Bangkok flower market

Flowers say so much about a culture. When we stayed at our fancy hotel in Shanghai it had every luxury feature and  was packed with artificial flowers.  Shanghai has every advantage and is immaculate in the 2 blocks we stayed in.  

Bangkok is confusing  and strange AND  has real beautiful orchids and all kinds of colourful REAL  flowers everywhere. They have a flower market that is blocks and blocks long.  It turns out that most Buddhists worship alone in their homes at their own altars a few times a day. Budda is always with them and they have real flowers on their altars. Almost everyone buys real flowers a few times a week. When I asked a man why real flowers were necessary, he said it was an honour to Budda. All restaurants no matter how poor, like one table affairs on the street have real flowers on the table.

I went to a Buddist temple to pray the other day and it was fascinating. I did all the rituals and eveyone welcomed me and attempted to show me how to do things. Even little kids held my hand and led me to the incense and showed me how to light it. I was totally welcomed.

So unlike Catholism where you can only go tot communion IF YOU ARE CATHOLIC and Judiasm who has the obligation to give you three reasons not to be Jewish when you think of joining them. 

If I come back I hope it is as a Buddhist ( and I do not live in the prostitute section of Bangkok)