MTSE Thailand Strikes Back! Bangkok, Day 2

Welcome back to the blog! Or if you're a first time reader, welcome and thanks for following our trip.

For students, family/friends of participants on the 2023 Westminster May Term Thailand trip, I'm one of the faculty members (along with Han Kim) who will be traveling with 11 Westminster students for the next month. I do my best to update the blog every few days with the who/when/what/where of the trip, as well as some photos. And with that introduction, let's jump right into it.

We arrived in Bangkok around 12PM local time yesterday after a very, very long series of flights. The leg from LAX to Taipei was 14 hours and I'm pretty sure that every single person in a 10 foot radius of my seat watched Ocean's 11.

After getting checked into the hotel, our goal was to keep the whole group awake (which is no easy feat after 20+ hours of travel) until the evening so that we could adjust to local time as quickly as possible. We gave students a very brief walking tour of the local area and oriented them with the Terminal 21 shopping center, whose major highlight is that it has a LOT of very inexpensive local food options, so students were able to dive right into sampling local Asian cuisine. Some brave students have already checked durian off their list :)

Today was our first full day in Bangkok, and it was scheduled to be a free/exploration day for the group as people get settled in, take care of personal needs, etc. A group of students joined me for an "early morning activation" at Benchakitti Park, located a few blocks from our hotel. 

Missing a few students, but this was our group of early morning activators

Check out the size of that monitor lizard!

After early AM activation, Han and I put some options out to the group, and most students elected to join us for a tour of Wat Pho, the second-most visited site in Bangkok behind the Grand Palace. Visiting Wat Pho also gave us an opportunity to practice using the local metro system.

Upon arriving at the Wat, Han treated the group (thanks, Han!) to a guided tour of the site, which was absolutely worth it. Our tour guide, Ton, has been a licensed tour guide for 17 years and teaches religious studies and philosophy when he's not guiding. Having the additional insight and context for our experience at Wat Pho enhanced our visitor experience so much. Ton taught us about the history of Wat Pho, explained basic principles of Buddhism and the historical/cultural influences of Theravada Buddhism (the predominant form of Buddhism in Thailand), and broke down the basic practices of Buddhist meditation. Ton provided us with a pamphlet that he wrote that explains these concepts far better than I could, so I will share his explanation instead (below).

Ton giving an overview of Wat Pho.

The group about to enter the Wat

The Reclining Buddha

Image at the base of the Reclining Buddha depicting the 16 levels toward Enlightenment

After touring the Wat, we ate lunch at a riverside restaurant (Eat, Sight, Story) before doing a quick walkthrough of some of the flower markets near Chinatown. 

One of the larger flower markets in Bangkok

Touring the flower market

We met Noi and her sister Lek (our two Thai hosts for this trip) at the Cabbages and Condoms restaurant for dinner. From last year's blog post on Cabbages and Condoms:

Cabbages and Condoms is part of a larger unit of resorts, restaurants, and initiatives designed to help the Thai population minimize risk of HIV/AIDS transmission and improve family planning resources. It’s been incredibly successful. From their website (edited slightly for clarity):

“C&C operates restaurants, resorts, community-based ecotourism and training centers, and uses the earned income to support the development of quality of life and community. C&C is part of the Krabi Integrated Rural Development Center (BIRD-Krabi), a unit of the Population and Community Development Association (PDA).”

Students posing at Cabbages and Condoms

Sorry the text is small--this poster provides an overview of the history of the Population and Community Development Association and Mechai

Han providing some context for the Cabbages and Condoms restaurant.

Okay, I think that's just about all I have in me for today's post. Tomorrow we'll travel to Nang Rong. Stay tuned!

Information on Wat Pho and Thai Buddhism, from Palatthorn Bunsiripalatkul (Ton) with assistance from Pinit Ratanakul)

Thailand Day 26: Bangkok Day 2

Better late than never!

I'm writing this on June 27, so we've been back for nearly two weeks, but don't worry, I still wake up at all weird hours of the night and my stomach will never be the same. ;)

Now I have the challenge of piecing together the last few days of the trip from memory--making a note to prioritize blogging in real-time for future adventures. Okay, let's give it a whirl.

6/13 Bangkok Day 2

With our Thai support team/drivers officially off the clock, our group was truly on their own for the next several days. We were thrilled to discover that two students had signed up for a Muay Thai training class and several others bought tickets to another Muay Thai fight (a much larger spectacle compared to the one we witnessed in Chiang Mai). 

Keller and Lawson at their Muay Thai training class (photo credit: Keller)

The must-do activity on my list this morning was the Red Cross Snake Farm. I have had a weird little obsession with snakes since I was a wee little lass. I was obsessed with Rikki Tikki Tavi* and the cobra scene in The Black Stallion even though I could not for the life of me tell you the plot of this film or book. 

*note: as an adult, I now understand that Rudyard Kipling and many of his writings perpetuate harmful imperialist and racist views. I can appreciate a snarky little mongoose going HAM on a cobra, but most of his works and philosophical stances should be challenged.

Okay, back to snake farm--

The snake farm "has served as educational organization about snake for public, tourists, government and private organization, school and university in order to understand snakes habit and improve attitude on snakes." HELL YEAH!

Located in the very cool Queen Saovabha Memorial Institute, the snake farm conducts research, provides educational outreach, milks snakes for antivenin (note--that is the correct term, although "antivenom" is also used interchangeably even though it's not a real word), offers snake handling demonstrations, offers an exhibit of snake skeletons and cadavers and explains biological processes, and the farm houses a variety of venomous and non-venomous species of snake. 

Credit to Andrew "Megas' Russell for my oft-repeated anecdote about handling snakes:

We may be familiar with the saying:

"Red on yellow kills a fellow

Red on black venom lack"

However, people mess this up all the time. For example:

"Red on yellow seems pretty mellow

Red on black might attack"

So what do we learn from this? Here's an updated saying:

"Whether it's green or brown or purple--DON'T TOUCH SNAKES."

Fun facts:

• 85% of snakebites happen on the hand because ding dongs are trying to touch snakes
• research varies but studies generally present that 60-75% percent of bites happen to males

So what's our takeaway? DON'T TOUCH SNAKES. FELLAS, DEFINITELY DON'T TOUCH SNAKES.

Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk. Also, this is not the first time I've dropped the "don't touch snakes" mantra in the blog--apparently I've been singing this tune since Colombia in 2019... If you've ever wondered how long it takes to run out of original blog content, the answer is apparently about 20 years.

Okay, back to the snake farm. I could really spend like 15 blog posts just about the snake farm but there are a few other adventures to cover, so I'll try and limit it to pictures and a video of the snake milking.

Video of monocled cobra being milked

Chris, Kellie, and Cory at the snake farm

Banded Krait - member of the cobra family

Danger noodle being milked

Finished process of extracting venom

Skeleton of a king cobra, which can grow in excess of 17 ft!

King cobra with its skeleton on the inside

If you find yourself in Bangkok and are not terrified of snakes, I would highly recommend this experience!

Okay, what did we do after snake farm...

It was raining pretty heavily when we finished up at the farm, so we sheltered at the institute for a little while to let the weather clear up. Chris headed back toward the hotel, but I wanted to take Cory to Thipsamai, the oldest Pad Thai noodle house in Bangkok--we put the invitation out to the whole crew but no one took us up this time. As every student on the trip will tell you, I'm incredibly ambivalent about pad thai as a dish. It's...fine. Pad see ew is better. That said, this restaurant is worth the visit and their pad thai is objectively better than most.

Pad thai

View of the restaurant

View of the restaurant

After lunch, we checked in with folks to get updates on their adventures --folks had spent their day touring wats, visiting cafes, and enjoying the sites and sounds offered in Bangkok.

Students at a cafe

Students at Wat Pho (known for its giant reclining Buddha)

(this photo might have been from 6/12) - enjoying the sunset

Cory and I tried to catch the group that was touring Wat Pho, but we just missed them. I cover Wat Pho extensively in this post, so check it out. That said, the last time I was at Wat Pho in 2023, I didn't realize its significance related to Nuad Thai (traditional Thai massage).

From the BBC:

Added to Unesco’s Intangible Culture Heritage of Humanity list in 2019, this ancient healing method practised by Buddhist monks at the temple uses a blend of stretching, yoga and acupressure techniques to relax the body. Unlike Swedish massage or Hawaiian lomi lomi massage, where the patient is a passive participant, in Thai massage, the patient – who remains fully clothed – bends, stretches and moves their limbs with the help of the therapist to boost flexibility. Some therapists in Thailand will even step on the patient’s back to more deeply massage the muscles, although it’s not a technique used by all.

Chiselled into the marble on the Wat Pho plaques are representations of sen lines – crisscrossing energy paths on the body that therapists follow when placing their hands, feet or elbows on a person – which are believed to be conduits of “life force”. Each plaque features the outline of a human figure with features such as a rib cage or spine, and the network of thin black lines is intersected with dots, depicting acupressure points. Each acupressure point is annotated with a label noting which ailment it corresponds to. In Nuad Thai, it’s thought that the body comprises four elements (earth, water, wind and fire), which the therapist rebalances by manipulating the acupressure points to remove any energy blockages from the sen lines.

In the mid-19th Century, before the introduction of modern medicine in Thailand, the 16th-Century temple served as a centre for medical education, which included Nuad Thai as part of its therapies. A more formalised traditional Thai medicine school was opened in the grounds in 1957, and when King Bhumibol visited the school in 1961 he suggested Nuad Thai become a separate curriculum at the school, which it did in 1962. Today, students from all over the world come here to study the practice; and while Nuad Thai can now be found in spas across the globe, the soul of the therapy hasn’t changed much from its humble beginnings.

Pretty cool stuff. We opted for a 30 minute foot massage at Wat Pho before returning to the hotel, and it was quite nice as you might imagine.

Okay, last thing on our agenda for this day was a Dinner and River Cruise along the Chao Phraya River aboard the Chao Phraya Princess. We opted for the Indian buffet cruise instead of the international buffet, and we would make this decision again 100% of the time. While this is arguably the most "touristy" thing we did the entire trip, I would actually advocate for this to become imbedded in the MTSE itinerary. It was a really nice way to get to see various cultural sites in Bangkok, the company took care of all hotel transportation, the food and entertainment were **awesome** and the price was about $35 USD per person. You can hardly eat a non-buffet Indian dinner in SLC for that price, and it doesn't come with a ship or dancing! We made some friends with folks visiting from India who were celebrating their honeymoon and they taught us dances (which I replicated poorly) and it was truly one of the highlights of this trip.

Our new friends!

Cruising down the Chao Phraya river

All you can eat, baby!

Okay, that wraps up the penultimate day. One more day to cover and then we put this puppy back into blog-hibernation for another year!

Thailand May 14 / 15: Hiking in Namtok Chet Sao Noi National Park / Wat Pha Sorn Kaew (Monastery)

We've hit the part of the trip that feels like a bit of a whirlwind as we are only in various sites for 1 or 2 nights at a time. As I sat down to write this post, it took me a minute to remember which hotel we were at this morning.

Okay, so backing up a few days. After arriving in Khao Yai, I made what is now becoming an annual mistake of assuming we were hiking in Khao Yai National Park (made the same mistake last year). The entrance to KYNP was/is very far away from our hotel, the Raintree Residence, and it didn't make sense to drive hours (after driving a lot of hours) to the park entrance only to turn around and drive right back in the opposite direction. That said, KYNP is a very large area, and our hotel provided views of the land that would be encompassed by the park designation. 

My co-instructor Han and me. Khao Yai in the background.

And we still got to visit a national park! Just...a different one, and much closer to our hotel. Also, side note--for the second year in a row, I managed to not take any pictures of the Raintree Residence, which is a super bummer because it's a very, very cool hotel with some neat features on the property, such as an Archimedes Screw, a tandem bike that powers a water wheel, etc. 

Students hanging out in one of the reading nooks at the Raintree. Photo credit: Isabel Crofts

Anyway, moving on. We spent the morning at Namtok Chet Sao Noi National Park, a small(ish) park featuring a 7-tiered waterfall on the Muak Lek River. Interestingly enough, while most foreign tourists tend to visit Khao Yai NP because it's bigger and more well-known, NCSN National Park seems to be much more popular with the local Thais and is basically located in the same area. Our group did a mile-ish hike around the waterfalls before stopping to swim for an hour. Apparently one of our students heard (or saw?) a pit viper fall out of a tree and chase a lizard. That sounds *rad* and I wish that I would have seen it!

[insert "Chasing Waterfalls" joke here]

Lots of banyan trees and roots on either side of the river

A little bit about the park:

From what I could gather from interpretive signs, In 1953, after the Ministry of Agriculture ordered the Royal Forest Department (equivalent to our USFS) to restore the area. The King saw this area as one with great potential for the Thai people to use recreationally (the park sign was translated to "to cause people to picnic"). In 1979, there was a pretty hefty reforestation effort to restore the surrounding forest. It received its National Park designation in 2016. 

While students were swimming, I opted out of the rock scrambling because of my recently-repaired ACL and took another lap on the trail. I'm glad I did because I got to see the park at what seemed like full capacity near the main entrance. Hundreds of local Thai families swimming, having picnics--it was very cool. It was crowded, but not in a "hiking the Delicate Arch trail on a Saturday in May" sort of way.

We spent the rest of the afternoon getting to max and relax back at the Raintree and I'm confident that in addition to swimming and socializing, students spent some of their free time responding to our journal prompts :)

Today, we left Khao Yai to travel to Petchabun Province, where we ate lunch at Pino Latte restaurant and visited Wat Pha Sorn Kaew (Monastery). 

Lunch at Pino Latte. Photo credit: Noi B. Vera

Wat Pha Sorn Kaew is a relatively new monastery; construction was completed around 2004 and it received its formal designation as a Buddhist temple in 2010. It is really, REALLY hard to find information about this Wat online. We've asked students to do a little Sherlocking to explore questions that they had specific interest in. For example, here are a few of mine:

1) What is the significance of the 5 Buddha?

They represent the 5 Buddha that went down to earth (source). The tallest statue is approximate 7 stories tall.

"The majestic Five Buddha Shrine Hall was designed by Master Amnart Opaso (Wat Pha Sorn Khaew’s founder) as a dedication to the traditional five Buddhas who visited the Earth and as a merit for King Bhumibol Adulyadej on his 85th birthday." (source)

2) What is the design style of this Wat?

Students touring the grounds and admiring the 5 million mosaic pieces

"A mix of Catalan modernism and Indochinese Buddhist architecture."  (source). There are more than 5 million mosaic tiles within the walls, floors, and ceiling of the Wat.

3) The main prayer hall has a large reclining Buddha (a similar pose to the Buddha in Wat Pho). What's the significance of the reclining pose? 

(Note: I didn't take a picture of the large reclining Buddha in the main prayer hall, but this image contains a Buddha in a similar pose)

"The posture of the reclining Buddha is referring to the pose of a sleeping or reclining lion presenting entry into complete spiritual enlightenment through the ending of all worldly desires. (source)

Okay, I'll keep my questions to a minimum because I would hate to deprive our students of the opportunity to conduct further research :) :) :)

After leaving the Wat, we checked in at the Imperial Phukeaw Hill Resort, which was/is still one of my favorite places that we stay on this trip. It's like...if the Shire were in Asia and on a steep-ass hill.

Imperial Phukeaw Hill Resort

Students had free-time the rest of the day. Some of us took a short (but uphill) hike to Phukeaw Peak, which has a little park on the top of it that is like...kind of eagle-themed maybe? Or bird-themed? Either way, it's a lovely little park and gives great views of Petchabun province. 

I've been trying to branch out with my pun attempts on this trip

Westminster should consider a similar set of photo wings on our campus...

We had dinner at the hotel's restaurant and enjoyed the dulcet sounds of an evening rainstorm.

Tomorrow, we'll drive to Sukhothai for another quick layover before making our way up to Chiang Mai.

Shoutouts:

-Alysha--thanks for reading! Thai pancakes when we get back.

-Kamiya's grandmother, I know your grandchild isn't on the trip this year, but it would absolutely make my day to find out that you still read this blog on occasion :)

-(Besides Kjarsten), the person that I miss most is Kathryn J. and wish you were here!

Thailand Days 11 - 12: Chiang Mai

I learned today that a few students have been sharing this blog with members of their family. I hope you've found the updates helpful! Shoutout to Kamiya's grandma--thanks for reading :)

If you read the last post and were bummed that there were no pictures to accompany my description of Sukhothai history and architecture, I've updated that post (link) with pictures, so check it out.

We made it to Chiang Mai!

I'm writing this post from the balcony of my hotel room. It's a great spot from which to people watch and to soak up the sights and sounds of city life. Like the other locations we've visited, Chiang Mai is also feeling the effects of reduced tourism and pedestrian traffic, so the streets, restaurants, and markets are noticeably more quiet than the pre-COVID times...

I'm pretty excited about my balcony

Night view of Chiang Mai city life

I should back up a little bit. On our way to Chiang Mai yesterday, one of our van drivers recommended a slight detour to visit Wat Thung Saliam, a Buddhist temple on the outskirts of Sukhothai (en route to Chiang Mai).

I'm going to do my best to paraphrase/interpret some history from Thailand's Directory of Tourism as the English translation is a little spotty:

Luang Pho Sila, a Buddha image, was originally enshrined in Chao Ram Cave, home to many bat colonies. Villagers went into the cave in search of bat droppings (guano is used in a lot of homeopathic treatments) and found the stone image. The villagers told Phra Aphai, the abbot of Thung Saliam Temple, and discussed bringing the image from the cave to the temple. As a result of the abbot's old age, they did not enshrine the Buddhan in Thung Saliam. Kruba Kuan, the abbot of a neighboring temple, heard of the rumor and summoned villagers to the cave. In the cave, he found the Buddha image while many bats were flying around. Kruba Kuan brought the Buddha out of the cave some time between 1929-1932. The journey back was full of hardship. Then a miracle happened; clear skies emerged after heavy clouds and rain, and a flock of bats overed over the Wat Thung Saliam before returning to the Chao Ram cave. The villagers would not allow the Buddha structure to be summoned back to Lampang, instead agreeing that the Buddha should remain enshrined at Wat Thung Saliam. The Buddha was replicated fr the Mae Pa Luane temple (where Kruba Kuan was abbot), and it was stolen in 1977. It was eventually tracked down through an art exhibit in London, and in 1996 it was returned to Thailand. 

I might have really botched that interpretation. Sorry!

View of the Wat grounds

One of the temple buildings

View of architecture at Wat Thung Saliam

Students in front of the building housing the Golden Buddha

Temple history (also from website--not paraphrased):

Wat Thung Saliam is one of the holiest Buddha temples in the Sukhothai. The atmosphere of this temple is absolutely peaceful, is the place which enshrined Stone Buddharupa or Luang Por Sila which is made of white sandstone with khmer art style in Angkorian period which influences architecture in Angkor Wat- Lopburi, was built in 11th century - 12th century. Buddharupa has 86 centimeters height and lap width at 43 centimeters, there are numerous tourists come to worship Luang Por Sila.

While we were at the temple, Noi explained how we could individually make a donation to the temple and take a candle and bouquet to offer to the Buddha as a request for a blessing. Students and faculty selected a candle that corresponded with the day of their birth (Sunday, Monday, Tuesday...) and then we had an opportunity to make our offering. What an awesome experience.

Students and faculty discussing Buddhist practices

You might need to open this image in a separate browser to be able to read it, but it gives the history of the Golden Buddha

Making an offering to the Buddha (I was born on a Wednesday)

We arrived in Chiang Mai in the afternoon. We're staying in a young, artsy part of the city, near Chiang Mai University. Lots of restaurants, cafes, shopping, etc. Folks were able to get out and explore on their own yesterday. A group of us walked around the area near our hotel and then waived down some tuk tuks (one of the two primary modes of local transportation) to take us to one of the Chiang Mai night bazaars. The tuk tuk ride was definitely a highlight--such a cool way to experience a city! Tuk tuks are basically a high-powered moped with a passenger cart attached. The other option is a "songthaew," which literally translates to "two rows." It's a truck with two rows of covered seating in the back for passengers. Some songthaews' routes can be identified based on the color of the truck. 

Students and I taking a tuk tuk to the night bazaar

We met up with most of our students in the night bazaar for a few hours before heading back out to explore the city.

Day 12: Chiang Mai, Day 2

The theme of today is "there's been a change of plans..."

As a result of heavy rain, we were not able to drive into the mountains (dangerous windy, steep roads) to visit the Wat (temple) we had planned, so we had to pivot. We started the morning off at a silk factory, where we learned a little more about the silk making process--particularly about differences in quality of silk. This factory had high end stuff that was stunning...and also out of the price range of this lowly academic's disposable income :). Sorry Kjarsten, the silk robe will have to wait until next trip.

Video of Thai Silk Village

Bolts of silk--my mom would love this place (hi, Mom!)

You can feel the difference when touching the two shirts

We ate lunch at the Holiday Garden Resort, where it seemed like the buffet of food options were never ending! We hoped to make it to the Wat in the afternoon, but rain prevented that, so instead we visited an umbrella making factory (which was really cool to see the process of how bamboo umbrellas are made) and a fine jewelry store. 

Here's some info on the Umbrella Making Centre (directly from website):

• One of the legends says that once Phra Kru Intha, the monk of Wat Bo Sang, went for a pilgrimage in the Tai Lue land near the Thai-Burma border [and] saw umbrella making. [He was] interested in bringing this knowledge to propagate to villagers to invent as a Buddhist worship and use for sun protection and rain protection.
• 1757: After returning from a pilgrimage, Phra Kru Intha began to persuade the local villagers to find materials and equipment to try making umbrellas as recorded.
• 1941: The villagers gathered together to form a cooperative called 'Bo Sang Umbrella Making Cooperative Limited Sin Chai'...[encouraging] people to make umbrellas of various sizes, including fabric umbrellas, paper umbrellas, and mix color with maca oil and apply it on the umbrella. for beauty and durability.
• 1978: Mr. Thawin Buajeen, Buak Ped villager, Ton Pao Sub-district, a professional tour guide, saw that the umbrella making profession would be of interest to foreigners and should be preserved; he persuaded 12 villagers with umbrella making experience to offer demonstrations of how to make umbrellas at every step to preserve traditional arts and crafts and develop in quality.
• 1982: The 1st Bo Sang Umbrella Festival was initiated by the Tourism Authority of Thailand, together with the villagers of Bo Sang to publicize the umbrella handicraft village...today, the Bo Sang Umbrella Festival is included in the annual tourism calendar. which will be held on the 3rd Friday of January and has 3 consecutive days of activities.
• 2005: Established as Umbrella Center (1978) Co., Ltd. on August 2, 2005
• 2006: With a long history of Bor Sang umbrella, as well as the source of production and the transfer of wisdom that has been inherited for more than 200 years, [the organization] applied for registration of the Bo Sang umbrella as an intellectual property of geographical indication.
• 2009: To ensure the production of quality umbrellas in Bo Sang and continue the production to be more modern, products are developed with the Institute of Science and Technology Research (NSTDA), such as making wood ovens for use in the rainy season, reducing chemicals such as varnish thinners in wood coatings by finding other raw materials to replace for the good health of employees and the safety of consumers.
• 2010: Researching the Lanna style of umbrella; making and adding Lanna patterns on the umbrella under the Lanna Collection project in collaboration with the Institute of Science and Technology Research (NSTDA).
• 2018: Umbrella Making Center (1978) Co., Ltd. has been in business for 40 years and continues to carry on Lanna umbrella making craft to maintain this international local wisdom to remain with the people of San Kamphaeng District and Doi Saket District. Chiang Mai Province continues according to [do business according to the following mission]. "maintaining identity and the continuation of the handicraft of Bor Sang umbrella production to be a sustainable business with the local community.”

Students entering the Umbrella Making Centre

Making the umbrella frame out of bamboo

Students had an opportunity to walk through the different stations/phases of the umbrella making process

I am personally not an avid shopper, nor do I have any sense of style, so I didn't look too closely at the jewelry options (but I'm sure they were stunning...).

We got back to the hotel in the afternoon for free time. Some folks arranged for a Muay Thai lesson, and I tried to organize an outing to one of the local rock climbing gyms in town, but we didn't generate enough interest for the climbing gym today. But I'm happy to report that we *did* get enough interest for a visit to the climbing gym tomorrow morning :)

Students and Kathryn at their Muay Thai lesson. Photo credit: Kathryn

Tomorrow's agenda is also a little tentative, pending rain. We may explore the historic district ("Old Town") in Chiang Mai tomorrow afternoon, and then most of the group is planning on attending an official Muay Thai fight (first live commercial fight in Chiang Mai in 2.5 years!) tomorrow night.