When I heard that King Bhumibol
Adulyadej passed away and that the country was going to be in mourning for one
year, I did not know if I should go to Thailand anyway. But I already had my
ticket and my mind was set on coming here, so I did.
And I am so glad I did.
Yes, the country is in mourning,
and everybody dress in black or white. However, it is not because the
government mandates it. It is because they are really mourning his passing
away.
Everybody loved the king, and everybody
it’s really sad about his demise.
People are coming from all over the
country to the palace in Bangkok to pay their respects. They bring flowers and
they pray and it is very touching to see the sorrow of the people.
The government and many private
companies as well as many individuals have set up tents on a park across the
palace, to feed the people coming to pay their respects.
I was there today and it was
amazing. So much food, fruits, cakes, ice creams, and coffee, tea, juice and
water. But they also were offering
haircuts, massages, first aid and checkups…. All by volunteers and free of
charge.
I had a foot and leg massage, a
chiropractic adjustment, and umbrella, all the food I could eat and tons of
water.
What amazed me the most, was that the
people were not there for “free food”, they were there to pay their respect. Of
course they ate, but that was not the main purpose of being there.
Nevertheless, as human nature
dictates, there were a few people that were taking all the food they could get
and put it in bags to take home. However, I am glad to report that from the
thousands of people there, maybe 10 of them took food. And to me that it’s
amazing.
There are many shrines all over
town where people lay flowers and pray too.
King Bhumibol
Adulyadej (1927-2016) was the longest reigning monarch in history, having serve
for 70 years. And everybody loved him.
Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn is next
in line, however, he won’t be coronate until the one year mourning time is
over.
Foot massage |
Hair cuts |
One of the shrines |
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