One for the road...: December 2012

*Click on photos for a larger view.*

Tuk-tuk (the fastest and by far the most fun way to get around Bangkok!)

Our dear friends were getting hitched in Thailand…in a little village outside of Khon Kaen, and then everyone was planning to go to Bangkok to celebrate the hen/stag night before the bride and groom headed off on their honeymoon. Were we going to miss out…no way! So we booked flights, hotels and made plans for my first ever trip to Thailand.

I knew I would love Thailand…the islands and beaches that is, but I wasn't so sure about Bangkok. I have heard all the rumours about ping-pong balls, seedy bars, scams, and other (not suitable to mention on here) extracurricular activities. So I was thinking it will be great to celebrate the marriage of our dear friends, but I won’t put too much hope in great day time activities in the city. I couldn't have been more wrong, much to my surprise, I loved Bangkok! We had a brilliant time in this vibrant, historic, beautiful city.

Since our trip began in Khon Kaen, I will start there.

Khon Kaen

Hotpot

You may recall the hotpot Mount Kinabalu food poisoning of 2010? Since then I have avoided all hotpots, until Thailand that is. The evening before the wedding we all went out for a huge hotpot dinner and I managed to get down a few bowls of questionable meats and veggies. (Thankfully no food poisoning happened in Thailand and we were good to go for the super early start for the super early wedding ceremony the next morning.) That evening it was early to bed for us as Fint had some best man duties to be bright eyed and bushy tailed for in the morning.

Riding in back of pick-up to the hot pot spot

Yummy...questionable meats...my fav! ;)

Mike and I digging in!

Sore tummy or no sore tummy? No sore tummy!

Wedding

The wedding of Paw and Noel was a lovely colourful Buddhist ceremony that started at 8:30 am. (According to her Buddhist Monk advisers this was the prime time for the most auspicious wedding on that day) in Paw’s small home village outside of Khon Kaen. There was drumming, dancing, loads of colour and a delicious Thai brunch prepared by the local village ladies.

Here is some info on a traditional Thai Buddhist Wedding or “Lanna Wedding”:

A Lanna Wedding starts early with the bride and groom preparing food as offerings to the monks while they do their morning rounds; the offerings are comprised of food for the body, flower and three incense sticks---one for the buddha, one for the words of buddha and one for the monks. After this the couple will go to the local temple or wat and receive the formal blessing from the monk. The monk blesses the couple with holy water and then paints three dots on their foreheads (seen in the photos) which represents the three incense sticks given earlier as an offering.

After this the couple prepare for the cord tying ritual called the pook kor mue. (This is the point where we were all invited and involved in.) The pook kor mue is held at the bride’s (Paw’s) family home. This all started with us leading the groom (Noel) in procession filled with dancing, drums and cheering to the bride’s (Paw’s) family home…where she was waiting. When the groom arrives he must prove his worth to the bride’s family and friends by passing through three symbolic gates…wood, silver and gold. 1: The wooden gate is guarded by friends or distant relatives of the bride and the groom is allowed to pass by a simple offering of a drink or song or dance. 2: The keepers at the silver gate are closer relatives to the bride, so the groom has a bit harder time convincing them to let him pass through. 3: The gatekeepers at the gold gate are usually the parents or very close friends and they will torment the groom and make him make public promises to everyone that he will be an amazing husband to the bride. After said promises the groom is allowed to enter the house and the wedding ceremony begins.

The ceremony is led by a village elder that has been through monk training earlier in his life. The bride and groom kneel while the elder gets the pook kor mue (the strings are made from nine cords of cotton yarn). The strings tied onto the bride and groom by the elders and the guests symbolize the couples commitment and unbreakable bond…it also shows that their marriage is a social bond as well as a personal marriage. The elders share their wisdom on marriage and the young guests give well wishes and congratulations to the newlyweds as they tie the strings on the wrists of the bride and groom. Dancing, eating and merry making wrap up the ceremony; it was truly a lovely experience.

One good looking best man! Let the groom's procession to the bride begin!

The Groom's Procession

The Silver Gate and it's Keepers

Cow at the church.

Noel getting his feet washed before the ceremony.

Noel making offerings and promises.

Fint doing best man duties...helping to seal the deal with rice sprinkles.

Beautiful bride, Paw.

Sharing all of our wisdom on a happy marriage! ;)

Reception

The reception was held in the hotel we were staying at in Khon Kaen, and was a super fun eat too much yummy Thai food and then dance away the calories until wee hours of the morning. And we partook in both activities happily! It was a wonderful celebration and it was so apparent how loved Paw and Noel are by all of their friends and family. We are so very happy for them and wish them many years of joy and love together!

At the hotel reception party! Let the dancing begin!

More Ceremony Photos:

Cheeky local village kids

Phimai Temple

We had a free day after the wedding and a day before we flew to Bangkok to explore the area. So Fint (being awesome at finding crazy cool stuff to see) found a temple about 2-3 hour drive away…so we rented a car, (with a little hassle, due to they normally only rent cars to drive around Khon Kaen…but Fint was persuasive and we got the rental…Yay!) So we loaded up the car with water and road trip snacks and headed to the Phimai temple.

We arrived in the early afternoon and didn't leave until the sun had set, which gave us loads of time to photograph this beautiful temple in the many lights of the day. Also we were lucky enough to witness the sun passing through the corridors to illuminate the seated buddha in the main chamber!

The temple was stunning and since not many tourists make their way there, we had the entire temple almost privately to ourselves. Which made it a highlight of my trip; I adore old buildings, especially beautiful old ruins and this one ticked all my boxes. Many thanks to Fint for finding this place and taking me to it….my husband and my life is one big adventure!

(MORE PHOTOS TO COME IN A SEPARATE PHOTO BLOG)

Yummy green curry!

A paddy in a rice paddy. ;) Har, har.

Phimai Temple Facts:

Taken from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phimai_historical_park

The Phimai historical park (Thai: ปราสาทหินพิมาย) protects one of the most important Khmer temples of Thailand. It is located in the town of Phimai, Nakhon Ratchasima province.

The temple marks one end of the Ancient Khmer Highway from Angkor. As the enclosed area of 1020x580m is comparable with that of Angkor Wat, Phimai must have been an important city in the Khmer empire. Most buildings are from the late 11th to the late 12th century, built in the Baphuon, Bayon and Angkor Wat style. However, even though the Khmer at that time were Hindu, the temple was built as a Buddhist temple,[1] as Buddhism in the Khorat area dated back to the 7th century. Inscriptions name the site Vimayapura (which means city of Vimaya), which developed into the Thai name Phimai.

For more info click HERE.

Rice Paddy BBQ and Bonfire –Spiders-Scorpions-Rice

The evening we got back from Phimai temple after having an unforgettable day, we were invited to hang out at a bbq and bonfire in the rice paddy field that is owned by Paw’s family. This bonfire turned out to be unforgettable also! ;)

We were taken on a night tour of the field which included, the rice paddy where the sticky rice we were eating was originally grown and harvested, chillies, ginger, green onions, basically one could create a tom yum soup straight from this field! But not only that, we were also treated to finding scorpions and spiders as large as my hand…running wild on the very ground we were lounging on eating our grilled fish and sticky rice!! Since it was pitch black out, except for the light of the bonfire and our flash-lights I decided it was in my best interest not to shine the lights on the ground near me, and use the ignorance is bliss method to relax and have a fun, chilled out time in this probably once in a life time experience!

BANGKOK

Wat Pho Temple -- Temple of the Reclining Buddha
**Interesting info for Americans: Bangkok, November 23, 2012: Thailand’s famous Temple of the Reclining Buddha has gained further global prominence following a 45-minute tour by U.S. President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during their November 18-19 visit to the kingdom. (This was while we were in Thailand also).Known as “Wat Pho”, the historic Bangkok landmark was the first stop on President Obama’s itinerary after his arrival on November 18, where he was personally escorted and guided by the Abbot, Phra Suthee Thammanuwat.

Widely televised in the U.S. and around the world, the President’s tour included four key locations - the principal hall; the pavilion housing the Reclining Buddha; the main stupa; and the Contorted Hermit Mount, where hermit statues in traditional exercise postures are on display.

It was particularly significant because Thailand was the first foreign country visited by President Obama following his historic re-election, and making the temple his first stop was considered a gesture of respect and friendship towards the Thai people.** Full Story Here

Wat Pho is named after a monastery in India where Buddha is believed to have lived. This is the largest temple in Bangkok and is famous for its huge reclining Buddha, which is 46 metres long and 15 meters high and is entirely covered in gold leaf. The Buddha's feet are 3 metres long and is beautifully decorated with illustrations of auspicious 'laksanas' (characteristics) of the Buddha in mother-of-pearl. These are divided into 108 arranged panels, displaying the auspicious symbols by which Buddha can be identified like flowers, dancers, white elephants, tigers and altar accessories .

Adjacent to the building housing the Reclining Buddha is a small raised garden, the centrepiece being a bodhi tree which is propagated from the original tree in India where Buddha sat while awaiting enlightenment.

One of the four largest chedi in Wat Pho decorated with flower motifs.

One of several stone giants at the entrance gates.

Hermits demonstrating Restorative Poses.
Contorted Hermit Mount is a health park near the south Vihara. Built during the reign of King Rama I, it was the centre of medical science and knowledge from the Ayudhya period, reflected by statues of hermits or Rishi practising exercises. For Thai’s, a hermit is always treated as an important teacher.

One of several stone giants at the entrance gates.

Huge Reclining Buddha

Fixing the mural on the wall.

Big Foot

Mother of Pearl decorative inlays.

Wat Arun Temple (Temple of the Dawn)

We first caught a glimpse of the temple on our first night in Bangkok. We strolled down to have a look at the Wat Pho Temple and after went through an alleyway to an old dock area where we were able to get a look of it at night from across the river.

The next day we went to visit the temple and though it was quite spectacular to see, the smog was heavy in the air which made the view a bit hazy and yellow cast. Still beautiful, nonetheless.

Wat Arun, locally known as Wat Chaeng, is situated on the west (Thonburi) bank of the Chao Phraya River. It is believed that after fighting his way out of Ayutthaya, which was besieged by a Burmese army at the time, King Taksin arrived at this temple just as dawn was breaking.

It's so steep to test if you are worthy for heaven.

We passed the test! ;)

Bangkok City and Markets

I love myself a busy, crowded night street market and the “infamous” Patpong Night Market did not disappoint. I bought a few items... bracelets, dresses, T-shirts, and even a table runner....but I did not see any of the shows! Somehow I don't feel I am missing a great deal. ;) It is a fun market to barter and get a great deal on some trinkets and souvenirs to take home.

A few bracelets and ankle bracelets that I got from the market.

Hen Night

As I was in a different area than Fint and the Stag party…I can only post photos of the Hen’s Night (none seem to be taken of the boys’ night! Hehehe) All I will say is we danced and had a blast until the wee hours of the morning! ;)

Bride and I with our themed fruit and veg headbands on. ;)

Water Neighbourhoods

We took a relaxing private tour of the canals in Bangkok. It was a lovely way to spend the afternoon and quite something to see. There was even a floating grocery store...I would have LOVED to stop in it to shop....next time! We also seen monitor lizards and a mail-man delivering mail by boat...I wonder if the monitor lizards chase after them like dogs do in the west? hmmm... ;)