‘Sawadee,’ Mama Toy
Bangkok, March 22 — Day 2 in Bangkok, the ‘Venice of the East.’ There was a formal royal family event at the splendiferous gold-encrusted Grand Palace in Bangkok, so we were encouraged to find something else to do. I cancelled the palace and signed up for another excursion. Glad I did: the people who did go to the palace were so crowded in the mob, they were moved along by it, some were lifted off the ground, and many were frightened. The report back was, it wasn’t the Westerners who were pushing and shoving. Instead, I went to see the Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho and took a tuk-tuk ride through downtown Bangkok. ‘Tuk-tuk’ rhymes with ‘spook spook.’
‘Mama Toy’ was our engaging guide, who cared for us like a mother hen rounding up her chicks and moving them along from one place to the next. I guess she is around 50 and says she stays ‘beautiful and young’ by drinking coconut water and using coconut oil on her face. ‘Sawadee’ means ‘hello’ or ‘good .....’ — morning, afternoon, evening, etc. Kind of like ‘ciao.’ The Thai language has 44 letters — with 32 vowel sounds! For example: The letters M-A can be pronounced five ways and each iteration means something completely different. Toy learned English at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and speaks it very well, though, like many Asians, she cannot say the ‘L’ sound. So when we left the port for our 2-1/2 hour drive into Bangkok, our driver saved time by using the elevated expressway that Mama Toy called the Bangkok ‘fryover.’
The first temple we drove past in downtown Bangkok... sorry, I have no idea what it’s called.
Bangkok’s full name is: ‘Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Ayuthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Piman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit.’ That translates as: ‘The city of angels, the great city, the residence of the Emerald Buddha, the impregnable city (unlike Ayutthaya) of God Indra, the grand capital of the world endowed with nine precious gems, the happy city, abounding in an enormous Royal Palace that resembles the heavenly abode where reigns the reincarnated god, a city given by Indra and built by Vishnukarn.’
Thailand is a monarchy with a fairly new king, Rama X, who in 2016 succeeded his father Rama IX, who had ruled for 70 years and was greatly beloved by the people. He did much to modernize the country, including promoting literacy and education.
Beginning with the Portuguese, who arrived in 1511, the country once known as Siam (which means brown, describing the skin color) was also ‘visited’ by the French, Dutch and English, all seeking spices to take back to Europe. They might have claimed they were there as missionaries, but it was, as always, all about the money. When southern Ayutthaya was still the capital and the crossroads of the spice trade, around 1700, its population of 1 million made it the largest city in the world. One of Thailand’s major kings, named Toksin, was half Chinese, and over the years China has had a great influence on the country. Some 18% of Thais are of Chinese heritage. The country is 95% Buddhist and has 30,000 temples. The joke around the ship is, ‘I’m all templed out.’ The Thai Buddha is modeled on the Indian Buddha, who looks like rich Indian royalty with curly hair. Besides Chinese, there is heavy Indian influence in Thailand, also Khmer influence, from Cambodia. Wat Pho was the site of an earlier temple, but the one today was rebuilt in 1788 under King Rama I, and is the oldest and largest in the country. It houses 1,000 Buddha images, the largest collection in Thailand.
Wat Pho is also considered the earliest center for public education. Wiki: ‘Wat Pho is regarded as Thailand’s first university and a center for traditional Thai massage. It served as a medical teaching center in the mid-19th century before the advent of modern medicine, and the temple remains a center for traditional medicine today where a private school for Thai medicine founded in 1957 still operates.’ The yoga center I started with in Newburyport was run by a man (Manny, for those who remember him) who went to Thailand to learn Thai massage... I wonder if he studied at Wat Pho.
Families have erected Buddha statues at the temple... more jewels indicates more family wealth. This was one of the most opulent. The family’s name is on the plaque.
Many young Thai men spend at least a few weeks at a temple studying with monks, usually before they marry. They might decide to stay and become monks, or return to their lay lives. Having been a monk for even a couple of weeks is thought to increase the parents’ chance of going to heaven. Mama Toy believes if she does a lot of good in her life, she will not be sad to die, because she can be reborn in a better place. She’s hoping for the U.S., Canada or England. This Buddha is 40 feet tall...
Thailand’s main exports are pineapples, sugar cane, tapioca. Due to its good soil, fruits grow well there. The majority of her citizens are farmers, especially rice, and Thailand is known for jasmine rice (which you can get at Market Basket). In their factories, they make cars and electronics. Laborers who work outside the city of Bangkok make about $20 a day. Odd facts:
- Both the Burmese and the Thais used elephants in battle.
- In 1686 Siam sent an emissary to visit Louis XIV in France. Louis then sent an envoy to Siam to document life there.
- The Siamese gifted the French court with two silver cannons. The French thought they were pretty and stored them away with the unused furniture. Come 1789, the revolutionaries found the cannons — and used them to storm the Bastille!
- Thailand allied with Japan in WW II, and with South Viet Nam in that war.
- If you’d like to read more about the history of Southeast Asia, see if Amazon will sell you a copy of the 24,000-verse Ramayama.
- Anna and the King of Siam the book and The King and I the musical are based on the true story of Ann Leonowens, who went to Siam as tutor to King Rama V’s many (many) children. Because Thailand did not think the story cast a good light on Rama, it would not allow the 1999 remake of the film (Jody Foster as Anna) to be filmed in Thailand. Instead, it was filmed in Georgetown, Malaysia, where I was today.
- Three laws you must endeavor to follow when in Siam:
• Do not drive bare-chested.
• Do not use durian (the smelly, spike-covered fruit) as a weapon.
• Do not leave the house if you are not wearing underwear.
Still at Wat Pho... I have no idea what this is all about.
The Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho, created in 1767, is curly haired — and breathtakingly elegant and huge, 150 feet long and 50 feet high. His eyes and feet are inlaid with mother of pearl; occasionally, he needs a pedicure.
Leaving Wat Pho, we walked to our ‘tuk-tuk stand’ and mounted our motor-bike-powered carriages. On the way, we passed a sidewalk coffee seller... note the sweetened condensed milk, the secret ingredient. I’ve had it in coffee in Cuba and in Viet Nam.
On to the Tuk-tuks! Since we couldn’t use our ‘quiet box’ headsets on the streets, we didn’t know what we were looking at, but it sure was fun buzzing all over Bangkok in a caravan of about 20 tuk-tuks! My companion was the Viking person who was with us all day, Harjanto, from Java, one of the housekeeping staff.
Anyone need a household Buddha, or Ganesh?
Leaving town, we crossed the Chao Phraya River then had a view of some old neighborhoods among all the new apartment buildings.
Back on the ship, the crew who had been on the ship since Miami (or earlier) were toasted and honored as they leave for vacation... I’ve lost my darling steward, Koomang from Bali. The woman on the left is Lara, the official Viking Sun hostess, who happens to be the captain’s wife. She — and the captain — were holding back tears as all the crew paraded around the deck to the cheers of the officers and passengers.
Several months ago I read a travel article about a fabulous trip from Bangkok to Singapore on the Orient Express. Me? I took a slow boat... #
