New Year Blessings

It's been a busy month, but a good one. Just a few days after my mom and brother flew back to the US, my buddy James and his girlfriend arrived to visit me in Bangkok. 2018 dawned bright and relatively cool, and we set out to the city's Old Town to see the sights, and to collect blessings for the new year.

on the river

Even though it was super crowded for New Years, we decided to visit Wat Phra Keao, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, at Bangkok's Grand Palace. It was packed with both tourists and devout Thais coming to the kingdom's holiest site to pray for blessings in the coming year.

Wat Phra Keao

The temple is beautiful, but always too crowded. We didn't spend too much time there, but it is definitely something that one must see on their first visit to the City of Angels.

crowds at the temple

I don't make my way to the Grand Palace so often, but I'm always glad when I do. Although it's really expensive, crowded, and kind of touristy, it is undeniably beautiful and majestic.

Leaving Wat Phra Keao, we visited Wat Pho, the Temple of the Reclining Buddha. I've never seen this temple so crowded! There was a massive line just to get inside, but once in, the crowds dispersed throughout the grounds. A senior monk was giving blessings and prayers, and we decided to wait in line for our turn.

As each person came before the senior monk, he plunged a bundle of thin wooden reeds into a bowl of holy water, tapping the person on the head to bless them while saying a prayer. He was having a lot of fun with it too! Some people got a light sprinkle of water and a gentle tap, others got splashed and soaked and whacked hard, to the amusement of the others waiting in line.

When James and I came before him for our blessings, he began smacking us hard, causing everyone around us to begin laughing. We were too, and so was the monk, who gave us each a blue string bracelet afterwards. I guess he thought we both needed lots of blessings! Afterwards, James and I were both thoroughly soaked, which actually felt really good on the hot day.

a blessing

Across the river lies Wat Arun, the Temple of the Dawn. It's been recently renovated, and is now a brilliant white! When I first arrived, the temple was a dark grey color, but after extensive cleaning, the famous old temple looks brand-new!

Wat Arun

I am really impressed with how beautiful Wat Arun looks now! I had no idea that it was supposed to be white. I always thought that the dark grey was its natural color. Imagine how surprised I was to see it looking so clean and new.

Temple of the Dawn

I've collected a lot of blessings over the past few days! I'm wearing four blessed strings right now: a thick yellow band and an orange string from the little old nun at Ta Phrom in Cambodia, the blue beaded string from the monk who smacked my head with a stick at Wat Pho, and a thin yellow string from a monk at Wat Saket (the Golden Mount).

I also got a few amulets, which were being given out at Wat Arun's temple fair for the new year. As we were walking around, enjoying the festival atmosphere of the fair, a monk handed each of us two clay tokens. The front depicts the Hindu god Ganesh, and the back shows the Temple of the Dawn. It also has the date of the old year that was just finishing, 2560, written in Thai numerals.

The final amulet that I got was a special New Year's amulet from Wat Arun! The front shows Buddha and the goddess of the river (the one whom people are thanking on Loy Krathong Day). This one has the date of the new year, 2561.