A part from just getting around, here are a few recent adventures that were photographed...
On Valentine's Day, we celebrated Meak Bochea Day - just happened to fall on the same day.
*Side note the consumerist Valentine's Day is seeping in, especially among the youth. It doesn't really have a good reputation though, as it largely is about people just wanting to do mattress dancing...
So, Buddhist holiday... On this day, a group of monks gathered to pay homage to the Buddha. He took the opportunity to give the three precepts of the religion: perform good deeds, refrain from doing harm, and cleanse the mind (as you can see, basically, the same as Valentine's Day). Or, so my orientation book says. Many people have this day off (it is a government holiday). Also, supposedly folks go to the Wat nearest their home and there are candlelit processions. This seemed like something worth seeing so I covered as much skin as possible and headed to the Wat.
As I approached one side of the Wat I heard the quick, rhythmic chanting of monks but saw no one around. My hope was to find some elderly ladies heading into the Wat and trail them. First, because I could mimmick their behavior to not offend, and because elderly ladies in all cultures are the first to tell you if you are doing something offensive. No Cambodian Grannies were around so I figured I would walk to the other side of the Wat (it takes up about four blocks). As I approached the main street, I heard a completely new cacophony of drumming, shouting, and horns honking. As I rounded the corner, I saw a huge throng of people headed my direction. After quickly discerning it was not a political protest, as those should be avoided, I joined the other folks converging in store fronts and along the streets to watch the parade.
There were Chinese dragon dancing, with the assistance of youth, in a menagerie of colors. There were multiple trucks all decked out with colorful flags and costumed people. Folks were milling around these 'floats' dispensing yellow sheets of paper with red script to anyone that wished to pay a small fee (some kind of blessing from what I could gather). Each float seemed to have one particular figure elaborately clothed and central to all the commotion. One appeared to be licking the yellow blessing sheets before they were distributed. The traffic on the street was slowed to a crawl by all the rubber-necking and the sheer number of people who seemed to rise out of the heat and pavement. Motos stopped, phones were taken out for photos, business as the local tile shop seemed to come to a halt as buyers and sellers alike flocked to the street. It was a sight to be seen.
As I was planning to go to the Wat, I had not brought a camera - still figuring out how I feel about photographing religious events. I observed for ten minutes and decided this was worth sharing with all of you, so walked the five minutes home to get my camera, unsure if the parade would continue. Along my way, I was hissed at by one private security guard (I have decided a law should be passed world wide that if you are 'harassed' you should have the right to throw a raw egg at the person...) and was wished Happy Valentine's Day by a number of tuktuk drivers. Upon my return with a camera, the parade still continued (probably for another 10 minutes). It was not really moving at that point, it basically parked for 20 minutes and then continued down the street. My language teacher told me this holiday is celebrated in this way by the Chinese population - it is supposedly much bigger in China. He said some Khmer also will now join in on the excitement.
I didn't actually end up going into the Wat, as I found no Grannies to trail, but the parade was worth the walk. Great metaphor for how the adventure we have is not always, or rarely, the adventure we plan. As this ended up being longer, I than I thought, I will save other adventures for future posts.
Enjoy a small bit of the parade (I think I may have finally figured out this embedding thing correctly):
Meak Bochea Day
Meak Bochea Day
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