There are so many things to say about how my trip to Thailand went, from the funny things to breathtaking scenes and insightful conversations; from food to commute to shopping to culture and heritage. To start, here are brief but memorable anecdotes along with some photos I took.
Perspective. If there's anything that this trip gave me, it is perspective. Perspective has been a recurring moment for my travel buddy,
Thea and myself, that it has become a normal expression for us over the duration of the trip. For example, wherever we went--while in the
Grand Palace or at the ruins of Ayutthaya or even in the middle of the streets of
Ratchaburi and Bangkok--one of us would tell the other to pause for sometime and get some perspective. That is to gather our thoughts and reflect, admire silently, converse philosophically, or position ourselves on the map we are holding.

Rich. Thai heritage is rich. I can only gaze in awe and respect at how they have built and preserved their own impressive temples and palaces and how they have kept their culture and practices alive. Any legacy is priceless and theirs, being ancient and glorious and diverse but intact, is truly something to be proud of and worth passing onto.
Diverse. Structures dating as far back as the Ayutthaya period show that the people of Siam have since then mastered openness and diversity. Sri-Lankan spires, Persian and Chinese style buildings were craftily incorporated into the the ancient glorious city of Ayutthaya. The history of the old kingdom of Siam is replete with accounts of foreign settlements--Japanese, Portuguese, French, Chinese and many many others--flourishing with their trade, arts and crafts.
I think this culture of diversity among the Thais persists as there is an air of openness that I felt in Bangkok which I presume allows Siam--old and new--to remain a melting pot of cultures.
Thea and I met a lady named Veronica from Chile on our Ayutthaya excursion trip. She was traveling by herself. We met a lady from Korea and another from Finland on the same trip. I met an Italian while chilling outside Central World Plaza writing on my moleskine journal. He came up to chat and I offered him banana-coconut candies. He used to teach French in the city a few years back and has come back to visit the place, meet old friends and possibly teach again. Bangkok has a kind of welcoming, friendly atmosphere with a right mix of culture, trade and mystery that makes anyone who visits there want to stay a little bit longer, if not come back. I will definitely come back, if not for training, for another holiday.
Original. What's amazing is at the heart of cultural diversity, the core values of Thais remain intact. As in the temples and palaces, of both ancient and relatively modern origins, despite the Western and other Asian influences, much of the structure and design is distinctively rootedly Thai.
As in their practices of trade, there are big malls such as Central World Plaza and other big establishments but thriving with all sorts of retail goods and getting a good share of the market are the local ones, countless small Thai stores, old floating markets and street vendors at every corner of the cities and provinces. This trade practice gave me a glimpse of the way of life among the Thais catering to the poor and middle-class and eventually becoming tourist attractions. It sort of reminded me of our very own neighborhood
sari-sari store which always seemed charming for me but hasn't really become a tourist attraction and has been steadily disappearing (at least in the streets of my hometown) due to the rise of establishments like 7-11, Mini-Stop and nearby supermarkets.
Accommodating. The word to describe friendly and smiling Thais. There is a reason why Thailand is referred to as the "land of smiles". When pedestrians and vendors and even bus conductors could not express themselves in english, they smile even as they try so hard and ask the nearest person beside them to translate for them. Twice, helpful Thais allowed us to ride with them on their motorcycles--one time from
Damnoen Saduak to lead us to the bus terminal in the province of Ratchaburi, the other time to take us to a tuk-tuk on our way to
Wat Bang Kung. Yes, we commuted by PUVs for most part of our stay (with the exception of our trip to Ayutthaya) which brings me to being...
Mobile. Mobility in Bangkok is not very hard to learn. Thea and I spent 6 full days going around Bangkok primarily by bus, boat, tuk-tuk, taxi, trains and yes, motorcycles.
Delicious. Thai food is delicious and inexpensive. Thea and I were addicted to banana crepe that we scour through
Khao San Road and nearby streets in search for this. Pad Thai, Tom Yum soup, coconut juice and the streetfood we tried were all good. Thai food from
street hawkers seemed to be safe as we didn't get any digestive problems considering we only dined at restaurants two or three times during our 6-day stay, and the rest off the streets.
Benevolent. The word to describe the monk we talked to at
Wat Arun, Temple of the Dawn. Wat Arun was already closed the first time we went there late Monday afternoon. A kind monk with a benevolent smile informed us that we can come back the next day. He invited us to join their chanting in the temple that evening. We did. This is another area of sincerity and openness that we witnessed--how people regardless of their background and gender are welcomed to sacred temples during chanting or teaching of students. At one point, we were even gently ushered in and taught how to put tiny gold papers onto Buddha and use incense and offer roses.
Pensive. I noticed that there was something about
Wat Arun the first time we visited the place. It was ancient, it was magnificent. It effortlessly and gently evoked reverence. If there's one thing, just one thing that I would take away from this whole 6-day excursion, it is my experience at Wat Arun.

The second time Thea and I visited the ancient temple, we made it in time and was allowed to climb through the steepest and tallest steps I've ever seen. Considering I'm afraid of heights, I'm happy to have made it to the top terrace and happier to have gone back down unscathed.
The whole of Wat Arun was impossible to drink in--the delicate and exquisite carvings, the colorful ceramics, the figures, spires, prangs, pavillions, the view of the river and the town from above--that I gave up taking pictures because my camera doesn't give justice to the actual splendor before me. The same thing happened at the Grand Palace and Ayutthaya. Thea and I gave up taking pictures. We just admired with our eyes and bought postcards instead.

Thea and I decided to split up on our second day at Wat Arun. She went off exploring the city by boats and buses and trains while I stayed in the temple to catch a meditation session. There I met a wonderful person, a teacher, a former CEO and former monk by the name of Hartanto. Our discussion was very insightful and is one of the few meaningful conversations that I will remember. In a very contemplative atmosphere with the wind and the bustle of vehicles outside, by a historical and magnificent structure that is Wat Arun, I asked him questions and he answered them one by one, never judging, just understanding and gently coaching.

We talked about events, about Thailand, the Western world, corporate life, what they teach in universities, psychology, science, inner peace, understanding oneself and nature, seeing things as they are, impermanence, wisdom and yes, life, even the meaning of life. I listened intently to a short anecdote he gave about his life as a monk. I admired his courage to drop everything at the height of his corporate career to become a monk, and later a humanitarian, cheerfully and wisely performing his calling. He taught me about meditation, the core of Buddhism, cause and effect, thoughts and perceptions, cleansing one's mind, mindfulness, and above all, consciousness. The discussion seemed to flow seamlessly and carried with it so much purpose.

At the end of the day, I was so fortunate to have met a truly wise and generous teacher but was very sad and reluctant to leave even if I had to leave soon or I will miss the last boat trip to get to the other side of the river. I tried to content myself to be thankful for the bigger
perspective that day and for a new skill to practice--that is meditation. It is really something else, to have a purposeful discussion with a wise and accomplished teacher and to connect on a deeply personal level. Powerfully life defining, if anything.
Then I got to thinking that we're not running out of wise leaders and preachers and teachers, moreso in the country. I know some of them in our Churches and I support them. I have a friend who is well on her way to becoming a leader and humanitarian and I encourage her.
Back at home here in Manila, immediately after arriving and putting down all my bags, I made a quick search for the teacher's name. It turns out, other bloggers have written about their encounter with Hartanto too. Here's
one that best describes my conversation with him and my beginning efforts at meditation. Here's
another and again,
another one.