On Thursday (Christmas Eve) I went sightseeing with Mark and his girlfriend to see Wat Pho. A Wat is the Thai version of a temple where many monks worship and there are many all over Bangkok. We parked the car at a mall and took a taxi the rest of the way because traffic was so bad. The parking garage was pretty full at the mall, but we created our own parking space in front of some cars. I asked if this was allowed and how the other cars would get out. Mark and his girlfriend said people do this all the time in Thailand and leave their car in neutral. So when the person needs to get out they just push your car out of the way! This was a new concept for me and I couldn't believe that's what they do! So we left the car in neutral and hopped in a taxi. The Wat had 9 parts to it and it was interesting looking at the designs and details in the windows, ceilings and doors. There were also Chinese statues that had been imported throughout the Wat. Also saw a huge reclining Buddha in one of the temples. Once we had finished walking around the Wat we all got Thai massages. We each got a half hour massage and paid about $10 for the massage, not bad! The actual massage was not very relaxing because it was such a different experience for me. I've had one back massage in the states, but this one was more of a full body massage. My lady was pretty strong and some parts were pretty intense, but felt good afterwards.
After the Wat we headed back to the mall and took a water taxi on the river. A water taxi is a boat that picks up and drops people off at different points along the river. It was a neat experience and got to see Bangkok from yet another perspective. After hopping off the water taxi we took the sky train the rest of the way to the mall. The sky train is fairly new to Bangkok, within the past 5 years. It was a very smooth ride and air conditioned inside! At the mall we ate dinner at a Thai restaurant. I had papaya salad and sticky rice, very traditional Thai dishes. The papaya salad was really spicy, but good.
It's become a tradition that many Thai Christians go caroling all night during the Christmas season. Auntie and Uncle already had two groups of carolers visit their home and were expecting one more group Christmas Eve. This group wasn't suppose to come until midnight. I was not awake to see this last group because I was so exhausted from traveling around, but I did hear them singing. One thing I've really come to appreciate and enjoy is listening to worship songs sung in different languages. I've been able to listen to songs in Japanese and Thai! After the carolers sing a few songs you are suppose to invite them into your home for a little bit. I heard later that the carolers stayed until 3:30am!
Friday was Christmas! It was a bittersweet Christmas for me because this was my first one away from my family, but I was able to call them and talk to them on their Christmas Eve. The Fujii family is like a second family to me so well I felt very at home, it still wasn't the same.
We all slept in late and Uncle Leith gave a Christmas devotional and we took communion to remember Jesus sacrifice for us on the cross. Auntie cooked a wonderful Christmas lunch that included ham, chicken, mashed potato, stuffing, rice and apple sauce. It was like the Thanksgiving I never had this year! Two of Lani's friends from high school joined us for lunch and presents. After lunch we opened presents and there was even a stocking for me! Since it had been such a busy and packed week we decided to take it easy on Christmas. We watched movies and ate popcorn the rest of the day!
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