Monk Chat

I have a list of things that I meant to write about but never got the chance, or was just too lazy to.  So this was actually from my last day in Chiang Mai...

I had heard about Monk Chat and wanted to go before I left so my friend and I went on my last night in Chiang Mai.  Monk Chat is a program in several of the temples in Chiang Mai where they have monks there who will answer any questions people have, about Buddhism or anything else.

It was really interesting.  We were sitting with two younger monks.  Sadhasan was from Burma and the other was from Bhutan.  They both had joined the temple to get an education because they couldn't afford it otherwise.  I thought it was interesting how they admitted it so readily, and it didn't seem to be an issue.  They weren't planning to devote their entire lives to the temple, just get through school and then find a job.

We talked about their daily lives and the differences between city monks and country monks as well as how to gain merit and the precepts that Buddhists follow.  There are different ones for the layperson, novices, monks, and female monks.

It was a great experience and really interesting to talk to them.  The program is meant to teach people about Buddhism but also help the monks practice using English.

Visit to Big Buddha

Transportation here is... aggravating. I wish I could go back to the world of 24 hour songthaews. I really don't get the system here, but from what I can understand, there are 'buses' that run set routes, and only during certain hours, and then there are various styles of taxis. There are three bus routes around town, and then a few that go to the various beaches. And the long distance buses from the bus station. I've seen things that look like songthaews but they don't stop when I try to flag them down so maybe they're for tours or something. I did get to ride in a car last night though, a real one with windows and doors and everything. Pretty exciting since its so rare!

Yesterday, I took one of the buses to Wat Chalong which is South of Phuket Town. While I was waiting I met a Thai woman who was headed the same way. The buses don't run on any kind of schedule and we had to wait quite a while for ours to come. She was great and showed me around the temple complex and then helped me find a motorbike taxi to take me to my other destinations.

Big Buddha

There were several buildings in the temple complex.  This one had three floors of Buddhas.

As we were walking around we heard firecrackers that they were setting off in this oven structure.  I thought my friend said something about the lottery but I didn't quite understand.  Maybe it's for good luck?

I went to see the Big Buddha statue and I have to agree with my guide, it's just not that pretty up close. The site is still under construction and there is stuff blocking the statue so you can't see it all from the ground. And even if there weren't, I don't think you'd really be able to see it all from so close anyway. Oh well.  I do like that you can see it from all over the island.

In order to get up to the Buddha you walk through a gift
shop type area, the proceeds go towards finishing the statue.
There are also donation boxes and Buddha statues.

Next to the Big Buddha is a smaller one made from brass.  The large one is dedicated to the king and the small one to the queen.

Inside Buddha

Nice view!

Next the motorbike took my to Phrom Thep cape which is all the way at the South of Phuket and is known for its sunsets. It was really beautiful. There's a lighthouse and a statue surrounded by hundreds of elephants. If you got towards the water there's a path that leads down to the sea. When you get near the end you find stacks of rocks and a Buddha statue.

Elephants on top of the lighthouse

After the sunset I started walking to Rawai beach to pick up a taxi and a nice woman was kind enough to pick me up and drop me by the end of the beach. It took me a while to find a taxi that wasn't going to overcharge me (more than the usual) and I was surprised when I finally found someone to take me and he walked over to a small new SUV, pretty fancy!

Unexpected monkey sighting

Today was another treat.  My Dutch friend Henk said that he likes to get a gift everyday, something like meeting an interesting person or seeing something beautiful.  I like his philosophy.  Today my gift was seeing a group of monkeys, including a baby monkey, clinging to it's mother.

I've semi-planned my next week but am waiting to hear about one part of it so today I decided to do some exploring in Phuket town by foot.  I discovered another vegetarian restaurant (my whole area is vegetarian, lucky me!) and had a nice lunch of fried tofu and pumpkin and talked to a woman from my hostel who gave me a map and recommended a view point not too far away where I could see most of Phuket town.







I stopped on the way at a chinese temple right by the hostel, I've been curious about it, but I usually only walk by it at night.  The chinese temples are so colorful!

I also stopped at a market stand and bought a refreshing coconut slushie, served in a bag, and only 5 baht!

I saw lots of interesting things on my walk.  I saw a small chedi over a wall and went to check it out.  I didn't see any monks or any real temple, but I did see a Buddhist nun walking around.  

I found another overgrown Chinese shrine.  Of course, when I was scrambling over the bushes to take a closer look I walked into a pricker bush.  I didn’t realize I still have prickers in my skin until I tried to wash it later.  Ouch!

I also saw another large seated Buddha, the temple was down at the level of town but my road overlooked it.

Next to the viewpoint was a forested fitness park built on a hill.  It was set up like a parcourse with clearings where equipment and obstacles were set up, but on a very steep hill.  

The shortest chin up bar I've ever seen

I walked through the park to find several tour buses at the viewpoint as well.  There was a group gathered by the wall in one spot and I almost just past them but then I realized there was a group of monkeys!  The shop was selling bananas for them so they must be there all the time, or maybe they keep them there, but I had no idea so it was an exciting surprise!

The view of the town was nice, but the monkeys definitely stole the show.

On my way back to the hostel I stopped at yet another vegetarian restaurant, where I picked up an interesting pastry filled with soy bean paste.  (Thailand is such an enabler, I love to snack and there are just so many delicious looking snacks everywhere!)

I sought shelter from the heat this afternoon in a nearby coffee shop with delicious apple crisp!