In my efforts to do something a little (or a lot) more culturally enriching, I had a great deal of success last night during the Buddha Day candlelight ceremony at the temple here in Pattaya.
As previously noted, nearly all establishments along the infamous Walking Street and throughout the city - from the raciest of go-go bars to the classiest of hotels - were either closed or abstained from serving alcohol in observance of this holiday.
Most of the women and men who work and frequent those establishments were among the thousands kneeling alongside me - one of four white men.
Religion is religion. There's always something special to me about seeing someone worship to something greater than themselves - especially in this peaceful and soothing ceremony.
Thousands gathered to kneel around the statue of this Buddha. This particular statue may not appear as the same jolly little fat man most of us are accustomed to seeing. But this is, nonetheless, a statue of a younger and more fit Buddha.
I'm not religious per se, but I strongly believe in respecting individuals' religion. Spirituality is very important and if you cannot respect it you should not invite yourself to participate or observe the practice. In order to respect - you have to learn how things go.
The first thing I learned about Buddhist ceremonies is that they resemble the Christian worship services I grew up in. There's a lot of uncomfortable kneeling, there's a couple in the back w/ a very cranky and noisy child, elderly people who give those young parents the hairy eyeball, and a lot of repeating. Did I mention it's very uncomfortable?
For men, we can wear what we like. Women, however, are expected to dress w/ long sleeves and long pants. Not everyone did it, but most adhered to this custom. Everyone is expected to take off their shoes - and absolutely everyone did this.
The ceremony began after about 30 white-robed women filled the first few rows and kneeled. After about 45 minutes of what sounded like mass, everyone rose from their knees or indian-style sitting to light candles and incense. Despite the long kneel and language barrier, the whole experience was quite soothing and placid.
Led by the women in white - we circled the large central Buddha several times. The statue is surrounded by smaller statues where we placed our incense, candles and flowers at.
The pictures are hardly what I hoped, but the entire experience was exactly what I was looking for this trip - I highly recommend it to anyone who has the opportunity.
Upon leaving the temple I met an older British man named Martin and his "girlfriend" who made him come to the ceremony amid their escapades. Her, their taxi driver, Martin and I all attended the same ceremony and there's something to be said about that.
Then Martin bought all of us some water and paid for my ride back to town. I bid goodnight as he rode off into the night with his girlfriend - who he says is at least in the ten best he knows in Pattaya.
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