July 14th, 2012
July 15th and proud to say….
….it is 7:14am and I have been up for 1 1/2 hours! I must say the temperature is much more bearable at 6am : )))
It was my mission to get up one day this trip to see the monks taking their alms. They do this starting at 5:30 am. I guess if they can do it every day…I can get up once to observe. The Buddhist monks only eat one meal a day and it is donated to them by the people. They walk the streets in the morning and the locals kneel on the sidewalk and give them what appears to be mostly sticky rice and fruit. It has become a bit of a tourist spectacle here in Luang Prabang…so much so that they have posted the “rules” in the street…
I saw people violating these rules this morning….I saw lots of flashes going off, I saw people getting way closer than 3 meters, and I saw a woman not just watching in a tank top, but actually participating, then standing up behind her husband and children taking video..so disrespectful!
Thanks to the zoom…
There had to be a few hundred monks….some very young to some very old…I was worried about the last guy in line until I saw what happened next….
They were all in a big line for this section, then after this long block, they divided up into small groups that broke off and went down side streets.
My plan was to head over to the morning market….so I wandered down main street and it was eerie to say the least….all the shops were shuttered and it was so quiet, just me and the monks : ) all the tourists were back by the school. After a couple blocks, the group of monks that were going the same direction as me (on the other side of the street) broke off down a side street and it was just me.
So I did find the local market….this is clearly where all the “morning” people are that aren’t giving alms : )
So to preserve some of your eyesight…I was cautious in the photos I took, but I did get a few things that I thought I could stand to look at again. Yes these are frogs….you can have fried on a stick…or live….you choose.
I would also like to see the bird that laid the pink eggs…
Did not get too close on this shot as most of you (and me too) don’t really want to know where our meat comes from…but this is the butcher….
Yes…this is a cart full of bags of pig feet…Blech….
This is the baker….
And I could not find candle stick maker (at this market)! Those are the super delish rolls they use for the street sandwiches! Yum….
I also found where I could get those special little angry bird treats in bulk! Hahahahahahahaha
Found Patongo!! These are the Chinese donuts we love so much from Thailand….no pandanas custard though : ((
Brought some back and am indulging right now as I blog as a matter of fact!
Well today is promising to be fun filled and adventurous….we are planning on heading up to the Pak Ou caves…2 hour boat ride up the Mekong River to get there (only one back apparently due to current assist) plus however long we spend there…and yes….caves equal bats…and apparently there is another outstanding hike should we be so inclined….so we will see….I may be a little tired considering my early morning ; ))
