TLC Pagodas – Day 8 (riverside reflections)

As we head down the Mekong river into Laos, the day overall has been uneventful, bar some pretty interesting games of Uno on the boat! We have decided to look at images that we have taken from our last week, and investigate what it reminds us of.
 

The temple represented a different side of Thailand, with it showing a much darker side by displaying lots of things about death like bones, animal skins and and sculptures such as the above demon. It didn’t feel like a religious temple but more of a museum that displayed a man’s work over the years that he was alive.As we knew that Buddhism is the main religion in Thailand, we knew it wasn’t a proper temple as there were no Buddha statues or monks,  to show it was a place of respect. I wonder why the Black Temple was made as a museum close to a city that isn’t very big such as Chiang Rai, and very well known as it doesn’t bring much attention to it. It is nice that it isn’t very well known so that it is more of a place to see a man’s work over his lifetime rather than being a museum in a major city centre. It is a place to be treasured and preserved as it is a place where many people come to visit and relax.` 
 

For our last night in Thailand we were able to release lanterns into the sky for the full moon festival. For the Thai people the full moon is a celebration – and also an apology to the river gods for taking and using so much water, and we were lucky enough to experience this phenomenal event. For the majority of us it was a great time for reflection as we made a wish and released the lanterns into the sky. It was a great way to say goodbye to Thailand.

Buddhism is the most common religion in Thailand. Many of it monks who practice this religion wear orange robes and walk the temples that we visited. The monks usually were either cleaning the courtyard or temple, or praying within the temple. This photo shows a monk that is cleaning the courtyard, as the temples are something of a treasure towards their religion and shows respect towards Buddha. Cleaning the temples shows the tourists and followers respect towards the condition of the temple, as being a monk is part of an ancient culture and highly respected within Thailand. 

 

This dog is one of many that moved freely around the Chang Dao village. Similar to the some of the children, the dogs were shy at first but slowly become more friendly and open towards us guests. The shoes symbolise the wealth those in the village. The locals only possessed open toed footwear but we the Pagodas had closed toed footwear. It pleases me to say that most of us visitors left behind our closed toed shoes for those in the village and hope that they enjoy having them. 

 

Doing the house build was incredibly taxing on my body, after the first day I was already extremely tired, but I knew that if I sat out it was an experience I would regret missing so on the second day I was carrying the bricks in this photo sometimes 7 at a time because I knew that after we were done and met the family who would be living in the house we built for the rest of their lives. It was worth the pain and the effort to make sure it was done for them. At the very end of the build the feeling was exactly as I imagined it and more. It was humbling, exciting and I could see the whole group was so proud of what we had done together in just 2 and a half short days. Living in the village and building the house has to be one of the most humbling experiences in my life and I will for ever be grateful to the wonderful people who made this possible – our trip leaders and guides Mr Wood, Mr Burke, Ms Southey, Hung and Chan. And of course my parents who funded my trip entirely to all of you thank you it has been the most amazing thing I’ve ever done. 

 

This hut on the top of the big hill in the village represents our experience in the village for the three days we were there.. It really pushed us outside of our comfort zone, the way we slept, ate and drank was so different to the way we were used to back home in Australia. This hut was at the top of a massive mountain that we had to climb at the end of a long working day and it was such a both hysical and mental challenge.

This spider represents the teamwork and synergy that was demonstrated by our group during the house build. The web takes dynamic synergy with its natural elements to collaboratively create a home for itself like we did for the people in the village. 

The pagodas all came together to achieve something amazing for the lives of others. The house we built and five pigs we donated is a hope, giving opportunity to these people to have a better life. I feel as if the fire symbolises starting from fresh beginning. At this fire both Australian and Thai cultures were able to come together despite our language barriers. We interacted together through dance and games. This was our last moment together as a whole, we wish all the very best with the new chapter of their lives.

I see a well built house with lots of potential to help and give a family a place to stay and live their lives. I wonder what the people’s views on the build itsself are, and if they are satisfied with the out come of it and our efforts. Given that almost all the group put a huge effort into it I feel as though the whole group should feel a sense of Self achievement and happiness. Overall the house build was a success and I hope the family that we built it for get a lot of use out of it.  

—

(Sorry, the flash would just not work here!  Better photos coming up tomorrow I promise)

Although we arrived in the late evening at Pakbeng, everyone is in high spirits, and can’t wait for our trip further down the Mekong river tomorrow, arriving at Luang Pabang tomorrow evening. Expect more reflections, awesome photos, and a small update of what happened over the last two days 

Mr. Burke