We arrived in Bangkok, Thailand about 3 days ago. This is a whole new world compared to Africa! We have used the past few days to acclimate to the new and exciting culture – exploring the buddhist religion, trying out new foods, learning basic Thai…
Bangkok skyline protrays the wealth in and amongst the poor.
The pink taxi’s are my favorite!
Open air markets line the streets. Seafood, rice, noodles, greens are the norm…the more ‘unidentifiable’ the better! This country is a haven for foodies!
A local resturant where we cooked our own food over a charcoal grill. I have no idea what half the food was I ate that night, but it was good. And I didn’t get sick, yet! A meal at most road side stands costs around 30 cents USD!
Waterways are a main transportation route and run throughout the entire city.
I love this sign! Amy and I were standing under it on the boat for at for at least 5 minutes before we saw it. We were safe – no monks were aboard.
But we have spotted several monks since then! 95% of those in Thailand are Buddhist. Only 1% are Christain! Every man from a Buddhist family is expexted to become a monk for some period in his life, even if it is for as little as a few weeks. There are around 200,000 “official” monks in Thailand.
Buddha’s Galore!
The famous reclining buddha that depicts him passing into nirvana. It is 46 meters long! Upon entering Buddhist temples, you must remove your shoes.
The street is lined with stores that sell all shapes, colors, sizes of Buddha!
Most Buddhist bow down before and give offerings of flowers, candles and incense to Buddha. They worship by ‘waying’ or prostrating themselves 3 times, lighting 3 joss sticks and declaring that the Buddha, the Teaching and the Order are their refuge.
One of the many temples in Bangkok. Wat Arun – Temple of the Dawn.
Our minds and senses have been inundated with new and exciting experiences. But there is so much more. Not only does ‘Buddha’ cast a dark spiritual shadow over Thailand above ground, a very strong demonic power exists underground – human trafficking. Slavery still exists today, more that we know and truly, want to admit. It happends all over the world. Bangkok is definitely one of the ‘ring-leaders’.
I have a feeling I am on the brink of something…
…an explosion of the heart…
…God’s heart is breaking, and so is mine…
Stay tuned.
