Wat Prathat

A great day trip from Chiang Mai, Thailand is to the Buddhist temple Wat Prathat Doi Suthep. This is a very sacred temple to the Buddhists. It holds the sacred Buddhist relic believed to be Buddha's shoulder bone, that was carried to the site by the White Elephant. After carrying the relic to the top of the mountain, the elephant died at the site. It was decided that a wat should be built on the site and that it should hold the relic.

At the bottom of the 309 steps

Wat Prathat (wat means 'temple') is located 15km outside of Chiang Mai, in Chiang Mai Province. You must travel along a winding road before reaching the wat. Once there, to reach the entrance to the wat, you must climb 309 steps up the side of a mountain. There is also a tram that can take you to the top, but it comes with a cost (50 Thai baht return).

Lotus Offering

Just inside the entrance, there is a shrine at which Buddhists make offerings including lighting incense candles and offerings of lotus flowers. Inside the temple there was a room called Tan Jan Viara in which people, both tourists and Buddhists alike, were receiving strings from monks and former monks. Men received theirs from a monk, women received theirs from a former monk. I received my white string from the former monk. It symbolizes purity.

Unlike Christian monks, Thai Buddhist monks can leave the brotherhood up to three times, they can even get married, before ultimately deciding that they do want to be a Buddhist monk.

Thai Buddhist Monks

I really enjoyed visiting Wat Prathat. It is a really beautiful wat and I learned a lot about Thai Buddhism. I especially appreciated that I was welcomed and not made to feel awkward, despite the fact that I am a western Christian.

If you get a chance to visit Chiang Mai, make the journey to see Wat Prathat. It is definitely worth the trip!

~Angie

The Devil Made Me Do It

Have you ever been conned? I don't mean in the criminal sense per se, what I mean is: Has someone ever convinced you to buy something you had no intention of buying in the first place, or that you paid way too much for because the sales person was extremely persuasive and would not give up?

This happened to me this week, and I am still trying to rectify the situation. What happened was this...I have been really sick with a cold. On Monday I stayed home from work, but had no medicine in my house, so I had to go to the store for some meds. On my way out, there was a box for a fitness club where you could enter to win a free trial. I impulsively put my contact information down and entered it in the box. Then I left the store.

On Tuesday, while at work but still not feeling great, I got a call from the Fitness Centre. The manager, Helen, wanted to know if I could come in to have a look at the place that night. I said yes, because that is what I do. I called after work to cancel the appointment, but did not get off scott free. Helen called me back to see if I could come in and meet with her - Tuesday night. There was a great deal on that could only be signed up that night.

Now I must admit warning bells were going off and as I drove through pouring rain to the fitness club (not my favourite activity), I was getting angrier and angrier. I told myself I would not buy anything, I would just listen to what she had to say. That is not how it turned out. Helen was such a smooth operator that despite my intentions, half an hour later I had signed up for a two year contract with the fitness club! I hate fitness clubs - I just wanted a free trial. I still am kicking myself for letting that happen. Now I have ten days to 'try' it out and cancel if I want. I am not going to try anything. Today I tried to cancel, but I needed an appointment with Helen, and despite her eagerness to meet with me on Tuesday, she was unavailable to meet me at a convenient time until next Tuesday. I guess now I can re-word my letter so it is not quite so nasty, at least.

How does this relate to travel, you ask? Well, I am an easy target. I must have an invisible "s" on my forehead (for sucker). This is especially troubling when I am shopping in foreign markets. When traveling in foreign, mostly third world countries, one must be especially vigilant with both their money, and how they appear to vendors.

Case in point - Thailand. I wanted a buddha statue from Thailand and I was not leaving until I got one! My mom and I were walking through a market in Chiang Mai, Thailand one night. Mom went ahead of me and by the time she realized I had stopped, it was too late. I had passed by several vendors and abruptly stopped in front of one selling buddha statues. The guy wouldn't tell me how much they were, instead he asked me how much I had. Stupid me...I opened my wallet and showed him everything I had, which was too little by his standards. But he was more than happy to take all my money anyway. I  dished over $18 CAD for a buddha statue whose value is three times less. I should have paid $6.

Mom was really mad at me. First because I was way too obvious in my interest and secondly because of how much I spent. I was happy that I got my statue, but it was at a cost, for sure.

Are you familiar with the idea of the conscience being the devil on one shoulder, whispering in your ear, and an angel on the other shoulder? I believe that in the instance in Thailand, and again on Tuesday night, the devil was whispering in my ear. I honestly don't know what got into me. In the one case, I do have a buddha statue souvenir from Thailand sitting on my shelf. That is great, though he is a costly buddha! In the other, I bought something against my better judgement and now have to try my best to get out of the 'great deal' that is not so great for me. It'll work out. I am listening to my angel now. Everything will be fine.

I hope I have learned my lesson, once and for all.

I not only have to be vigilant outside of Canada, I have to be vigilant in my own country as well. Lest I be taken in by a 'good deal' again!

~Angie