Five Day Holiday (Day 1) – Bangkok Temples & Food

School let out for the pending Buddhist holiday on July 16th and 17th (Tuesday & Wednesday) and we were notified by our school that we also had Monday off. Bangkok seemed the likeliest destination to explore with its endless supply of temples (over 400), tantalizing food, night life, and markets.

Day 1

I started my journey by getting reacquainted with the BTS and MRT public transportation system that runs throughout Bangkok. It is by far the cheapest way to see the city and leads to endless adventures.

First stop was Wat Traimit (Temple of the Golden Buddha). I had heard this was a little touristy but once I arrived, I found there were not as many people compared to Wat Urun or the Grand Palace. I moved effortlessly throughout the complex finally landing in a small temple in the back that had a hidden staircase. Once in the elevated worship area, I paid respect to the Buddha and observed an elderly monk watching me. He was wearing dark apocalyptic sunglasses and had a large symbolic tattoo on his shaved head. After making eye contact with each other, he motioned me to a bench area where he had me kneel down. He then took a red, brown and yellow bracelet from a gold plate and attached them to my right wrist while simultaneously chanting a blessing. When he completed the blessing, he repeatedly tapped on the inside of my right wrist with his forefinger. Experiences like this are becoming a common and expected occurrence the more I seek truth and allow these type of spiritual interactions to come into my life. Fear of the unknown or Christian taboos are no longer inhibitors to my path; truth is constant.

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Feeling pretty good after my impromptu monk blessing, I decided to travel to Chatuchak Market via the BTS for some much needed people watching. I found a cool indoor market across the street from the market that I had never seen before which contained hundreds of self-contained kiosks containing old world trinkets, large pieces of hand carved furniture, and antiques. While at Chatuchak Market, I sat at Viva 8 restaurant which has an eclectic cook (possibly the owner-I don’t know) standing out in front performing basic magic tricks and dancing with potential patrons, a DJ playing subtle funky beats, and decently priced drinks located right in the heart of all that is happening.

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One last thing about Day One that I have to mention. While walking around the market, I found a food vendor making homemade Thai crepes called “Rotee”. I ordered the Rotee with egg and banana (40Baht). I was blown away by the underlying balance of sweetness and savory combined with the delicate crepe.

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