Monks at 5:45am line the streets as gangs of old and young tourist crowd the block, camera's in hand snapping away. They stand in the middle of the street moving in front of one another trying to get shots with their only concern of what they can see and the pictures they can get. We stand and watch as groups of monks pass and the flash of cameras and excitement of the tourists makes this moment seem staged. The tuk tuk drivers show up with groups of old, white and fat tourists who stand around and gawk at the monks. The whole idea and respect of what they are doing seems lost and misunderstood to the foreigners as they swarm like hungry bee's looking for a shot with their high powered cameras and ridiculous tourist outfits.
A group brought in by the tuk tuk drivers have joined the locals on the side of the street digging their pudgy hands into woven baskets filled with white rice that they bought from the locals trying to be a part of something that has nothing to do with them. I feel sick as I see their faces and foreign attire and stature as they actually look proud of their contribution of rice or bananas as they hand out to the monks as they walk by. This is a holy mission for the monks and a way of life for them but it feels like a tourist attraction today. The average daily wage is equivalent of just one of the Beer Loas we foreigners consume in mass quantity and we still complain about being ripped off for a dollar here or there.
In this moment it truly makes me think about all of the confusion, drama and stress we inflict upon ourselves each day and the messed up values we place on some things in our world compared to their much more more simple way of life. They walk silent single file all dressed in their orange robes through the streets receiving ohms on their daily routine. Humble and dedicated to their mission only to be bombarded today by these crowds of people. I feel a connection to this simple and ancient way of life as they walk the streets receiving their only meal of the day from temple to temple.
I guess I am not completely awake yet but it feels wrong to me deep down to be just another stereotypical tourist standing on the street taking pictures of the monks. We return after not to long as I cannot stomach the scene and I try to fall back asleep but my mind races with thoughts and emotions.
Chris knocks on the door at 10:45am and I jump up, get dressed and am out the door in 5 minutes. We met the group of about 9 of us and got a tuk tuk to the waterfall near by. The tuk tuk had a exhaust leak and was horrible, making us nautious for the 30 minute ride.
After a short hike we reached the falls and the water was a brilliant turquoise blue and cascaded off the rocks all around. There was also a rope swing which I went off at least 10 times. Incredible Landscape!
Hiked up a little further and found a 100 foot waterfall that was breath taking. It looked like something out of Jurassic Park and was pretty unbelievable.
After the falls we all met up to watch the sunset atop Pussi Mountain at the temple. The sunset was amazing with a awesome panoramic view of the city and Mai Khong River.
We went out for food and spotted Jeannie and Shea on the street and told them to meet us at Utopia for dinner. Utopia was made from bamboo and had a epic view of the river and surrounding jungle. Hung out here for the night, had some good food and enjoyed each others company.
When the restraunt closed at 12 we headed to the bowling alley for another crazy night. We made it so if you missed all pins you had to do 10 push ups which made the game more interesting. Ended the night around 2:30am and got a tuk tuk back. When we got out of the tuk I noticed Kirk had only one sandle on and when I told him this he looked down said screw it and kicked the other one 20 feet down the road. This being his 4th pair of flip flops since we met him! I returned to the room and fell strait asleep.
No comments:
Post a Comment