Nothing like a cup of hot tea!

I still need to finish posting my trip to Thailand, but this week has just been one of those weeks.  I had a pretty bad cold/sore throat so I went to the doctor.  Here in Korea the regulations on medication are such that you have to see a doctor for even basics like cold medicine. (Remember, though, that doctor visits here are super cheap).  The medicine kept me pretty groggy all week... so it's just been one of THOSE weeks.

So what do you do on a Friday night after one of those kind of weeks?  You just plop on the sofa with your favorite comfy blanket and a nice big cup of hot tea!



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Ayuthara

I went on a day tour to Ayuthara, the site of some ancient ruins. 

These ruins are best known for a carved head of a Buddha that is encapsulated in the roots of a tree.

We also visited a large temple there.  Since it was over the New Year's holiday, there were many worshippers present.

Apparently, one of the ways one shows reverence is to apply gold leaf to statues of Buddha sitting around the temple.  Others would burn incense or offer prayers.

Still others would give offerings of money.  I think it was really interesting that there was a "money tree" of sorts where people would attach their offerings for others to see.



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Floating Markets, the Tiger Temple, and Bridge over the River Kwai

My grandmother used to have about 10 years worth of National Geographic magazines that she kept shelved in a small reading room.  When I was growing up, I spent numerous hours there reading about different exotic places and wishing that one day I would get to see them.

One of the things I wanted to see was the floating markets in Thailand.  I made a day trip to one of the largest ones located in Ratchaburi.  It was really amazing! (and yes, I know I use that word a lot when talking about my trip)  There are canals that are used instead of roadways through some parts of the country.  People live along the canals, so the merchants simply take their wares from home to home... kind of door to door salesmen on water. 

In the main market areas, there are shops both along the edge of the water as well as in longboats in the water.  You can find almost anything you can image-- from hats to fresh produce to souveniers to food cooked fresh on the boat.

 

 

 

 

When we left the floating markets, we made a short stop to see the Bridge over the River Kwai (yes, the one from the movie). 

We then finished off the day by a visit to the "Tiger Temple".  Apparently, a number of years ago someone gave an orphaned tiger cub to one of the monks at a Buddhist temple to care for.  Others soon followed, and now there are a couple of dozen beautiful cats there, as well as other animals such as camels and water buffalo that roam the grounds freely.  

During the afternoon when the tigers are feeling lazy/sleepy they let visitors come and interact with them.  It was absolutely incredible to be able spend the afternoon petting tigers.

 

 

 

 

Ever feel like you've got a tiger by the tail?  lol

I was even able to help walk the biggest one back to it's cage as they were closing up for the day.

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The Grand Palace and the Emerald Buddha

The Grand Palace in Bangkok is the residence of the royal family and also contains one of the most beautiful Buddhist temples in Thailand (if not the whole world).  There really are few words that can describe just how breathtaking it is... so, since a picture's worth a thousand words, here's some photos so you can get a small taste.

The Grand Palace

The Royal Guard

Part of the Palace Complex

Temple

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The Land of Smiles

Thailand is known as "the Land of Smiles" and now I know why! The country is absolutely beautiful and the people are amazingly gracious and inviting.

Since I had a month vacation, I decided to spend 3 weeks of that time touring Thailand.  I spent roughly a week each in Bangkok (central Thailand), Chiang Mai (in the north), and Koh Phangan (an island off the southeastern coast).  I also went a number of different tours so I was able so see other parts of the country as well.

It's kind of hard to know where to even start... there were so many absolutely spectactular things.  Here, I'll post a few pics of just the streets and the people to give a bit of a feel for everyday life then I'll make seperate posts for the highlights.

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Wow! How did that happen?

I'm not sure how it happened but it's been 2 months already since I posted here.

So much has happened... all great!  To make it easy to follow, I'll break things down into a couple of different posts.

First, Christmas was really nice this year.  Christmas Eve started a month long vacation for me.  One of my good friends from Daejeon came up that night and we went to Myeongdong Cathedral on Christmas morning.

The service was nice, albeit a bit short.  Apparently, just due to the sheer numbers of people who attend there each Sunday services are limited to about 45 minutes so that there is enough time for one group to leave and the next arrive for the hourly services.

Later, we had brunch, rested a bit, then went to another friend's apartment that evening for a Christmas party... complete with fruit salad for dessert:

Yes, that's a very camera shy Korean hiding behind the fruit!

The Monday after Christmas (the 27th) I hopped on a plane for an absolutely INCREDIBLE 22 day trip to Thailand.

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