Khon Kaen » Buddhist

Khon Kaen Uninvited Guest

admin — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 03:24:09 +0000

Last night my wife came home at about 1900 from a day of work at the Healthy Smoothie Bar in Khon Kaen near Fairy Plaza.

As usual, when she gets to our house in Khon Kaen, she rings the doorbell and I go out to meet her to help carry in whatever needs to be carried in.

Khon Kaen Snake

I walked over to the carport and tried to calm down our dogs, Milo and Soda, who are always happy when “mommy” comes to our Khon Kaen home.

My wife opened the gate, drove in a little, closed and locked the gate, and commenced to drive towards the carport. As she got closer to the carport, she let out a scream and I could see her swerve her motorcycle a bit.

She stopped and I asked her what she saw. “Snake”, was her answer.

I grabbed the nearest weapon, a shovel, and had my wife turn the motorcycle around to put some light on the subject.

Our uninvited Khon Kaen guest was about 2 feet long, black with yellow rings and moving slowly from the driveway to the mud/grass yard.

My wife initially told me to scoop him up in the shovel and take him outside the gate and release him. I had other ideas.

I told her that the snake wouldn’t cooperate by just sitting in the shovel and I needed to move quickly before the snake got lost in the weeds.

So, I walked over and gave him a good WHACK!

Unfazed, he moved a little and snuggled up next to one of our palm trees. My wife was in agony – she wanted me to get rid of the snake, but, being Buddhist, didn’t want the snake dead.

Sorry dear, it was no time for morals or ethics. It was time to kill a snake.

I didn’t have time to check and see if this guy was poisonous or not, and figured it was easier to whack first and check later.

So, I moved in closer to the palm tree, and this time hit him with the blade end of the shovel.

He was still moving a little, but I managed to get him scooped up and placed in a plastic bag (typical for Thailand), and then tied the bag up in a tree.

My wife wanted it out of reach from the dogs, and wanted her step-dad to have a look at him to see what kind of snake it was.

I posted photos on thaivisa.com and asked if anyone knew what kind of snake it was and the best answer I got was that it was a frog eater – so most likely some kind of gardner/garter/garder snake.

My wife continued to apologize to the snake and I went and got a beer. I figured I deserved something for killing the snake. Time to sit on the porch at our house in Khon Kaen, have a beer, and be on the lookout for more snakes.

Bagged Khon Kaen Snake

Another exciting night in Khon Kaen with Mister No Shoulders.

Khon Kaen Uninvited Guest is a post from: Khon Kaen

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Sukjai Thailand Steals Metal Castle Photos

admin — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 05:39:59 +0000

The Tourism Authority of Thailand was busy this morning stealing 8 photos of a Metal Castle in Bangkok.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand has no shame and has stolen photos of Wat Rachanatdaram Worawiharn.

Tourism Authority of Thailand Sukjai Facebook

Above is the Sukjai Facebook album with the Tourism Authority of Thailand stolen photos.

Sukjai had to do a bit of Internet surfing to find all of these photos as they are not all on one page. This is what the Tourism Authority of Thailand does.

Photo 1 is from King of Heart Lohaprasada. It is on a photo site – kongzzar.multiply.com

Photo 2 is from a Buddhist web board. – board.palungjit.com

Photo 3 is from Scg Experience.

Photo 4 is from Bloggang.com – scroll down to #5739

Photo 5 is from Janghuman.wordpress.com

Photo 6 is from vcharkarn.com

Photo 7 is from thaitransport-photo.net – Jan 25, 2008 entry – scroll down a bit

Photo 8 is from oknation.net blog – the photo is a bit chopped in the post, but if you download it, you can compare

So, the Tourism Authority of Thailand stole 8 photos from 8 different web sites – all in one day. They sure are busy little thieves!

This is what the Thai taxpayers are getting for their hard earned baht. Stolen photos from the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

Sukjai Thailand Steals Metal Castle Photos is a post from: Khon Kaen

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Tourism Authority Of Thailand Sukjai Thailand Steals No Smoking Logo

admin — Tue, 31 May 2011 08:28:34 +0000

No smoking logo stolen by Tourism Authority of Thailand.

OK – so today is worldwide no smoking day so Sukjai Thailand – the Facebook page for the Tourism Authority of Thailand posts about it. What it has to do with getting tourists to Thailand is beyond me.

So, here is the no smoking logo stolen by the Tourism Authority of Thailand:

Tourism Authority of Thailand Facebook No Smoking Post

If you look closely, you can even see my comment that the graphic was taken. The Tourism Authority of Thailand doesn’t even have the smarts to remove my comment.

Here is the original No Smoking Logo stolen from a Buddhist web site – DhammaDelivery.com. Not very nice stealing from a Buddhist monk web site.

The Dhammadelivery.com original No Smoking logo is on the left and the Tourism Authority of Thailand stolen version on the right.

I can’t understand why the Tourism Authority of Thailand Sukjai Thailand Facebook page even posted this. It has nothing at all to do with tourism in Thailand. And, then to have the audacity to steal from a Buddhist monk web site. For shame.

Just goes to show the quality of the staff at the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

Tourism Authority Of Thailand Sukjai Thailand Steals No Smoking Logo is a post from: Khon Kaen

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Traditional Songkran In Khon Kaen

admin — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 00:16:53 +0000

Khon Kaen Songkran honoring ancestors.

Songkran officially started yesterday, April 13th, and it was time for the family to visit a local temple and honor the family ancestors. Food was prepared to present to the Buddhist monks and some other gifts were purchased.

The family got together at our house at about noon for Songkran and we had lunch of fried pork and sticky rice. After lunch, it was off to the temple – Wat Pha Chai Wan.

Songkran Khon Kaen Wat Pha Chai Wan

This marks the third year I have participated in this Thai tradition in Khon Kaen during Songkran. It is always nice to get with the family and go to the temple.

When we went last year, the head Abbot was the monk that my mother-in-law wanted to see and give her offering to. This year, she has had a change of heart and has found a different Buddhist monk at the same temple that is more to her liking. He was very friendly and we had a nice little chat before the ceremony started. He even offered a chair for me to save my old knees.

Buddhist Monk Wat Pha Chai Wan Songkran Khon Kaen

After introductions and a little chit-chat, my mother-in-law got down to business. She wrote down the names of all the deceased in the family and presented it to the monk.

Buddhist Monk With List of Deceased Family Members

A couple of prayers and chants later, he read off the names, one by one. More prayers and time to burn the list.

Buddhist Monk Burning List of Family Member Names

It was then time for the Buddhist monk to bless all of us with a sprinkling of holy water. This was as wet as I got on Songkran.

Buddhist Monk Preparing to Sprinkle Holy Water

The ceremony finished, we chatted a little more with the monk. He was very soft spoken and took the time to talk to all of us. Finished here, and time to go outside to build some sand stupas.

Almost everyone that comes to the temple for Songkran, builds a small stupa out of sand as another way to show respect and honor their family. There is a big pile of sand and some buckets and small colored flags on sticks to help build your sand stupa.

Wat Pha Chai Wan Sand Stupas

My brother-in-law did most of the work, but we all added our own personal touch.

Chaiyasit Family Sand Stupa

Annual tradition during Songkran was finished and it was time for me to wander around the temple and the temple grounds a bit.

Lord Buddha Statue at Wat Pha Chai Wan

Wat Pha Chai Wan Mural

As I wandered about, the family was busy with the lottery ticket sellers, looking for their lucky numbers.

Wat Pha Chai Wan Lottery Ticket Salesman

Lucky tickets purchased, it was time to load up the vehicles and head to the fish pond on the temple grounds.

Wat Pha Chai Wan Fish Pond

My wife purchased some fish food for 5 Thai baht per bag, and we fed the hordes of carp and catfish.

Wat Pha Chai Wan Fish

These fish definitely are well fed.

It was time to go on back home for some food and drink. I managed to stay completely dry (other than the monk’s blessing) during the first day of Songkran!

Traditional Songkran In Khon Kaen is a post from: Khon Kaen

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Another Songkran Drinking Campaign That Will Most Likely Fail

admin — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 01:39:02 +0000

How many will die on the roads this year during Thai New Year – Songkran?

Every year the Thai Government tries to cut down the number of road accidents and deaths during Songkran. And, every year, the campaigns fail miserably as there are anywhere from 300-500 reported deaths during the 7-day period.

Songkran 2010

The brilliant plan by the various anti-alcohol and accident prevention groups will be to set up alcohol-free (no – not free alcohol) areas for the tourists during Songkran. How this will prevent any accidents is beyond me. The vast majority of tourists don’t drive when on holiday in Thailand and most are smart enough to know not to drive when drunk. This is not the case for Thai motorcycle drivers during Songkran.

Besides, the tourists came to Thailand during Songkran to party, party, party. And, considering there are activities throughout Thailand from 7 – 24 April, even though Songkran is actually from 13-15 April, seems to me like the Thai Government and the Tourism Authority of Thailand are encouraging these drunken celebrations.

In past years, the Thai Government has made some attempts to curb the Songkran drinking and death rate from all the accidents. They have set up roadblocks to catch drunk drivers (lots of tips to the Thai Police), they have shut down the selling of booze at the shops along the highways (only to have them sell out of coolers around back), and they have had various pop stars, music stars, and movie stars, in commercials calling for no accidents.

This year, I have already seen one of the most famous musicians, Ad Carabao, with a group of other musicians, on TV with a ZERO Accidents during Songkran pitch. Never happen.

Once again, the Thai Government doesn’t know what it is doing. It is targeting the wrong group of people. The majority of accidents on the roads during Songkran are caused by young, male, drunk, motorcycle drivers. Wet roads, alcohol, people throwing water on you as you drive by, and motorcycle drivers, without helmets, that don’t know how to drive, equals lots of dead bodies on the roads.

This amazing Songkran campaign will also have volunteers stationed in various tourist areas and will also try to curb assaults on women by drunks. Again, never happen.

But, the best part is, the volunteers will also be taking photos of drunks to post on various social media web sites. Supposedly, this is to assist the police in making arrests should these drunks commit any crimes during Songkran. Has to be one of the dumbest things I have ever heard of. Hopefully, the Tourism Authority of Thailand, with all of the social media skills on Facebook and Twitter, will be able to lend a hand and show these volunteers how to copy and paste.

I wonder if anyone considered the legal implications of posting photos online without permission. Especially if the person is not drunk and did not commit a crime during Songkran. But, this is Thailand and laws are made, broken, ignored, abused, misinterpreted, and at times, comical. A lawsuit against the Thai Government would be a very interesting case.

The Thai Government is also encouraging more people to participate in the traditional Songkran celebration. This would mean honoring elders, paying respects at the temple for the deceased members of the family, and making merit with some nice donations to the Buddhist monks like my wife’s family in Khon Kaen does. Yes, many Thai people will do this. And the expat husbands with Thai wives will also participate. But, you will be able to count on one hand the number of tourists that do this.

Making Merit During Songkran

Honoring Ancestors During Songkran

Most of the above information about Songkran 2011 came from an article in today’s The Nation and once again the so-called journalists that write words have botched up another story. Here is a quote:

There have been an average of 1,948 deaths per year during Songkran in the past four years and another 1,423 people made disabled by road accidents caused by drunk driving.

There have not been an average 1,948 deaths per year during Songkran. What they should have written was that there were 1,948 deaths in the past four years for an average of 487 per year.

The article goes on to say:

The director of the Accident Prevention Network, Prommin Kantiya, said police manning road checkpoints during the Songkran break had been asked to interview drunk motorists who are pulled over or arrested to find out where they bought their liquor.

What will this accomplish? Find out which 7-11 sold them the booze? Arrest the teen counter help?

What they need to do is hold drunk drivers responsible and have fines bigger than 200 Thai baht. And, if someone kills another, you know – vehicular manslaughter – they should be tried and if found guilty, go to jail. But, the Thai way is to just pay a few hundred thousand baht to the grieving family and no charges pressed.

The article also failed to identify where the 60 alcohol-free Songkran locations in 44 provinces are. Would have been nice to provide a map so that people would actually know where these places are. The Nation also did not provide the whereabouts of the 16 Songkran alcohol-free tourist areas other than to say that they start with “Khao” – similar to Khao San Road in Bangkok. This helps no one.

I haven’t seen where the Thai Government has designated the “7 Deadly Days of Songkran” yet. This is where they post daily tallies of the road deaths. It should be from around 11-17 April and once identified, I will post and track. Keep in mind that these are the reported deaths (which will be under-reported as Provincial Governors don’t want to lose their jobs), and if you get into an accident during the “7 days” but die later, it isn’t added to the tally. Should be somewhere in the 450-500 range as usual.

So, despite all the Thai Government campaigns, the death toll will mount. No one pays attention to the government and everyone does their best to skirt the law. Speeding and drunk driving infractions will be handled with a slap on the wrist and a small donation to the Thai Police fund. The Thai Police will have their pockets full during Songkran.

And, the Thai government wonders why Songkran drunk driving campaigns fail.

Sawasdee Pii Mai – have a happy and safe Thai New Year – Songkran.

Another Songkran Drinking Campaign That Will Most Likely Fail is a post from: Khon Kaen

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