Thailand Naturally (page 10 of 13)

Hello there!

Your "monkey comic" had me rolling on the floor laughing—I loved it!

Being away has its perks on VoyageForum; I got to read three days' worth in one go :)

The ropes in the buffaloes' noses were as painful to watch as they must have been for them to wear, but that floating market is amazing. I love places like that! Your photos made me really (really) want to visit someday, and I hope we get the chance. The scenery is stunning, the products on offer are incredible—just like you said, it’s so different from touristy markets. We love it!

Looking forward to the rest of this fantastic 2019 trip you’re sharing with us—it’s such a treat :)

I’d been wondering for days: *where on earth has Laetitia gone?!*

I think I’ve found a good trick with photo captions, and I can tell I’m going to overuse it—yeah, well, I’m allowed!

Françoise loves monkeys (the proof: 🤪), and I suspect that’s why she manages to take such extraordinary photos of them. The truth is, I still haven’t gotten over the one of the romantic kiss, and I’m surprised no one reacted to it!

As for the buffaloes, yeah, it does leave a bit of a weird impression, but I don’t think it causes them pain. There’s nothing better for keeping them still. I’ve dreamed for years of stumbling upon a place like this, and it’ll stay a strong memory.

This year, I really realized that floating markets aren’t just a handful in Thailand—there are dozens. Not always easy to find, I’ll admit. But with no tourists at all, like a privilege.

You’ll see that this region ends with a bang, and this travel journal will just barely be finished before you set off yourself.

Thanks again!

It’s been a few days now I’ve been thinking: good grief, where on earth did you disappear to, Laetitia!

Funny, given the location under your username, I’d have expected you to say "oh bloody hellG" 😏

This year I really realized that floating markets aren’t just a handful in Thailand—there are dozens. Not always easy to track down, I’ll admit. But with no tourists at all, like a real privilege.

Hope we find some too—I absolutely love those markets. The one we discovered in Bangkok back in 2015 was amazing...

But it’s only on weekends, and we’re never in Bangkok on a weekend because of our travel dates... So if we find any on our other stops, I’ll be thrilled!

Promise, Joël, I won’t ask what’s in the first photo of your latest post 😎

Lucky for us! Because it wouldn’t be easy to explain that this stele is meant to attract the favor of the forest spirits—or rather, to prevent their wrath after the small deforestation needed to set up this site. But on second thought, maybe it’s a stele dedicated to a safari enthusiast who annoyed the lions by machine-gunning them and asking too many questions, and ended up in one or more stomachs. 😛

😏😏😏

It had been ages since we’d last seen a pink elephant. So we filled that gap at an isolated temple in the middle of the countryside—but it could hold its own against many more famous places of worship. As a bonus, a monk blessed us for the third time. These few days fall during a period of religious ceremonies, and we’re taking every chance to observe Thais in lesser-known aspects of their daily lives.

This temple is gorgeous, almost entirely pink, as well as the small one at the foot of the tree. And the one with the human head is so surprising! 🙂

Lucky you—I don’t have any questions

I really like the fountain; I just hope the wire going into it isn’t electrical 😄

The countryside offers landscapes just the way we love them, but we’re not disappointed by the sunny seaside either—no one around on the beach. Fresh sea air in the off-season, sun on the horizon.



















The area is famous for its salt flats, where the pans reflect the light once the salt has been harvested. It’s a paradise for wading birds, cormorants, and other wildlife.

Along a country road, towering piles of wood are arranged near long barns: these are the local charcoal factories. It’s a great opportunity to play with light and shadow...















Light and shadow again in a palm grove. Phetchaburi Province is where you’ll find the largest number of sugar palms. The Thais climb these palms using flimsy bamboo ladders that are terrifying just to look at. The production of syrups and small sweet treats is entirely artisanal.









Another hill along our route. In a cave, a Buddha was carved directly into the rock 700 years ago.

Hi Joel

I had a good laugh at the macaque photos—your wife’s a pro! :)

As for the temple with the pink elephant, I thought it was in pretty poor taste, to be honest. I’ve never understood why there are Indian gods and polytheism in Thailand, which is Buddhist...?

Anyway, thanks for sharing all these beautiful places with us! :)

The Thais have been influenced by several neighboring peoples, particularly the Khmers, where Buddhist and Hindu religions coexisted, as well as the Mons, who occupied central Thailand and part of Burma. The Indian epic Ramayana became the Ramakien, a masked ballet. That pink elephant is none other than Ganesh, which you’ll find as a symbol of Silpakorn University (the fine arts). It’s a Brahmin, not a Buddhist monk, who officiates during the king’s coronation, much like in the Angkor era. I almost forgot dear Garuda, which appears at the top of official documents or on passports for long-term visas. The Thais practice spirit worship (see the altar at the foot of a tree in one of the photos in this report) but also honor Hindu deities like Brahma (Erawan Shrine in Bangkok). They aren’t Hindu themselves, but Hindu rituals and deities have been incorporated into the main religion, Buddhism.

On the day of the start of Buddhist Lent, villagers prepare a huge quantity of various dishes for the monks early in the morning. There’s always too much: what hasn’t been eaten is redistributed. We witnessed this with reverence and respect. It was high time we experienced a ceremony like "Buddha Day."















A little later, we learn that a huge prayer hall is under construction, with a budget of several tens of millions of baht. The architect is actually on site—he’s the same one who recently designed a remarkable temple in Phetchaburi. Every day, a woman is tasked with breaking hundreds of ceramic cups specially ordered for the occasion. The pieces are then glued one by one onto the decorative elements of the building’s exterior.

Nearby, a conservation center takes in injured or mistreated animals to reintroduce them into their natural habitat when possible.

It’s the perfect opportunity to observe gibbons, which until now we’d only heard from a distance.

Of course, it’s fascinating. Here, the animals live on small islands, and you can see and hear them at will. Their postures and the limited space they have make it clear they’d be better off in larger areas, but whether that’s still possible for these animals, we just don’t know.



















Not far from there, an open-air sacred space has been set up: it looks both unfinished and abandoned. Another mystery for wandering *farangs*!

your wife really captured your expressions

I think you're referring to my tutorial on mosquito repellent products, and in that case, I can definitely tell you that you've got the wrong discussion. Otherwise, are you filling in for Nato these days? 😏

I just wanted to make you laugh

I'm lost and I'm furious!! 😉

These monkeys are real fluffballs! Though I wouldn’t go so far as to cuddle them... Yeah, yeah, I know, but I still can’t decide between the relative comfort of a trip to the Land of Smiles, the chaos of India that I love so much, and discovering Colombia. Oh, how hard it is to have only one life! See you soon 😏

As for those, you can always run after them... or climb to cuddle them, but they’re wary of us—and they’re not wrong...

Prioritize your choices, and please, do it all before it’s too late!! 😉