Thai Smiles, Part 56: More Random Folks

I may have used this in the past somewhere. Apologies if so, but it's one I like.

OK, I guess the "break's" about over: I'm back from a stay in Hawaii. For a lot of you that probably conjures up images of beaches, umbrella drinks and lazy days, but this trip was to inter a family member's ashes and begin clearing their houseful of possessions - a good 65 years' worth. We put a very small dent in the total.

I learned that muggy and dusty don't play well together. I'd like to call it a fine patina of history you accumulate on your damp skin, but in truth it's just a layer of grime that makes a tepid shower a treat at least a couple of times a day. Like Thailand, but in this case not merely to cool off or get yourself "freshy," as a Thai friend likes to call it.

It was fun, though, in an odd sort of way - and I freely admit to be an odd sort of person.  The three of us going through things laughed a lot, and caught ourselves smiling over and over again when we'd come across something that sparked a happy memory... which is the best sort of memorial service any of us left behind can offer up, I think! The local UPS shop may send a Christmas card this year after processing about relatively weighty 20 cases of memorabilia and family history for shipment home here; I think I doubled their total week's income.

That said, I found myself going back to the folder of "Smiles" photos a day or two ago simply as a pick-me-up now that the dust has settled, figuratively and literally. It's been a little over three months since we've added to the series, so here are a few more from the archives:

The kid above was one at an orphanage I'd visited in support of a charity. It was lunchtime when we arrived there, but before we'd left the boys had put their plates away and were enjoying their free time. For a variety of reasons the girls are in their own area on the grounds. Visitors are a novelty - you can't simply show up; clearance and supervision are wisely required - and farang visitors are even less common. That adds to the novelty factor, and the kids are always ready to mug for the camera.

This guy was working along Beach Road in Pattaya one morning, trying to get tourists to allow him to set them up with activities for the morning or day. Anyone who's done door-to-door sales (or worse, "cold calling" phone sales) can appreciate him relating how when he gives his pitch he gets turned down a hundred times a day. I made it 101, but he smiled for the photo anyway.

Life's a game, but a game can provide a break in daily life, too

It was lunchtime on an unusually hot day in Bangkok when I took the picture of the two men playing checkers on the sidewalk in front of Pantip Plaza.

The one in the athletic t-shirt (known to some here in the U.S. as "wife beaters", but forgive me for starting in on something that would take too much time to explain) saw me standing and watching and actually thought I might be of some assistance. He made a move, but kept his finger on the piece while glancing up for my approval. Not wanting to butt in I just shrugged my shoulders. As he finalized the move and the man in blue took advantage of his mistake the one in the tee looked up again, shrugged his shoulders and I caught the smile.

Students on a field trip at Doi Suthep, near Chiang Mai 

The last image today is of a group of students I met at Doi Suthep, high on the hillside above Chiang Mai. There's no story behind it, but it's one of those pictures that makes me smile, so I'm sharing it with you.

Hello, Young Lovers / PDA At The BTS

PDAs - public displays of affection - aren't the norm among Thai people. By that I don't mean a mother lovingly patting talcum powder on her child's face roadside before sending them off to play; this refers more to intoxicated tourists pawing their current object of interest in a public or semi-public place outside of the club areas where the rules have morphed somewhat to fit the business at (or literally in) hand.

More often than not you'll see the recipient squirm uncomfortably and/or to pry their way out of the situation, unless it's part of a business transaction (i.e. a Rented Admirer's agreement) and then it's possibly tolerated, but not appreciated. You don't need to take my word for it - just note the looks on the faces of the Thai nearby when they're put in a position to see such behavior.

Leaving that aside, though, love is love, and gentle affection will usually bring a smile to even the more conservative Thai faces, as did the couple in this small photo essay today.

One afternoon while I was cooling off at Coffee Society, a delightful coffee shop spot to pass a little time on a hot afternoon while sipping an iced coffee and watching the world go by I had a chance to see just such a sweet scene. Coffee Society is directly below the Sala Daeng BTS station. 

[For the true newbies the BTS is the elevated light rail train system that can whisk you about the Big Mango. If you click on the links here you can read an introduction, a piece on statistics (and those damned stairs) and about tickets and fares.]

BUSTED! The young woman had just waved at me, seeing my camera pointed in their direction. The man had already seen me, smiled and waved.

On the station platform above me stood a couple peering down at the daily afternoon set-up of the Silom night market stalls. I say "daily" but every so often there's an edict handed down to clear the sidewalks and they're not there for a night or three. This particular day folks were erecting their stalls, much as you'd see along the main Patpong Night Market area being set up. You can also see more about that daily circus in posts 1, 2 and 3 if you want.

While they were watching they appeared to be taking turns sharing affectionate glances and little kisses.  I thought it was sweet, myself, but wondered what the others passing by might say, given the chance.  I couldn't see everyone walking past them from my vantage point below, but it was nice to see those who noticed them usually smile in their direction. If it was what I'd guessed were a couple - especially those, say, under 30 - they often smiled at the person they were walking with.

I was reminded of a movie that is "cinema non grata" in Thailand, if you'll forgive my bastardized latin, but many of you have seen it. Think Rogers and Hammerstein musical from the mid-1950s, starring Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr that included a story of forbidden love graced with the song "Hello, Young Lovers".

They stood there at the railing for at least a half an hour before moving out of my range of vision, apparently getting on a train or exiting the station.  Less than five minutes later they wandered by my seat at Coffee Society, nodded a greeting and went inside to order.

When they came out to find a seat to people watch as I'd done I motioned for them to join me, which they did. I showed them the photos I'd taken, and asked if they'd mind them put here on the blog. They agreed, as long as I didn't reveal any of the details they shared while we visited that day, so I'll leave their story up to your own imaginations.

So, here you are, you two. Since I've already emailed you the full images you know how to get in touch with me if you change your minds, but thanks again for the opportunity to observe and then visit with two very pleasant and gentle people. Stay in touch.

Same Same, But Different! Pt. 13: Plugged Into The Grid

Cell phone in each hand, this woman was lost between them as she waited for a bus on a commute route in Nonthaburi

At the risk of sounding like the late 60 Minutes commentator Andy Rooney, have you ever wondered why so many people have figuratively and literally bought into that sheep-like mentality which allows cell phones, iPads, Notebooks and all they entail - voicemail, texting, tweeting, facebook posts and the likes - to herd them around like the e-sheepdogs they have grown to be? "Grown to be" is too kind, really; mutated or metastasized is probably more accurate.

It's not merely notifications of things in real life, if you stop to think about it. It's the breathless reporting of information relatively few of us really need to know. My life is rich enough without hearing that Jodie Foster allegedly "came out" on the Golden Globes awards from 30 different sources. I couldn't even tell you how many Kardashians there are, let along how many of them are regularly appearing in the tabloids, and for that I'm grateful. I'm told there are hundreds of sites out there about them, in addition to the regular entertainment sites that seem to think over-indulged drunken housewives slugging it out are newsworthy. Really?  Deliver us all.

OK, I admit I'm a little grumpy this morning, but if it isn't too much information I'll share that it doesn't seem as though I can stop to pee today without some device in my home chirping, beeping, chiming and/or blinking an alert of some kind, and it's made me long for the "simpler" times of 30 years ago, when someone was able to contact you on your land line at home, if you chose to answer it, and otherwise could leave a message on your answering machine that you'd hear when you got home - or while you stood there looking at it and deciding if you wanted to pick up and talk to the person calling.

Nowadays far too many folks are tethered to their cell phones. Those of you who are in the company of anyone under the age of, say, 30 knows they're plugged into the grid almost every moment of their time awake. I'd be willing to bet some sleep with their hands together, fingers curled, with their thumbs furiously twitching as if they're texting in their dreams.

It's the same anywhere around the globe where technology has taken hold, most likely. I know it has in Thailand, where cell phones are as ubiquitous as rice cookers. Let's see a show of hands of those who have had a Thai person moving through pedestrian traffic with you and they'll stop ahead of you and begin using their cell phone.  Yup, I thought so. Most all of you.  To my way of thinking it's the ones that do it at the end of a moving escalator, causing folks to bunch up behind them that are the worst.

I saw the woman up top today from an elevated walkway, and at first glance I thought perhaps she'd upgraded from an older cell phone to a newer one and was transferring info, but after zooming in I could see she was actually texting on both of them, and afterwards was texting on one and talking on the other. Eeks.  I hope she didn't miss her bus when it lumbered by in a cloud of exhaust.

I've seen people in Thailand talking on their cell phones while driving city buses, feeding meat to tigers in the zoo, spot welding high on a pole ledge, running a BigC check-out register, driving countless autos and motocy, even shoveling up elephant dung dropped along a trail at a tourist spot. We won't even mention the male and female club workers who keep their cell phones tucked into spots that would discourage you from asking to borrow them to make a call.

Leave the shoveling elephant dung out of it and it could easily be same same, but only slightly different here in the U.S.

As for me, I'm unplugging for the day. The sun was shining the last time I looked up, and I think I'll go for a walk.  Without my phone.

The Ladies And Clubs Of Walking Street

There. THAT'S where I wanted this photo from yesterday to be.

For the very new among you, Walking Street is a nightly phenomenon similar to the night market area along the streets of Silom Road and Patpong in Bangkok; assembled and jolted to life at dusk but sleeping by day. Not that there aren't plenty of touts along Walking Street in the daytime trying to pull you into a tailor shop, but the street is open to vehicular traffic, too.  At night it's pedestrians only. The main difference is not having to snake through a thousand other visitors between stalls on the sidewalk on Walking Street.

Probably not the "Living Doll"
Cliff Richard sang of, but
there she stood one night.

While Walking Street is only one of many areas in Pattaya to find a grouping of bars, go-go clubs and discos it's the one more tourists are likely to experience. You won't find as many families with small children along the other slightly darker sois where ladyboys and girls nearer their expiration dates wait for someone to off them, for example.

Walking Street is worth a post of its own, and I'll get to that soon. Today's post is for "Paul", who emailed me to ask where he (as a straight man) might go as an introduction to Pattaya Night Life. Paul said he was recently divorced and going through a renewed stretch of sewing his wild oats and was taking a trip with friends to Pattaya as a self-professed sex tourist. Just to be clear: I don't judge anyone who's fair and respectful of other humans, so while I feel he's likely to miss out on 99.5% of the other things Thailand has to offer, it's entirely up to him.

Not being an aficionado of females as romantic partners on any physical level for decades I was somewhat at a loss, but then it came to me: Walking Street!

Yes, I'm aware that a person could be taken - in more ways than one - in most any bar setting, but I figured this way he could at least get a nice dinner and be measured for a suit before being fleeced, drugged or assaulted (just kidding there - we often have some control over the direction of our own fate if we use a modicum of caution and good sense).

Girls tout for clubs along Pattaya Soi 1, not far from Walking Street

A man looking for a Rented Admirer of the female variety won't want for choice along the main stretch of Walking Street, and some of the side sois, also. There are dozens of clubs with some stunningly beautiful women there, some at the opposite end of the spectrum, and most everything between. Some have more between their legs than others, but that takes us into an area I'd rather cover another day.

It's not all "pay for play" - you can merely enjoy the company of a desirable person for an evening of companionship and drinks in the club, too, so don't get the wrong idea here.

We've covered Rented Admirers a couple of other times, and although the genitalia differs, the idea behind it doesn't - so maybe check those articles out here and here. (I don't judge anyone who's fair and respectful of other humans, just so you know).

"Hallloooo, hansam man!" A common siren song you'll hear as you walk along Walking Street. Well, that and "Hello, my friend! Can I interest you in a suit?"

Some clubs are beginning
to cater to those who wish to
rent a falang

That said, here are a few shots of lady and ladyboy clubs along Walking Street. They're not reference points for specific people - they were taken some years ago, and workers tend to change jobs/clubs/professions as often as money and whim dictate (kind of like many places in the West), but it gives you an idea of what some of the clubs look like.

For those of you wondering, the bar fine or off fee to have someone accompany you off premesis for any amount of time varies, just as it does in a male club. I'm advised the fee is between 300-500 baht for the club (depending on the desirability of the worker on one level or another) and a tip of around 1,000 baht to your admirer.

One last thing: for those newbies who don't read the posts about gay clubs here, or who found this by a search, be advised that renting a "freelance" admirer from the street is often riskier than renting from a club.  A club has a reputation and usually at least some standards and reputation. A freelancer in the shadows of Beach Road may have an agenda... and nothing to lose.

Repeating an image to illustrate a warning that bears repeating

Next: a few more Walking Street club photos

Trip Report, Part 28: Student Blockade At Kung Krabaen

Uh-oh...The car was off in the distance, past this school group.

When we'd arrived at Kung Krabaen Nature Center the parking lots were nearly empty; it was only mid-morning, and we'd only seen a single group of school kids within the park itself as we took our time walking through it - as one should, I'd say. Figuring we'd exit from where we'd entered the park we'd parked in a small lot near the main entrance, pleasantly surprised at our good fortune to find such a convenient spot.

It wasn't quite as lucky as we'd thought.

The walkway where we came out of the park ended up being a short ways from the car, and the narrow bridge leading to the car was blocked by a student group seated on the ground, listening to one of their instructors giving them an introductory talk about the place.  When the group of folks in the top image passed by, the instructor stopped to wait for them as they walked in front of her. She stood, microphone in hand, and waited for them to go by, and then began speaking again.

"So, what do we do?" I asked my friend. "Let's wait and see if they get up and move," my friend replied "unless you want to interrupt them again."  Swell.  Had I understood a word she was saying it may well have been interesting, but I didn't.

We stood there for about 10 minutes as the students listened, took notes and occasionally glanced over at us. Finally my friend said "I guess we just do like that last group did."  I know enough people in the teaching profession that I felt sort of strange doing so, but we began to walk through the blockade, trying to be inconspicuous as we went between the students and their teacher.

I figured, though, as long as we were going to interrupt them anyway, why not have some fun with it, so I put my hand up to my mouth and began to "talk" silently as we walked along, facing the kids who were now watching us more intently than they were their teacher.  They erupted with giggles and laughter as they saw me mimicking the woman, and that earned me a look from her we in the West might call "shooting daggers".  

The talk went on after we passed, and we stood at the car and again waited, our path to drive out still filled with blue shirts.  At that point there was nothing else to do but wait, and wait we did, some in the group still glancing over at us and smiling at my prank. 

Almost 15 minutes later they got up and began filing past the entry sign, returning my waves and laughing among themselves about the farang who'd interrupted the lecture.

I motioned for some of them near the end of the parade to stop for a picture, and they (naturally) grouped together and posed. It probably belongs in one of the "Smiles" posts, but it fits with today's follow-up post, so here it is.

Trip Report, Part 26: Walking Laem Sing Beach

A young man jumps for joy (or his wife, anyway) as his picture is taken along Laem Sing Beach

It was after lunch and our stop at Bud's Ice Cream that we finally got out onto Laem Sing Beach itself to walk along the surf line, people watch and just meander along for a couple of hours or so. Although it was a warm afternoon the sun wasn't too harsh, and the locals were out to enjoy the day, too.

The Thai being modest overall (and not being tan fanatics many are in other parts of the world) most were wearing shirts in addition to their swimming suits or shorts, as you can see in the picture of people in the water below.

These eight people (one was underwater) were enjoying the mild afternoon temperature

Sea shells of all kinds were
the only "litter" on this beach.
What a nice change!

The beach itself was cleaner than you'd normally see in Pattaya or Jomtien, and it was nice not to have to be quite as careful about stepping on glass, metal shards and other trash. A cut on the bottom of your foot can be more than an inconvenience when you're on holiday, as can the infection that can come soon after; sewage treatment in the Land of Smiles can be nothing more than releasing it into the sea a little too close to shore for my liking. Here there were precious few hotels, so that possibility was far slimmer than other more concentrated tourist areas.

The locals also appeared to be more conscious about keeping "their" beach clean, and I was pleased that there wasn't the usual assortment of wrappers, plastic bags, bottles, cans and other assorted litter floating up onto the beach at the water's edge. Another plus in my book.

The walk brought back memories from my youth of walking along a beach and seeing sea shells all along the way; small treasures when we're children, and still a pleasant sight when they're sprinkled along as far as the eye can see.

A Mother watched as her three young kids played in the small, gentle waves that lapped along the shore of the sandy beach; the little ones edging their way closer and closer to the water and shrieking with happy surprise as it washed over their tiny toes, sending them running back towards Mom before they'd again creep nearer.  Two of the boys repeatedly picked up stones and shells and hurled them with great zeal as far as they could out into the surf.

A message in the sand, left by a local

I got a laugh out of the message above, left in the sand by a local. Unless you've never been to Thailand you've heard someone - at one point or another - defer a choice to you by saying "Up to you!".  Here the tables had been turned, and as you can see above the message was "up to me... becoose up to me"!  Both the sentiment and their spelling of "because" were amusing, I thought.

It's a phrase heard so often along Soi Twilight and Soi Cowboy from club workers trying to encourage an off with a customer, and thinking it might have been left by one of them away for a holiday themselves I went over after I'd taken the picture and added "you go, girl" below the original message, figuring it'd apply to workers of either variety.

Dried and freshly barbecued squid at a cart on the sand

The shells crunching beneath my sandals (worn without socks, if there are any from the Fashion Police reading this) I was lost in thought and didn't notice my friend stopping as the breeze changed direction. He'd caught the smell of BBQ drifting towards us, and exclaimed "squid!". He made a turn and headed back up across the dry sand to a cart selling dried and BBQ squid. I was still full from lunch and our ice cream stop, but had a sample of the piece he bought to snack on as we went back down to walk along the waterline.

The sun was beginning to set as we reached the farthest end of the beach, and we turned to head back to where we'd left the car. In Hawaii (and other tropical tourist areas) you're likely to see tee shirts emblazoned with the phrase "Just another shitty day in paradise", and that thought came to me as we made our way slowly back along the sand. 

Goose barnacles growing on a piece of wooden handle that had washed up onto the shore

It had indeed been a fine afternoon, and one of the nicer walks of my trip.

Thai Smiles, Part 52: Kids In Chantaburi

Radio controlled cars at the Wat fundraiser I attended

Friday... finally.

It's been a long week for me, and I'm looking forward to doing a lot of nothing for the next couple of days.

I'd briefly considered attending the Castro crafts fair in San Francisco, but it's a long drive, and I'd heard from a friend of a particularly unpleasant troll seen lurking in their booth there last year, so I scratched that one off the list. Besides, it's Fleet Week, the city will be packed with sports fans, folks at other street festivals and the Blue Angels will be zooming overhead - which always draws a crowd - so it's best to just steer clear of the whole mess. When the laundry's finished and something is lined up for dinner plans this evening I'm done.

More or less.

Here today is an assortment of kids in the Chantaburi area, in keeping with the trip report about my long weekend near Laem Sing Beach. That poor thread has been dragged from Hell to breakfast already, so there's probably no damaging it further by derailing it another day!

Here's wishing you a weekend with nothing too pressing to do, too. See you on Monday.

This boy was all too pleased to be interrupted while studying one afternoon

Popcorn (sealed from the humidity to keep it crisp) was the item this boy had for sale at the wat fundraising festival

From their nervous surprised looks and giggles these two boys fooling around on the internet may have been looking at things better left until they were a little older.

On Avoiding Being "The Ugly American"

The Three "Stoolges" on Walking Street, Pattaya

For the sake of argument, let's agree that we're not dealing with The Ugly American, the 1958 novel by William Lederer and Eugene Burdick and sticking with the common usage: a pejorative term for a "stereotypical offensive American: a loud, boorish, nationalistic American, especially one traveling abroad, who is regarded as conforming to a stereotype that gives Americans a bad reputation" (Encarta dictionary).

It's unfortunate the term seems to focus mostly on those of us in the USA, which in and of itself is exclusionary enough - after all, there are plenty of other countries in North and South America that contain unpleasant examples of humanity - but I suppose it's all part of it, isn't it?  We're the real Americans, damn it. Now, if the behavior were limited to only we from the US that'd be a different story, but the label of Ugly American fits people across the wide spectrum of races, countries and cultures. You may have an example or two that pop to your mind... I certainly do.

It's reasonably important to remember that we - like it or not - are all ambassadors of a sort, and should behave accordingly. If you read up on your planned destination(s) it's not difficult to learn enough about the local customs and traditions to be a gracious guest.

Two obvious examples most readers here should know about visiting Thailand: it's always wise to be respectful of the royal family, and climbing up onto a statue of the Buddha for a snapshot - or any similar disrespectful actions like it - are likely to get you into trouble, but opening your own personal Pandora's box of less-desirable facets of yourself can, too.

Regardless of how pointedly acerbic your own "humor" may seem be to you or those who understand your "style" at home, sarcasm rarely translates well into another language (or culture). At best, you'll merely confuse the person you're dealing with; at worst you'll come across as an asshole and lose face, which is probably the more likely of the two possibilities, since many who think their wit isn't understood just compound the social gaffe by pushing it further.

The three men sitting on stools at a beer bar (ladies as Rented Admirers optional) are enough of an illustration, I felt, so there's the image.  The one on the far left was being pleasant while interacting with the girls at the club, and the one in the middle appeared to be doing the same.

The Hulk on the right, however, appeared at the time to be a force I'd prefer not to deal with.  He'd been lurching up and down Walking Street a couple of times while I was there with a friend, and we (and others) gave him a wide and clear berth.  Swaying back and forth he actually growled as he moved along. At first I'd thought he might have just been burping, but that wasn't the case.

My Thai friend leaned in towards me and gave me his opinion on where this walking refrigerator may have been visiting from, and he may have been right - but I just said "Ugly American", without thinking. Then I had to explain it, and this time it didn't take much of an effort to get the meaning across to him.

He told a story about seeing one of millions of balding, pot-bellied later-middle-aged male farang haggling with a vendor at the JJ  weekend market a few months before. Haggling is expected by many vendors; a good-natured (if sometimes slightly aggressive) but respectful bantering back and forth in an attempt to reach a "win-win" agreement on the price of an item. This particular episode had begun to escalate beyond banter, and my friend stopped at a safe distance to watch them.

The short version is that the farang actually began to holler about "being an American" and not being willing to be "ripped off by some bandit". When the vendor tried to smile it off and turn away, the farang grabbed his arm to turn him back face-to-face and lunged at the Thai. Vendors and others nearby joined in and gave the Ugly American what he had coming to him, to my way of thinking.

The people who over-indulge in public to the point of losing control of their manners and/or civility can be the worst of it, but the man at JJ was merely a pig-headed fool of a bully, pure and simple.  I'd wager we all run into similar folks on a daily basis. There's rarely an explanation as to why they're such mean-spirited creatures (bad childhood, inferiority complex the size of a Buick, monthly cramps, small penis, inability to hold a civil relationship together... who knows?) but they're there, meaning here and there, anywhere around the globe; being miserable and freely willing to visit their misery on anyone within reach, figuratively or literally.

Readers by now are well aware I'm not one who studiously follows dogma of any stripe, but there are some basic rules of life that I subscribe to, and one of those is what many would call the Golden Rule: do unto others as you would have others do unto you.  That covers nearly all social situations, and if you don't allow it to tarnish while traveling it'll serve you well.

Some Thai Workers On "Our" Labor Day

Iron workers putting 90-degree bends in pieces of  "rebar"

Friday's post about the bar boy's home generated some questions I'll reply to another day, but since today's Labor Day in the United States, and as such a holiday - of a sort - I'm going to play along as if I'm observing this day set aside to honor working people by avoiding as much work as possible. That means a day of photos; today of some folks at work in the Land of Smiles.

Thai soldiers at the train station in Hua Hin

The U.S. pinched Labor Day from the Canadians, but I'm glad they did. I'm not quite old enough to remember the first observance here (that was 130 years ago this year) but I've enjoyed many a long weekend since, so thanks, Peter McGuire, for attending the Toronto observance in 1882 and bringing the idea back home. We "Americans" (since we in the U.S. typically dismiss the fact that there are lots of other countries in the Americas) took the idea and ran with it.

Items in a street stall get a morning dusting by the stall-keeper as a new sales day begins

A flower salesman
peddles his petals

Naturally, we in the US found a way to capitalize on the holiday, and it's become what some claim to be the second biggest shopping day of the year, second only to the day after Thanksgiving (the third Friday in November here), known as Black Friday.

Ironically, with around a quarter of the US population involved in retail businesses, they work through this three day weekend, including Labor Day itself.  Longer hours, too... so go figure. Many of the rest of us take a short trip somewhere, attend a picnic or BBQ, and, of course, shop.

It's also another of our national alcohol abuse holidays, and that often contributes to the yearly 450+ fatalities over this long weekend. May I suggest if you drink, don't drive.

However you spend the day, I hope it's a good one for you. I plan to get a nap in, somehow.

Trip Report: Pt. 21A: Wat Carnival / Fundraiser 2

A monk shared thoughts and bestowed blessings on the assembled, using a long bamboo brush he would dip in water

[This is part 21A of a series that may or may not ever find its way to a proper conclusion. It has to do with my latest trip to Thailand, and the people, places and things I encountered along the way. You can find the rest of the series by clicking here on Trip Reports.]

As you saw yesterday, the work-in-progress temple area along Laem Sing Beach was holding a fundraising festival a few of the nights I was staying nearby at the Seashell Village Resort. Since I don't know the name of it I'm just going to call it the Laem Sing temple. If anyone can provide more of a name than that I'll be more than happy to amend the post.

Boys playing with radio controlled cars at the festival

This monk spoke some English
and was kind enough to spend
some time visiting with me

Both evenings I spent there were fun, even if I did get a little tired of standing to watch the entertainment up on stage after having already walked around sightseeing most of the day.

I confess that part of my time sitting and listening to the monks speaking wasn't entirely driven by a desire for enlightenment - after all, I don't understand much Thai - but it did provide some meditation time; something I'd been shy on for a few days.

Since I didn't understand much of what was being spoken I just tuned it down and spent the time lost within my own thoughts, listening to people nearby having fun and the laughter of the children playing, and frankly that and of itself was as much of a blessing as the water sprinkled on me by the monk that evening.

After my blessing that evening I noticed a somewhat handsome 30-something monk apparently waiting for me at the edge of the group, on my way to the games and food area.  As one of the faith does I offered a high, respectful wai to him, but as he got closer I noticed the unmistakable scent of some form of whiskey on his breath. While I tried to back up he kept moving towards me so it wasn't easy to keep at arm's length.  Then he began to speak, in very limited English, and his speech left no doubt that he'd been celebrating something. [Note: this was NOT the kind monk pictured to the upper left here].

The faithful gather at the festival

I don't mean to sound surprised about a human being acting human, and monks - although they are living life in an honorable service - are human beings. My Thai friend was within reach so I looked to him for his reaction. The monk reached for my arm and held it, pulling me gently towards the area where the new building would be built, off in the direction of the monk's residence.

Worshipers participating in a ceremony

My friend translated for me that my company back off somewhere more private was being requested, but while it was flattering I smiled and shook my head at the monk to indicate "no, thank you." He let go, but he followed us around for a little while afterwards. It's hands down the oddest thing I've ever had happen to me on temple grounds.

The rest of the festival was all I'd hoped it would be, and more.  Children of all ages were playing different games and watching the singers and dancers on the stage to one side of the large, open area.

What you catch you can keep... but it takes some quick reflexes!

In addition to the "fishing" game above, there was a ball toss, a long counter lined with people throwing darts at a wall of balloons, radio controlled cars to race and several other games of skill and chance. The fish game the boys are playing above cost 10 baht.  For that, you were given a cup and a small "net" - a wire circle covered with an extremely thin layer of what I took to be some sort of tissue. The tissue quickly became too week to hold a fish, so you had to move fast to catch even a single one.  I handed the man running it two 20 baht notes and pointed to the two above, giving me time enough to get a picture, but not much more than that.

The stage was a hive of activity. Group after group were introduced and took the stage. Most appeared to be amateur acts; perhaps there was a better-known act of sorts after we'd left, but what I saw were more or less just regular folks you'd see at any small town show.

The little kids were the most fun to watch, because it seemed as if they were having the most fun in the spotlight. I usually don't care for heavy makeup on little girls - like the ones below - but it was difficult not to smile along with them as they giggled while attempting to do their rather graceful routines. 

There were snacks a-plenty, and fireworks, to boot.  In fact, the fireworks were set off right in the middle of things and not off in a separate area as they'd be done here at home.  We were close enough that it made me jump when they started in with them, and, as you can see, they weren't all that securely grounded!

Some of the mortars launched one night

Popcorn for sale at one booth - there were three popcorn booths

They were both nice evenings, and it was even nicer to be welcomed in by the locals for the event.  As usual, a few wanted to come up and say hello to practice their English, and that was an added bonus.  If you ever see an event such as this, I encourage you to stop and wander through.