Stand for what I believe ...

Firstly, I want to thank you all for visitting my blog. All of comments are most welcome, I appreciate. :) 

I really love Chiangmai and I'm very happy to share all stories to you guys. I do this blog with a passion in writing and photography. My grammar and vocabulary usage might not be proper, and my photography may not be beautiful because I'm a beginner. :p Just do whatever I like, follow other dreams of mine. 

Next month will be the beginning of my life's next step. I'm going to work for a new company in a new position with more challeanging. I know I have to work harder. I really thank myself for studying and working hard. There are many things and many dreams I want to do in my life and I believe anything can be possible if we work hard.

Just never lose hope ... when the sun goes down, the stars come up.

Thank you again and please keep reading :)

Small Buddha images collecting, a hobby with faith and passion

Thai people are engaged with Buddhism since we were born. A first born baby would be brought to a temple for naming. When we build a house and getting marrige, we need monks for blessing us. Even when people are dead, we need monks' praying bring us to the heaven. 

In past, poor people couldn't afford for school so they sent their male kids to ordain. Most of poor people didn't study, they couldn't even read or write but monks could. Also Thai women had no right to study, they were taught to be housewives. 

All Thai Buddhists believe in heaven and hell, doing good things and karma. We make merit for our better future lives and pray for our peaceful lives. In a war, all Thai combatants had holy tattoos which were believed that can protect them from weapons and they hung small buddha images for missing of any hazard.

The old small buddha images descended from ancestors are very valuable, an old one can cost you millions baht! The price depends on its ages, popularity, beauty and fondness of the buyer. Small buddha images collecting is a very popular hobby for all kinds of people from politicians, businessmen, policemen, farmers or even students. Some people collect them for protecting hazards and getting lucky. Other people take them as goods. They are so priceless that can bring murder to the owners. The old small buddha images are kept in a safe as if they were diamonds.

 ( Three of priceless small buddha images kinds) 

As their price are really high so the small buddha images lovers are always copied but that makes the copied images' price reduced because the experts know which one is real. 

 ( a small magnifying glass which the small buddha images lovers use for gazing at the images to appraise them )

     ( A small buddha images lover's gazing at the images. )

If you overlook at the credulity, you would find that a small buddha image is a kind of art. Anything could be valuable depending on one's fondness.

**There was a comment from an American that a small buddha image called Amulet in English. Thank you so much for your advice. ^_____^ 

Ordained Yang trees on Chiangmai-Lamphun Rd.

Over 1,000 Yang trees (Disterocapus Alatus) standing along both sides of Chiangmai-Lamphun road bacame a sign and attraction of Amphur Sarapi - a small peace district in Chiangmai. 

Any time, I and my friends drove along this road, we always looked up to see the trees with gigantic trunks and wondered how old they are? 

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dipterocarpus_alatus

They may be a hundred year old approximately. They were planted along the street for travelors and localors' shady covering. 

From the pictures, you will see they are wearing orange cloth. Not only foreigners but also some thai people don't know yet about this. As you can see the huge trunks of them and the timbers' price are costly so it's not strange if many people want to log them. The way to prevent logging is ordaination of trees - to tie the orange robes of a forest monk around the trunks. This cerymony can discourage loggers who might not want to make the bad kama because the trees  are already engaged to buddhism.

This ceremony is also done for the large and old trees in the forest. 

http://www.calpeacepower.org/0302/ordainingtrees.htm

The caremony is traditionally held every year on January 1st. Moreover, the Yang trees are also the border between Chiangmai and Lamphun areas. You would know you are already in Lamphun when you see the Cassia trees along both sides of the street instead.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senna_siamea

                

                

If you like how cheap it is!

If you like how cheap is it to live in Thailand, now I will make you more surprised by how cheaper it is. For the foreigners in Chiangmai, they may feel things including living costs here are so cheap that they can live their lives as kings.

I offer you new choice for the places to buy cheaper things but if you are already happy with your existing cost, well, it's

alright. You can take this as your amazing information.

Begin with where to buy appliances, the cheaper appliances with the same quality to the things bought from supermarket. :O 

     ( It's 20฿ hahaha :p)

As the vendors are no need to pay for high rent and employees, the things they sell are cheaper than supermarket. They buy things from the same factory and sell them with a bit higher price than their costs. When you come into their shop, you will see things arranged are not  nice and tidy like in supermarket because they don't hire employees to arrange them. They do every step themselves from buying to calculating. It's well-known for the localors.

    ( 119 ฿ for a tape measure)

     ( I paid only 10 ฿ for this cute basket.)

    (It's only 20 ฿ for a bear key ring but I did't take one.)

Next, where to buy the foodstuff, cheapest foodstuff I can say. It's a big wholesale market. You can buy tropical fruits and vegetables with very cheap price. 

This market open all day and night but I feel like it's vigorous in the evening. If you want to buy the freshest foodstuff, you can come around 10 pm. - 1 am. when farmers transport their fruits, vegetable and herbs from their farms. All the middlemans and cooks come at the time to buy fresh food.

    ( I got 5 kg. of Lanzones with paying only 100฿)

 

What I show you is just your other choice or your new information. You would prefer buying cheaper things, wouldn't you? Thailand is developing country. We were taught not to spend a lot of money that why we prefer to buy cheaper things. If your life are already quality and happy, able to afford luxury, don't forget sharing. Many people still starve. 

A belief of Northern Thai & A Chinese Thai traditon (2)

The following day (21/8/2556), I got up late since I went to Upagutta temple last night. (just my excuse :p) I arrived office almost 9 a.m. I was in hurry and heading to office's kitchen in order to drink some Ovantine. I tried many times to drink some coffee but I couldn't feel good with it, it always makes me have a headache and palpitation. 

In the kitchen, I saw a housekeeper's preparing some food like boiled chicken and duck, oranges, apples, grapes, dragon fruits and basket-shaped Chinese puddings. After that she separated them on plates. An interesting point was the amount of friuts and Chinese puddings - it's put on 8 or 9 pieces which are the lucky numbers. Even more the name of fruits are propitious. I asked her about this and she answered me that our boss's husband  is Chinese Thai. (75% Chinese blood) He always makes a sacrifice to his gods. It's Ghost Festival for Chinese people.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_Festival

I didn't really understand what it is so I asked my colleague. She said that Chinese people take Ghost Festival as an important day that they can show respect and grateful to their deceased ancestors by ritualitic food offering, burning incense and burning joss paper.

      (Joss house in the office)

     ( All food put in front of Joss house)

The housekeeper brought all food, fruits and Chinese puddings outside and put them in front of the Joss house at exactly 9 a.m., and then burnt incenses. We had waited until all incenses burnt, went to burn joss papers outside the office. 

     (burning joss papers)

I'm 100% Thai and most of my colleagues are also. We don't know their culture but we respect their tradition and feel happy with them. What I realise is people come from different places, have different Nationalities and languages but we always have our believes and reasons to do things.

A belief of Northern Thai & A Chinese Thai tradition

Thai tradition is mostly involved in buddhism since most of Thai people are buddhist. I don't know when I started being one of the religion, what I realise is no one can separate Thai people from Buddhism. It's already consolidated in our lives.

Giving food to Buddhist monks at midnight of the Tuesdays before Full Moon Prase Wednesday is one of Northern Thai's believes. 

Buddhist believes that Shin Upagutta who's living in a floating brass palance in the southern ocean is coming to visit us in the Tuesday night before the dawn of Full Moon Phase Wednesday as a monk and any buddhist that can give food to Shin Upagutta appearing as a monk will get lucky.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin_Upagutta

Last Tuesday night (20/8/2013) was the night before the wednesday, I and my friends went to Upagutta Temple located near Thapae Gate to give dried food to monks. People were crowded here because this temple is the most famous temple for the ceremony. We arrived the temple about 10.40 pm. While we're waiting for the appropiate time, monks already stood in roll along the street and some people were giving dried food to them. I saw two farang men giving boxes of milks to monks as well. I wasn't sure if they knew about our believe but I was sure what they did made us and people standing around smile. :)

     (Crowded people at 11 pm.)

    (Monks already stood in roll)

    (our sleepy faces with happy smiles)

We stood at the temple gate and wondered which monk is Shin Upagutta and laughed. There were around 1,000 monks standing in roll from Navarat Bridge to the Night Bazaar Rd.!

               -----to be continued-----

My first day on my first blog

I'm Year, 23 years old. I've been waiting to be 23 for whole of my life. I've expected that something special would happen with my life.

I live in Chingmai - the most charming city in Northern part of Thailand. ( I'll show you how it is.) I graduated from RMUTL (Rajamangala University of Technology Lanna, Chiangmai) with a bachelors degree in Business English.

(commencement day)

My hometown is in Lamphun, a peaceful small province near Chiangmai. I often visit my home on weekend.

(From left, my younger sister, mom and me->later for dad's photo :p)

(me and my colleagues)

Nowadays, I work as an admin in an accounting office. I was a spa receptionist in 5 stars hotel since I love to service and meet new different people.I resigned from this job, although I love it. I think I perfer working with documentary job to service because I'm afriad that I might lose my excellent skills in business and management by the time passing, never used it in my hotel work.

(when i was a spa receptionist)

In the admin job, I can apply my skills. My main duties should be just like a normal administrative work but No. It's quite different since I work for an accouting office with high-standard boss! Not only my knowledge in English and management but also business law, taxation and accounting. I have to work hard with the difficult work. Many exciting  situations always happen in my everyday work. That's what makes it interesting. People might think I'm crazy but I really like the hard and difficult work.(don't know why, just feel like it's challenging)

As I have a passion in writing and reading,I decided to set up my blog which I can write and share what I wrote, and my job is such a serious and stress work so I take writing this blog as a relax thing. (hope you enjoy)

The interesting stories, things and attractions in Chiangmai (sometimes my stories) will be told through the blog from now on.