buddhists are celebrating the end of a period which the priests are calling “The Buddhist Lent”; 2) the King is sick and in the hospital (and you’ll remember from yesterday’s post how important the king is!) so the queen came to the temple to say prayers for her husband. As Sergio and I were milling around outside waiting, we also saw a lot of very highly decorated military men (generals?) coming and going from the compound. At any rate, I was able to get just this picture of the Palace Temple complex:
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With the half-hour rainstorm that Sergio and I had to stand through – as well as the ensuing higher-than-usual-for- Thailand humidity that followed – Sergio and I were both pretty tired after this so we decided to head back home by boat bus going up the river. Again, it was a nice smooth ride. We also happened to pass by the back of those slums which we visited yesterday. Can you notice the satellite dishes?!!!

Returning home we had time for a shower and a nap before Mass. You know, it really is kind of disheartening celelbrating Mass (or maybe it would be better to say “watching” more than celebrating) in a place where you don’t understand the language. But I was impressed by the number of Catholics who were there. After a nice supper with our fellow PIME missionaries, it was off to bed. Tomorrow we will make the flight north the Chiang Mai, where PIME works with the hill tribes in what even the Thai Bishop’s conference calls “the mission diocese”.