February 26 - Offerings to Monks at Luang Prabang to Thailand

We rose extra early (again) for an activity beginning at 5:30 AM, when it was still dark outside. We went to downtown Luang Prabang in order to offer alms to the local Buddhist monks. The monks are not allowed to work, not even in the kitchen, so each day they begin by travelling a route in Luang Prabang to collect food offerings from local residents (and some tourists who participate, like us). The food that is collected is mostly cooked rice.  When they have finished, they return to the monastery with the food and share it with each other. They have a second meal before noon each day, as well, but then after noon, they fast for the remainder of each day. Every day there are local people who also rise early to offer food. This is done for good karma as well as to support the monasteries. In addition to the morning offerings, local people will also bring food to the monasteries directly, such as soup. There are 750 monks is Luang Prabang, plus another one thousand in nearby communities/suburbs. Today, we saw groups from eight different monasteries.

The process was as follows: we sat in low chairs with our shoes removed in a long row on the side of a side street. Each of us was given a metal pot of local cooked rice (sticky rice). The rice was purchased from a small shop on the other side of the street. When a school of monks approached, they passed us in a single file, and we each put a small ball of rice in each of their collection pots. Forming the rice into small balls as quickly as needed was a challenge. Some of also brought the fruit we had received in our hotel rooms (mangoes, etc.), which we were told we could also offer to the monks. The monks did not say anything; most did not make eye contact. If you were slow with the rice, they just skipped your offering and kept moving. It seemed there would be no stopping or pausing in their procession. Some of the monks were older; some were just children. In fact, there were many young boys. Other tourists had also gathered to watch us make our offerings. Some of us ran out of rice before all eight monasteries has passed. We were told not to worry, just hold our hand together and bow to the monks as they passed.
 

When the offerings had finished, it had become daylight, so we proceeded to the nearby day market in Luang Prabang (as opposed to the night market). This market was focused on food, which meant it was for local people. We saw all kinds of food products for sale. Adrienne pointed out the durian fruit, a large spiky fruit known for its bad odor. 

Along the way, we, along with Adrienne, made a detour to Wat Phonsai, which we saw at the side of the market. It was notable for the large, beautiful paintings on its façade. It also had a large drum and bell, which we had seen at other temples. Rob learned that the drum and bell is used to signal to Buddha that people were coming to the temple and that they are preparing their thoughts for what will become their prayers. The drum and bell will sense those thoughts and echo them to Buddha. The burning incense will then carry the thoughts up to Buddha.

Then, it was time to return to the hotel and enjoy a leisurely morning before lunch. Lunch, at 1:00 PM, was downtown at a restaurant called Coconut Garden. It was served family style and was very good. We started with watercress soup with pork dumplings and then had chicken yellow curry, steamed Mekong tilapia in banana leaf, and fried glass noodles with vegetables. 

Roy finished his meal with Lao coffee with sweet condensed milk over ice – delicious! Fresh fruit was also available for dessert. 

After lunch, we visited the Heuan Chuan cultural site, which features a preserved and restored home from about 1900 AD. It is a good example of Lao architecture, before the French influence. The house was primarily a private home for a family. It sits upon stilts or columns made from rosewood (which is endangered and cannot currently be harvested). The exterior walls are made from cowhide over bamboo wood. The cowhide has a white color and had been treated with a combination of sugar cane and sap for mortar. The home had been in bad shape and was then restored by UNESCO from 1975 through 2006. The work Heuan means “house;” chuan means “light from the full moon.”

Inside we saw photos of the owner of the house and his wife. They had seventeen children, and after they were grown, husband and wife became a monk and a nun. We saw that between all the rooms in the house and also the hallway, there are raised sills. This was to slow down the children and to keep away bad spirits, who cannot climb over the sills. In the kitchen, there is a sign that says, “Kin khao leaw bau?” This means, “Have you eaten?” Bau means “rice.” This was interesting to us as there is a restaurant in San Francisco called Kin Khao. After our tour of the house, we each had a cool refreshment in the back garden. Roy had lime soda with mint and honey. Rob had a drink called Butterfly Tea Lemongrass Soda – both delicious. The garden was also decorated with whimsical and colorful upside-down fishing baskets.

Then it was time to go to the airport for our flight to Bangkok. The flight was uneventful, but we had free wine on Bangkok Airways! A bus transported us to our destination, the Peninsula Hotel. Our guides told us that we had arrived in record time – only forty-five minutes. On the bus, we met our new local guide, a woman named Ning, who provided some good information during our ride, including how to greet people. Men say, “Sawadee krup,” which means “May you prosper.” Hands are held together in front of the chest with a bow. Men say,” Kop kun krup” to say thank you.

Thailand has 69 million people with 12 million in Bangkok, which is very crowded. Buddhism is the religion for 95% of the people. There are three seasons: winter (November through February), summer (March through July), and rainy (August through October). The Thai language is also called Thai, which is a tonal language. The language comes from a combination of Pali, Sanskrit, and old Khmer, among other influences. There are 44 consonants and 32 vowels. The river in Bangkok is the Chao Praya, which means “River of Kings.” The country has been a kingdom since 1782. The money is called the baht, and thirty-one baht equal one dollar. Along the way to the hotel, we saw billboards that say, “Buddha is not for decoration. Buddha is for respect.” Another says, “Buddha is not for bars or tattoos.” The Thai people feel strongly that the Buddha image is to be for religious use only. This stems from an incident where a Thai princess went to Europe and saw a Buddha statue on TV used for hanging dirty laundry. This was very upsetting to her, and she was determined to do something about this, even if only in Thailand. We arrived at the Peninsula Hotel, which was on the side of the river in a city called Thonburi. Bangkok is on the other side. We went down to the riverside casual restaurant at the hotel for a late, light dinner: pizza and wine.