My thai teacher June invited me to join her and her friends at Amphawa Floating Market for the day. We left Bangkok around 11am and headed to Amphawa, which was about a two hour drive from Bangkok. We stopped for lunch at an outdoor thai restaurant along the khlong. The entire menu was written in thai, so the girls had a good laugh when they handed it to me and told me to order. They ordered thai family style for us and the dishes were amazing! I absolutely loved the traditional fish and sauce and the crab curry. The prawn soup was a bit spicy and the green basil dish left my mouth hot for the rest of the meal after just one tiny bite.
The outdoor toilets were labeled in thai words only, so it was really good I had June with me. I snapped a photo of the word for women's toilet so that I won't ever have to guess and check. Awkward.
After lunch we went to a wat (temple) with a golden buddha. Temples used to be the centers of town life where markets, worship, teaching and even muay thai took place. I got to go inside the temple and walk around the big golden buddha. Those wishing to make merit pay for "specs of gold" to attach to the budda as they walk around. After visiting the small temple, we drove to a cathedral. The girls took me here because it was beautiful, although they didn't know the story behind the Jesus, Mary and Joseph statues. I explained the beliefs of christians versus catholics when attending mass. It was really neat to be able to share stories about buddhist and christian beliefs together.
Finally, it was time for the floating market. We wandered around an obnoxiously crowded riverwalk, stopping at stalls along the way to try different snacks. I think by the end of the day the girls were wishing June had never taught me "unee arai ka" (what is this thing) because I was pointing and asking all day long.
We sat along the river to watch the sunset. Once it was dark, we got in a boat of our own to watch the fireflies. Rainy season is the perfect time to do this because the trees are filled with them. It was an absolutely beautiful way to end the evening.
I was so unbelievably lucky to have gotten to go on a day trip with these girls and get a taste of what thai locals do for fun. Kittung Kru June Na Ka.
Looks like a fun and interesting day! Beautiful pictures - beautiful ladies!
ReplyDeleteWhat a treat to meet June! So genuine and sweet. So glad your paths crossed. Please convince her to buy a warm winter coat and come to America to visit us!