4 January 2015 - Christ Church, Bangkok and a bit of history!

We had decided to walk to Christ Church Bangkok for the English speaking service and planned our route through Lumpini Park.  Tim didn’t want to go so we left him with a Google map image and he agreed to meet us in an hour or so.  I guess being a teenager, he really needs space to make independent decisions and the fact that we are in a foreign city not knowing the language really was no obstacle.

 

Christ Church, Bangkok

The church was full of people from many nations.  The visiting preacher, Paul Barker, was an Australian living in Malaysia.  He was an Old Testament scholar and gave an intersting sermon during the fairly typical Anglican order of service. Annika and Luke went to the programs aimed at their age groups.  Annika had triplets in her group called Sing, Song and Sung!! Luke had a good time and wrote: “Fanks for new frens” and a New Year’s resolution to give money to the poor.

It was interesting that our sermon was on inheritance and history as when I wrote to my Uncle Bruce, he knew Christ Church well.  In fact, his late wife, Faith, had grown up in Thailand in the 1930's AND her father was the Vicar at Christ Church then!  We can't wait to go back to check the plaque on the wall to see his name.  Further, Bruce knew Paul Barker so the connections were fitting!  Our friends, the Glovers, also knew Christ Church and had stayed there on their journeys to and from Nepal!  A very small world indeed!

 

Lunch was provided after the service in the hall.  Delicious rice, red chicken curry and stir fried veggies for 50 Baht each.  We talked to Bridget and Mike Blackburn, an English couple who run Christian Care Foundation for Children with Disabilities and they invited us to visit them.  I am keen to do so. I mentioned to Bridget that we had seen very few beggars and she informed me that the Thai Government houses, clothes and feeds them.  For the children with disabilities who are abandoned, there is no education or attempt to improve their quality of life, so CCD, their organisation helps do this.  The Buddhist philosophy that in a past life you had done something wrong and are now suffering means that those with disabilities are more or less biding time until they have a new chance in their next life.

Delicious community lunch

Tim went back for seconds!

After lunch we walked through the park again spotting giant monitor lizards, tortoises and birds and avoiding roller bladers and cyclists.  Little groups of people were gathered for picnics.  Lumpini Park is clearly enjoyed by many.  There are quite a few outdoor gym stations which no longer seem extraordinary for us as they are ubiquitous.  The little carts selling marigolds wreaths for shrines are also common place, carts with green coconuts to drink, barbequed pork, soft drinks and quail eggs dot the side walks.  We are also used to seeing people sleeping anywhere at any hour of the day. We are used to little stores on every street and hundreds of 7-11 stores.  We wonder how people eek out a living with their small cart businesses.

 

Elephants in the park!

Giant monitor lizards

Lizard fodder commonly known as tortoises

Entrance to Lumpini Park.

Our journey home was longer than anticipated as we got rather disorientated and lost going out the wrong gate at Lumpini Park – easy to do!  The kids had a great time in the park doing handstands and when Tim went a bit too far with his antics, he got a whistle from one of the guards!  The car parks are hilarious with double and even triple parked like you wouldn’t believe.  It seems that the had brakes are left off and the guards push the cars about, like in Rush Hour, to allow drivers to exit.

 

Only the car with lights on has a driver, the rest have hand brakes off so they can be pushed!

I attempted to cook some sweet sticky rice using evaporated milk and some sugar.  It was nice and filling after our long walk but not quite right by Thai standards.  We couldn’t find the condensed milk I was looking for to complete the mission!

We went to this week's free Sunday Night concert performed by Bangkok Symphony Orchestra in Lumpini Park.  Apart from well known classics, they played quite a few Broadway medlies including the entire score for My Fair Lady.  Local talent sang: "I could have danced all night" and "The street where  you live" and we embarrassed the kids by singing along. Once again, totally lovely in a tropical park setting. The park was even more full than earlier with families doing their Sunday evening activities.  What a great atmosphere!

Popcorn at an outdoor concert!

Looking out over the lake

Still, balmy evening by the lake!