~Ayutthaya Part 2...

~Part two of our trip was going to the Floating Market and the Elephant Village~

 ~This wall runs along one sid of the bank at the Floating Market~

~Here are some pics of the floating walk-way and one of the bridges~

~Having lunch with the Lakprod family (some of our students and their family)~

~Picture two is of Pat, she is the youngest of the family and is also a student~

~After lunch we went to the Elephant Village~

~Here are some of the elephants we saw at an elephant show~

~The floating market was amazing!!! But the elephants were my favorite!!!!! The baby above was the cutest elephant ever!!!!

~Ayutthaya Part 1...

~On Sunday the 23rd we went with the family of some our students to the province of Ayutthaya.  This trip was so long and I took so many pictures that I am going to post it in four parts since we went to four separate places.  So, here's part one and I hope you enjoy the pics...

~Me in front of some of the great temple ruins~

~Some of the many Buddhas in and around the ruins~

~Me and Birdie in front of another ruined temple~

People going into the main temple of this section of the ruins

 to worship and pray to the Buddhas inside.

~Ayutthaya was once the capital of Thailand. Before Myanmar attacked, all of these temple buildings and Buddhas were completely covered in gold.  As they ransacked the city the armies of Myanmar melted and stripped the gold from everything before burning the city.  To this day the people still come here to worship, to pray and to remember the horrid tragedy of their once great city.  They drape the temples and Buddhas in yellow, orange, and gold to show honor and respect for their spiritual guide.  It makes my heart ache to see how much faith they put in these stone idols.

~Siam Paragon...

~Here are some pics of our trip to the Siam Paragon Mall in Bangkok...

 ~Birdie and me on the Sky Train on our way to the Siam Paragon~

 ~Outside the Mall~

~Inside the Mall~

~Hanging Drinking Straw Sculptures~

~On 01-17-11 we went to the Siam Paragon Mall in Bangkok. 15ft tall rabbits flank all the entrances because its the year of the rabbit and there are beautiful water features everywhere!!!  This mall has to have at least 7 full size floors!!!  Right inside one of the entrances is a massive plant and water feature festooned with beautiful, giant paper lanterns!!!  And hanging from the ceiling at one end of the mall are some huge sculptures made entirely out of colored drinking straws!!!  It is by far the biggest, most beautiful and the cleanest mall I've ever been to. 

~New Friends...

~Out to lunch with some new friends~

~These are some of the wonderful ladies from my new church family!!! (From left to right) Pen, Nok, and Un are some of the sweetest ladies I've ever met!!! They invited me out to lunch after church and we had a great time together!!! God has blessed me with two wonderful church families!!!

~Internet Troubles...

~Hey everyone, I just wanted to let you know I haven't forgotten to post pictures... I have been taking tons of them, and plan on posting them as soon as possible. But right now the internet at L.I.S.A. is out and I don't have much free time when I'm at C.G.M. I will try to get some posted soon... It will be much easier once I move over to C.G.M. in about 10 days. Thank you for your paitience. God Bless

Yours Truely,
Samantha J. Wollbrinck

~Okay, Time for a Little Q. and A...

~Okay, so I took a few pics of my bathroom at L.I.S.A. and I want you to guess what some of the things are for... Please post your guesses and after a few days I'll post the answers. I look forward to reading what you think...

~P.S. Calvin, Justin if you know the answers please don't tell before I do...

Thanks

~Beautiful Plants and Flowers...

 ~Some plants from around C.G.M.~

~Here are some pics of the flower arrangements Pen (a very sweet lady) made for the alter at church.

~The Thai Electrical System...

~The electrical system here would make an Amerin UE tech. scream!!!  By all the laws of electrical engineering the whole thing should explode!!! Cables and wires in knots, and they must be at LEAST 20 years old!!!  At least 100 cables running to and from the same building or power pole with vines and other plants all twisted together!!! And cables running right against metal hand rails right at waist level on your side of the rail!!! You can't see it in the pic but there is one right at head height too!!!  The folks here just laughed when I pointed this out, but still what a mess!!!



~My First Thai Church Service...

~Church was wonderful!!! I really enjoyed worshiping with the amazing people in my new church family!!!

~Everyone is so sweet!!! I was welcomed into the family with open arms!!!

~Around Town...

 ~L.I.S.A. Building~                                 ~C.G.M. Center~

~These are the buildings that we live and work in... L.I.S.A. is the Luther Institute of Southeast Asia and the C.G.M. Center is the Concordia Gospel Ministry Center; this building also houses the Thailand Concordia Lutheran Church.  I am currently staying on the top floor of L.I.S.A.; I will be staying here until the end of the month when the second apartment at C.G.M. becomes available.

     ~Driving through Town~                   ~Parking Level at the Mall~

~Pae, one of Birdie's long time students took us to the Central Mall to go shopping. When we went to park I noticed that the parking level was labled

 [ P1 1/2 ]!!!

 ~A Spirit House~                                   ~A Motor Bike~

 ~Birdie and I were walking around town and she pointed-out a spirit house outside of a local business. Its sad that something that beautiful to look at is such an important part of such a hollow religion. 

 Everyone rides motor bikes here, they are all over the place!!! This one belongs to someone who was visiting the C.G.M. Center.