Wat Arun Temple, Bangkok
The Wat Arun Temple was a fun night of photography. The vantage point for this photograph was extensively researched on the internet in advance. I’m sitting on the second floor of a bar having drinks using a special low profile tripod (Platypod) which fit perfectly on the wooden railing along the perimeter of the bar. I never made the journey across the river to actually visit the temple. Continue reading
Gimme Shelter
The Patara Elephant Sanctuary allows you to get up close and friendly with elephants of all sizes. The sanctuary’s advertisement says you can be an elephant owner for a day. With the elephants walking around freely, our first task was to scrub the mud from their tough skin, then walk them to a large pond and give them a bath.
A Buddhist monk motions to a pet dog during traditional chanting.
Wanting to see more of Thailand than the typical iconic Buddhist temples crowded with tourists, I made a special request of our guide, Lucky 8. This day was to be spent out in the Thai countryside where there would be neither tourists nor admission tickets. It was by coincidence that we happened upon a Buddhist funeral in Lucky’s home village. Yes, this entire blog will be about attending a Buddhist funeral in rural Thailand.
Popular Buddhist Temple
When traveling in Europe I try to blend in as much as possible. Clearly this was not going to be possible in Thailand. Arriving Sunday afternoon hungry and tired, we thought it best to jump into the Thai culture by eating street food for dinner at a nearby weekend night market. Ordering our food through gesturing and fumbling with the Thai baht currency, we had fresh spicy food on a stick served by friendly people all willing to help out. Our Thai experience only got better and better.