South Vietnam
Eventually we arrived in Bangkok and a taxi driver took me to a
I sponsor my Monk’s university education. I think he is an exceptional human being and will do a great deal to enhance our world, I already see him advancing, he has been promoted and teaches English. Sometimes we talk on the telephone. Once he told me that his master was enlightened. I really like meeting enlightened people, their enlightend-ness rubs off on me. I told Sang Kosol (my monk) that I would like to meet his master. So he invited me to come to Vietnam next time he went to visit his master.
I told him I would like to come to Vietnam. I couldn’t get any clear picture of what was going to happen when I got there, but I went. I booked a room in a hotel. When I arrived in Ho Chi Minh Airport, it took me so long to get out of the airport that I missed the bus I had booked and got ripped off by a taxi shark. I was so fatigued. I felt bad because the money he swindled me out of would have been more useful for the monks. Anyway.
I got another bus to Tra Vinh, it took about 3 hours. The buses are really cool. Everywhere should have buses like theirs. The seats are actually double bunk beds, you can lie down nearly flat, propped up a bit to read or look out the window. And I had my travel pillow (I only nearly forgot it once, my bes travel pillow was left behind in the Sahara Dessert).
I told him I would like to come to Vietnam. I couldn’t get any clear picture of what was going to happen when I got there, but I went. I booked a room in a hotel. When I arrived in Ho Chi Minh Airport, it took me so long to get out of the airport that I missed the bus I had booked and got ripped off by a taxi shark. I was so fatigued. I felt bad because the money he swindled me out of would have been more useful for the monks. Anyway.
I got another bus to Tra Vinh, it took about 3 hours. The buses are really cool. Everywhere should have buses like theirs. The seats are actually double bunk beds, you can lie down nearly flat, propped up a bit to read or look out the window. And I had my travel pillow (I only nearly forgot it once, my bes travel pillow was left behind in the Sahara Dessert).
|
I got a ride from the bus stop to the hotel on a motor bike. The hotel was very ordinary, and it was hard to understand each other, but it had a fresh bed and a shower and somewhere to charge my phone, though I had to pull the fridge out to get to the power point.
In the afternoon my Monk sent his motor cycle driver to come and get me and off and away I went. We visited a couple of temples. They invited me to share their lunch winch was very thoughtful. Later in the evening we went to the temple where my monk, Sang Kosol was. We had tea and laughed together. It was very strange. It was dark when he took me to meet the head monks of the temple. A beautiful lady monk, all dressed in white came in to meet me too. One of the monks was so old and tiny and had gone deaf. Conversation was not exactly easy with the language barrier, and they wanted me to talk. I was the only tourist who had ever visited them. In fact I was the only tourist in the whole province, not a backpacker or white person insight. We stopped at a street stall for some dinner. I have no idea what it was, I think it had a pig's trotter in it. |
|
I went for a walk in the morning to find coffee. It was the best iced coffee I ever had. You make it yourself sitting on plastic chairs at a little table and let the cold water filter through coffee grounds over ice.
The hotel clerk understood better the next day what I was doing there after he had a chat with the motor cycle driver. He became very cheerful, I could tell he was quite mystified when I arrived. The motor cycle driver took me on a long ride, about an hour to a temple. It was called Wat Koskeosiri.
I really had no idea what I was going to be doing when I came to Vietnam, my monk had offered to be my guide, but he couldn’t explain what he meant. Next time I'll know and stay a bit longer.
It was a unique experience. Sang had organized a special meditation retreat for me. I was the only tourist who had ever been to their temple. I was called “The Tourist”. It was a little hard being such a curiosity. Though you might not guess it, I am quite shy around people I don’t know. Each morning more people gathered for prayers with the monks, I think word had spread about The Tourist. They were so happy when I waved at them. I felt like the Queen giving the royal wave. I was the guest of honor. But a very humble guest, I washed my clothes by hand, and myself from a barrel of cold water. At least the barrel was in a bath room and they had a proper toilet.
In the morning, after prayers, the monks would eat and then we would go for our breakfast. The lovely ladies used to fight over who would have me on their table. They took charge of me pulling me around where I was supposed to go and waving their hand around. It was great. The food was prepared by the lay people. To say it was interesting would be an understatement. It wasn’t vegetarian, it was what ever had been provided. There was soup and sardines, a bit of meat, fruit and vegetables I’d never seen before and stuff I have no idea what it was. I tried to stick with the eggs. And they always served rice.
The hotel clerk understood better the next day what I was doing there after he had a chat with the motor cycle driver. He became very cheerful, I could tell he was quite mystified when I arrived. The motor cycle driver took me on a long ride, about an hour to a temple. It was called Wat Koskeosiri.
I really had no idea what I was going to be doing when I came to Vietnam, my monk had offered to be my guide, but he couldn’t explain what he meant. Next time I'll know and stay a bit longer.
It was a unique experience. Sang had organized a special meditation retreat for me. I was the only tourist who had ever been to their temple. I was called “The Tourist”. It was a little hard being such a curiosity. Though you might not guess it, I am quite shy around people I don’t know. Each morning more people gathered for prayers with the monks, I think word had spread about The Tourist. They were so happy when I waved at them. I felt like the Queen giving the royal wave. I was the guest of honor. But a very humble guest, I washed my clothes by hand, and myself from a barrel of cold water. At least the barrel was in a bath room and they had a proper toilet.
In the morning, after prayers, the monks would eat and then we would go for our breakfast. The lovely ladies used to fight over who would have me on their table. They took charge of me pulling me around where I was supposed to go and waving their hand around. It was great. The food was prepared by the lay people. To say it was interesting would be an understatement. It wasn’t vegetarian, it was what ever had been provided. There was soup and sardines, a bit of meat, fruit and vegetables I’d never seen before and stuff I have no idea what it was. I tried to stick with the eggs. And they always served rice.
|
|
I thought that my monk had been joking when he asked me if I would mind sleeping in the jungle under a tree. He wasn’t. Around the temple were tiny, simple, tin huts, built on stilts to keep them off the groud with a wooden door and bamboo slats for a floor. The floor was covered with a woven bamboo mat and they gave me a new blue mosquito net. I could sort of stand up.
There were two masters at the temple and about 15 or so novice monks. My monk was in charge. One of the head monks led most of the meditation sessions but it was the other monk who I had the most contact with. Hi name is Nguyen Van Minh. In the mornings Sang would especially make me a coffee and I could talk with him and he could translate to the master. I could describe my experiences in meditation and ask questions or answer theirs. The master was such a calm person, as you would expect an enlightened monk to be. Sang asked me if I would like to be like him, but I said I think my life is a bit too exciting and I’m not made to be so calm. Sang agreed.
Sang told me that his ambition is to finish all his studies and go as far as he can in the linage. When we had spoken before, he was unsure, lots of men study as monks for a period of time then go back to being lay people. He certainly did a wonderful job of running the retreat.
There were two masters at the temple and about 15 or so novice monks. My monk was in charge. One of the head monks led most of the meditation sessions but it was the other monk who I had the most contact with. Hi name is Nguyen Van Minh. In the mornings Sang would especially make me a coffee and I could talk with him and he could translate to the master. I could describe my experiences in meditation and ask questions or answer theirs. The master was such a calm person, as you would expect an enlightened monk to be. Sang asked me if I would like to be like him, but I said I think my life is a bit too exciting and I’m not made to be so calm. Sang agreed.
Sang told me that his ambition is to finish all his studies and go as far as he can in the linage. When we had spoken before, he was unsure, lots of men study as monks for a period of time then go back to being lay people. He certainly did a wonderful job of running the retreat.
The routine was to get up very early, before 5am to meditate in the temple. There was a group of ladies there as part of the meditation retreat too. They were very old, had shaved heads, wore black trousers, white shirts, a white scarf draped around shoulder fastened with a broach.
In the evening, the people from the village came to join the sanga for meditation and a dharma talk. On the second evening one of these ladies gave me something in a bag, but I couldn’t understand what she wanted. It turned out she was giving me a white scarf like they all wore. I felt like one of the gang then. Sometimes I would forget in the morning and run back to my hut to put it on. I wish I had a broach to fasten it with the Buddha on.
There were two more meditation sessions during the day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, sometimes with a short 10 minute break. I was taught seated meditation. I found it so difficult to do. My sore hip was killing me, one of the reasons for my trip was to get massage in Thailand to fix it. We sat on a hard stone floor on a red carpet. At home I meditate sitting on a bolster with my hips higher than my knees.
Meditation can kind of feel like torture; just sitting on the floor for long periods. It is hard to focus when your whole body is rebelling at sitting still. But they taught me to take my mind into the pain. It was very strange, by the time I left my hip felt better.
In the evening, the people from the village came to join the sanga for meditation and a dharma talk. On the second evening one of these ladies gave me something in a bag, but I couldn’t understand what she wanted. It turned out she was giving me a white scarf like they all wore. I felt like one of the gang then. Sometimes I would forget in the morning and run back to my hut to put it on. I wish I had a broach to fasten it with the Buddha on.
There were two more meditation sessions during the day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, sometimes with a short 10 minute break. I was taught seated meditation. I found it so difficult to do. My sore hip was killing me, one of the reasons for my trip was to get massage in Thailand to fix it. We sat on a hard stone floor on a red carpet. At home I meditate sitting on a bolster with my hips higher than my knees.
Meditation can kind of feel like torture; just sitting on the floor for long periods. It is hard to focus when your whole body is rebelling at sitting still. But they taught me to take my mind into the pain. It was very strange, by the time I left my hip felt better.
|
I also learnt to meditate on a mantra, Ah rra hung, which means the Enlightened One, and to be peaceful and happy. To breath up and down the central channel in the body while silently repeating the mantra.
And I learnt walking meditation. For walking meditation the words are: 1 – standing, standing, standing 2 – Intending to walk (said 3 times) 3 – right go touch (right foot lifts, moves forward and comes back to the ground) 4 – left go touch (left foot lifts, moves forward and comes back to the ground) 5 – when you reach the end of your walk, stop, stand and say the word 'turning' on the right side, slowly slowly slowly Repeat coming back the other way. What an amazing place to have been invited to, and they have invited me back. I will look forward to it. |
|
|
|
|
My beautiful Home-stay family in Tra Vinh
Koh Phan gan, Thailand With Swami Pujan and Betty
From Spartan basics at the monastery to private luxury island living. My stay with my first yoga philosophy teacher, Swami Pujan and his effervescent wife, Betty was very relaxing. We had philosophy talks nearly every day, I read a book, went for walks along the beach, had lovely dinners and happy hour cocktails. And I found an excellent Thai masseuse who pushed and pulled and walked all over me.
Pujan and Betty have invited me to join them on their next tour of India. I am going in a few days.
Pujan and Betty have invited me to join them on their next tour of India. I am going in a few days.
Boat Trip to Ang Thong National Marine Park
I spent the day with a new friend, Victor from France. We got on well with my small amount of French and his English. The best part was we both wanted to do the same thing. We wanted to climb the mountain, and he bought bread to feed the fish when we went snorkeling.
|
|
|
Chiang Mai
My home away from home. My best friend Aom, cooking school, hot stone massage course, and my favorite Thai massage place 5 minutes walk from my hotel.