Day 2 — Bangkok

I am sitting at a table in the louge at my hostel. There is a jamaican song playing in the background and everyone seems to be in good spirits — aside from the two new girls who arrived today. I can’t remember what their names are, but they seem to be quite shy and exhausted. I introduced myself as I have been every time new people show up. It’s very home-y here. We are all like a small family.
The hostel owner is dancing with a beer in his hand. Actually, most people have a beer in their hand. The beer here is…I just asked Chris how much it was (since I don’t drink) and he said “Well, I’ll go find out” as he took out his wallet. I’m laughing as I write this — I find it so incredible how laid back this lifestyle is. A beer at our hostel is 100 Baht which is about $4.00 Canadian.
Oh and its 2/3 of a litre — a huge bottle of beer. No wonder everyone is always tipsy in Thailand.
The breeze is keeping me cool enough to sit comfortably. We have really enjoyed “Back Home Backpackers” and have decided to stay a few more days. My sleeping habits have been confusing for my pretty little mind. I have been going to sleep at around 7:00 PM and waking up at 2:00 AM my time. There is an eleven hour time difference from here and my home. At 2:00 I come downstairs while it’s still dark and quiet to write my blogs.
We started our day with breakfast. I ordered two separate meals because I was hungry as usual, and it was one of the cheaper restaurants we found. During our meal, a Thai man came up to me and had his hands on his heart. He was asking for money but couldn’t speak a word of english. The look in his eyes was very convincing, though we still said no. Mitchell said this happens frequently. He obviously had mastered the puppy dog eyes because I almost grabbed my wallet, to then see him walk right over to the next table and do the same thing.
We walked for about fourty five minutes to Wat Saket — The Golden Mountain Temple. We got lost a few times on the way. Mitchell’s GPS on his phone wasn't working, so we had to take some guesses on which direction was the right one. On the walk there we had locals grabbing our arms and yelling over to us. When they see Canadians like us walking on the streets they immediately run up to you and try to convince you to buy a suit —which is custom made and only around $100. It includes a shirt, pants, and jacket. If they aren’t talking about suits they will say “Tuk tuk?!” and point at the street. A tuk tuk is a very small three wheeled vehicle that is commonly used for transportation. It isn’t quite practical, but it’s a must-do if it’s your first time here. They are very stern with their gestures and often will follow you even if you have already said no a million times. Of course they know us Canadians are so polite, we would probably end up giving in and taking a quick ride anyways. They will do anything to make a few Baht. There are very few street signs so the traffic is quite busy. You have to always look both ways before crossing a street, because if you don’t you’ll probably get run over by one. Not joking!
It was extremely humid on our walk. I stopped quickly to grab a medium sized scarf before heading to the temple. I wasn’t positive if I needed to cover my shoulders/legs, but wanted to play it safe and have it just in case. Most temples require women to cover up as a form of respect. You also have to remove your shoes, which I really enjoyed because it made me feel very grounded and connected to the earth.
After many wrong turns and beads of sweat dripping down our faces, we finally saw the entrance. I looked up and saw a big staircase that was well taken care of, but had age to it. There were flowers, vines, and plants along both sides with different statues spread out in between. Earth tones mixed with shining gold was all I could see. I swear I have never seen colours look so bold. There was water trickling down one side and the sound of it immediately brought me into the present moment. I had to just stop and take a good look at everything before I even took one step. This was something I have been wanting to do for a very long time, so I didn't want to miss any details. I took a breath and looked down at my feet. In my first few steps, I was overwhelmed with emotion. I had my small black cat-eye sunglasses on to hide my tears. The silence was beautiful. You can feel the pure energy all around you just being somewhere like this, and I don’t think it is something that would ever get old.
There was a large, flat, circular piece of metal suspended on a stand. It was black, gold and red. Attached to it was a wooden mallet, and we all took a turn pulling back the mallet to create a very powerful sound. It was fairly heavy. It vibrated through my whole body the first time. I tried it again and the further back I pulled it, the louder and stronger the sound was. I truly felt it in my soul — chanting ohm with a group of people would give a similar feeling/vibration. The entire walk up we were welcomed by bells along the walls. I rang every one I could to try and compare the different tones.
The top of the mountain felt like another level of peacefulness. The sacred statue at the top is called a chedi. It is 58 metres tall and all gold. The sun was shining so bright that day it was almost blinding to look at the reflection. I took some photos and videos before I went over to a table where one of the workers were smiling at me. On the table were about 10 golden bells that had a thin, gold, teardrop sheet attached to it. If you purchased one, you could write anything you like on it with your name and the date. You would then go over to one of the statues and hang it up on the hook of your choice. To me it was good luck, and a blessing to have the chance to do something like that. Simple things can still have a lot of meaning depending on how you look at it. I was nervous and excited and had to quickly think of what to write— “Praying for peace, happiness, and healing. To a new life path.”
I signed my name and slowly walked over to hang it up. I picked the hook that stood out to me of course, hoping that one day I can go back to visit and see it still there. I bowed and prayed, and we continued on with our day.
At one point we stopped for some fruit at one of the stands. Mitchell had cantaloupe, I had pineapple, and Chris had what he thought was green apple. We both tried his, and I must have created a few wrinkles because of the sour faces I was making. Oops! Not green apple. I couldn’t handle the bitter taste. I tried to tone it down with some of my fruit, and the sweetness helped quite a bit. It was another new food I was lucky to try. Gotta test those tastebuds! The three of us carry around our 1 litre bottles of water everywhere we go so that we don’t get dehydrated. Except instead of the cold thirst quenching water you’re probably thinking of, it was hot. I made the joke that we might as well go and look for some tea bags and toss them in.
Another early night was needed for us. Still recovering from jet lag on day two. Hoping tomorrow I can fight the urge to sleep early and adjust my cycle a bit.
To a new life path.
Alanna
