Friday, May 4, 2012

Bangkok, City of Angels, Day 1: Acclimation



Chris and I had a magnificent first day in Bangkok!  Our 24 hour transit from Minneapolis via Tokyo to Bangkok went very well, and when we arrived at the airport Thursday at midnight, there were numerous smiling Thai's throughout the terminal, customs, and outside to welcome and greet us and answer any questions we had.  We landed in the "Land of 1,000 Smiles" and probably saw 1,000 of them by the time we hopped in our cab.

Here are some fun Thai culture highlights I've learned about recently that might interest you:

  •  The Thai flag colors symbolize the 3 forces of Buddhism (white), the monarchy (blue), and the nation (red).
  • Bangkok is translated to mean the "City of Angels".  There is definitely a holy feeling here.  There are about 8 million people here, or 14 MM in the surrounding area, and about 60 MM in all of Thailand.
  • I could eat just sticky rice here and be really happy.  It's awesome.  Rice is a big deal in Thailand- it's the largest exported product, and shrimp is the 2nd highest export.  Coconut, corn, soybeans, and sugarcane are other big crops as well for my agricultural friends out there.
  • Thailand is the 24th largest economy in the world, and 2nd in Southeast Asia after Indonesia.
  • Buddhist shrines were very common along almost every street we walked along with vendors selling items, especially flowers...a ring of jasmine symbolizes the beauty of the Buddha's teachings and as it perishes, it reflects the impermanence of all life.  I am going to see some pretty cool bahts on Sunday so you'll have to wait for a good Buddha picture until then...it's nice to anticipate things so stay tuned.
  • I saw my first Buddhist monk as I walked into the first car in the Sky Train (elevated train) this afternoon and I was so giddy, blushing with glee, wanting to talk to the guy even though I know it's not culturally the norm for a woman to do so don't worry I didn't...but there is something magical about that saffron colored robe...
  • Spirit houses are my new favorite thing I learned about today.  Below is the spirit house outside our hotel- these are very common outside of one's property in Thailand, and houses the spiritual guardian of the property. They are adorned daily with incense, flowers, and food to further mollify the spirits.  Yep, you guessed it...Chris and I already found a miniature teakwood version at a gift shop and it's carefully bubble wrapped and ready to come home to our backyard.  Not sure if I'll realistically keep up with fresh flowers every day for it unless the girls pick dandelions out of our yard, but I love it. :)

  • Going to the Impact Center to get ready for the Rotary Intl convention was amazing in many ways....riding in the bus in traffic was at times worse than Manhattan, but still not as bad as Nairobi was, in my experience at least.  Then, once we got there, the center was absolutely enormous...I mean Vegas and NYC convention centers have nothing compared to this humongous complex.  I can't imagine what Sunday will be like when it all kicks into gear, complete with a visit from the Princess of Thailand.  I loved seeing all the Rotary flags, signs, and meeting folks all around the world from Ghana to the Phillipines to Chevy Chase, Maryland.  It was a great introduction to what's in store.  Everyone's here, and everyone's smiling.  :-)

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