a slice of life in thailand
this morning we awoke to the sounds of the birds outside our second story window above the hum of the a/c that kept us cool as we slept in aung’s family’s home in chonburi. i stretched my arms up over my head and reflected on the events of the last 24 hours….
we checked out of our fancy little hotel in the sukumvit area of bangkok around noon, after enjoying our last steaming hot showers and the hotel’s complimentary breakfast buffet. we really loved having our two night’s at the hotel as a transition to bangkok, but we were definitely ready to see what lay outside the city limits.
aung came to pick us up with her cousin oo, and we had lunch together then headed for two hour thai massages at a place called health land. oh my god!! these massages were AMAZING. our bangkok hotel had tons of massage places all along the street (in fact we had gotten one each day that we were there!) but nothing compared to the massages we had at health land. its sort of like a big health spa where people come to get massages and to detox, etc. all four of us were lined up on beds next to each other and we changed into the loose pajama-type clothing to wear for the massage (they don’t use oil in thai massage). thai massage is crazy, they go REALLY deep into every single little muscle, bending you into pretzel shapes in order to get the best angle to stretch, pull, or twist each muscle into submission. after they finish your muscles head to toe, they go back and crack every single bone in your body so it’s almost like a trip to the chiropractor too! you leave feeling extra long and lean and stretched out, i felt super flexible and relaxed… so amazing, and all that for 350B (about $11) although i think we got a special rate there too…
after the massages we drove back to aungs hometown of chonburi which lies about an hour’s drive southeast (i think?) of bangkok. we passed lots of sugar cane on the way, and the smell of the burning cane reminded me of maui. on the way to the house, we stopped at the local night market which was INCREDIBLE. i so love markets!! every food stall imaginable, as well as vendors selling clothes and trinkets… jess even ate a fried grasshopper!! (we’ve got video of that too, if you liked the fish one you’re gonna love this one too – just not a quick enough internet connection to upload.) we took home green papaya salad (the best i ever ate in my life!) and chicken skewers and some yummy fried noodles in sauce, and a big watermelon for dessert. aung’s family welcomed us in with open arms, literally. her mom hugged us and dragged us inside as her brother and father greeted us and set up the kitchen table for us to eat.
we stayed with the family last night and then in the morning set out to the local buddhist temple to pray for my grandmother. it was the most spiritual experience i’ve ever had… i’ve never been really tied to any particular religion, but because my grandma is buddhist i wanted to honor her religion and pay my respects there. aung’s mother brought a whole spread of food and sweets and even some chocolate covered macadamia nuts to give as offerings to the monks (the buddhists believe that after someone passes on, they need food as nourishment to provide for their everlasting happiness).
first we kneeled down at the shrine of the buddha with a bouquet of flowers and each lit 3 sticks of incense as offering. after this, a monk from the temple came to sit with us and we each would put our hands onto the trays of food for him to receive on a golden cloth, symbolizing that he is taking them from us in order to pray for my grandma. i was so overcome in the next part that i started to sob, and i tried to keep as quiet as i could, but i was so thankful to have jess standing next to me to be going through it with me… they told me to try to repeat what the monk was saying in prayer or else to just focus on the image of my grandma and to ask her to come and enjoy our offerings and to wish her happiness.
i shut my eyes and thought of her and told her i loved her, and i also felt my grandfather with her. both of them were happy and peaceful and it was an amazing moment. it was difficult for me to pull my eyes upwards after to look up to the monk who had blessed us, and to thank him for helping me to remember my grandmother… i am so grateful to aung and her sweet mother for putting so much effort into this because i really wouldn’t have even known what to do on my own. i definitely feel like my grandmother was with me and i know that she is doing fine now…
after that, i was so drained with emotion! but luckily the only thing on our agenda was to head out to bangsaen beach to lay around all the rest of the afternoon. jess and i rented our own chairs and umbrellas and did nothing but lay around and eat whatever looked delicious from the hawker stands that lined the promenade along the beach. this area is not very popular with tourists so we were just about the only non-thai people there, which gave us a chance to practice the thai phrases we’re learning. i’m especially trying to master “how much is it?” (tow rai-ka?) and all of the numbers so that i can understand the responses. we’re trying to see how much we can learn before the girls get up here to visit next month! haha.
ok our ride is almost here to get us and the connection at this internet cafe is slow, so i better stop now… although it’s kind of a novel already huh? =) thanks everyone for reading and for all your comments of love and support about my grandmother. we miss you all and will keep you posted as much as we can!
Tags: chonburi (thailand), malia
malia
so cool malia. i wish i could be with you right now.
So fun to hear of your Thailand experiences so far and I am glad you have Jess and Aung to be with you too:)…..I too, feel that Grandma and at peace and happy to be with Grandpa again:)….Todd and I saw the movie, Atonement today and had some spicy tuna sushi:)….He and Dad and Ken are all doing well….service will be next Thursday so Ken will go home to get clothes, etc. and come back again…..take care and Hugs to you both! Love, Mom
Amazing…I’m sold! Will try to come up in mid-March to see for myself!
It was so awesome what Aung and her family did for you at the temple. That was a great way to pay your respects to your grandma. I’m sure she’s looking down and smiling…As far as the other stuff, sounds AMAZING! I think I really need a trip to Thailand…=) Miss you guys!!
Beautiful Malia! I’m so glad that you had that experience…sounds so perfect! What a beautiful way to connect and pay your respects!
Great writing, Malia! I could actually feel this massage: “they go REALLY deep into every single little muscle, bending you into pretzel shapes in order to get the best angle to stretch, pull, or twist each muscle into submission. after they finish your muscles head to toe, they go back and crack every single bone in your body so it’s almost like a trip to the chiropractor too! you leave feeling extra long and lean and stretched out.” The part about the Buddhist priest and your grandmother is very moving.