Peekaboo

Sitting here in BKK, catching up on posts before we take off.

We'd tried to get to two of Bangkok's main wats--Pho and Arun--on the
31st, but they were closed. Instead, we went the next morning, only to
discover upon arrival that New Years is one of the most auspicious
days for Thais to visit. It made Disney's Main Street USA on a weekend
in July look like a ghost town.

The famed Reclining Buddha, well, reclines here. It's kind of
refreshing. After viewing hundreds of other Buddhas at dozens of other
wats, all in stiff but enlightened poses, it's nice to see him taking
it easy once in a while. And the feet! Inlaid with mother-of-pearl
mini-Buddhas, the lasting impression--in my dubious perspective--was
of a diety in repose after a hard day's work stomping out a village of
Theraveda smurfs.

He looks rather pleased about it, too.