Chapter 4: Week in Review

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I've decided to make weekly posts to review some of the crazy things we've done and/or learned along our journey, whether previously noted or not. So now that we are in our second week of this Asia adventure, here is a brief breakdown of what transpired during week one...

We all got custom fitted suites on Khao San Road for dirt cheap (roughly $100 per suit).

We played with Tigers.

We saw a bunch of Wats (temples) in Ayutthaya.

We met Bevo's Thai cousin.

We learned that male snakes have two penises.

We saw an elephant hoolahoop and play the harmonica (no, not simultaneously).

We saw the biggest bronze Buddha in all the land (in Ayutthaya).

We saw the weirdest police station statue ever--an officer of the law holding what appeared to be an injured woman, as her naked child clung to the officer's leg. Seriously? That's supposed to symbolize law enforcement!

John and Mykal went on a day trek and rode elephants (I was still sick so I stayed back and watched basketball).

At 6:00 ( am and pm) everyone in the city of Chiang Mai freezes in their footsteps to listen to some sort of PA announcement honoring the King. This was pretty freaky, as we had no idea what was happening when we scuffled through the Sunday market and everyone suddenly froze on the spot.

We saw a giant golden Buddha sitting on the side of a green mountainside as we passed by on our train to Chiang Mai. It was an amazing site, and many locals prayed to the Buddha through their windows as we passed by.

It seems the only domesticated dogs in Thailand are poodles.

We passed by "Monkey Wat" on our train as well--a Wat literally covered in live monkeys.

We solved "the great mystery" (where does it go and how does it get there?). The answer was as simple as pouring a bucket of water from the bucket shower into the toilet, creating a vortex and whirling water which would send your "product" to its eventual demise. We're still not sure where it goes since there is no official plumbing system. But at least we now know what we're doing.

We encountered the supply/demand conondrum of Thai street vendors. There are endless amounts of them, yet they all sell the same shit. How the hell do these people all stay in business?! I'm not kidding, they line the streets of tourist infested cities and literally sell the same dumb tshirts and knock-off bullshit. None of them can distinguish themselves from the other. And price points are all very similar. I simply don't understand how they stay in business.

We participated in the praying stick ritual at the temple where the biggst bronze Buddha lives. Basically you shake a bamboo cup full of sticks until one falls out. Each stick has a number on it. You take that stick and show the number to a woman behind the counter. She then gives you a fortune of sorts which corresponds to your number. Johns turned out to be quite telling. Here it is...
"Things run smoothly and make you pleased. Sick people will get well. Benefactor will bring happiness to you."
First of all, John is very easygoing so anything and everything pleases him. Secondly, I was sick and now I'm better. And lastly, the next day our benefactor arrived in the form of Mae Chai Tanamphon and she brought us happiness by teaching us meditation.

We saw a sign that proves stereotypes are at least partially true. The sign was outside one of the Wats in Ayutthaya, and it read,
"Please put shoes on lacks."

Another funny sign:
"Please do not put sanitary napskin in toilet bowl."
Maybe it's just me, but I get a kick out of these people's misspellings and misspronounciations.

Okay, that is all for week one. Sorry, the photo uploader isn't working right now. Check out my facebook page to see all my pics.

Peace, I'm out.
-Feder is Better-

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