Vientiane Walk - Wat Sisaket (Temple & Museum)
Still eastward, diagonally across the Presidential Palace, I saw Wat Sisaket. Ayii, I was too early, they open to the public at 8AM, so I said I will see it later, on my way back.
I went on with my walk (this road goes southeastward) noting that I'd come back this way anyway (that would probably be already past 8AM), so I would then enter to visit.
Make the long stort short, I came back!
Oh eh, anupangaba, ituloy na natin ang kwento noong nakabalik na ako. This:
And I discovered... nge, andami nang tao nakapila going inside the temple/musem.
And that's already the 2nd pila. You first have to pay at the ticket counter - pila rin!
Discouraged, pressed for time, I only shot pics at this garden near the ticket booth.
And even outside, by the curbside, where there is this concrete marker (mohon)!
And the vehicles that brought those groups of tourists "upon opening of the gates"!
Aw, I must tell you, behind me as I took that photo, were many more buses and vans parked like that on one side of the narrow road. Biglang naging busy, though orderly!
Observation: 1) the big crowd was part of what I call the opening surge - where every tour guide thinks we better be there first since there are always too many tourists; and 2) just like everywhere on earth, old roads are getting too narrow for today's needs!
Ay, pag-patak ng 8AM, this Setthathirat Road was full with so many parked vehicles! At least nakita ko na ang clean tree-lined ganda nya on my early morning walk (6AM).
Clarification: I did not walk-out just like that hahaha!
Nagtanung-tanong din naman ako sa mga tour guides around, plus online - before I decided whether I should really go, or stay and forget about that thing called 'work'.
Da!
What's inside Sisaket Temple anyway, that too many tourists visit? Aw, it has lots of Buddha statues of all kinds - in the thousands, that they do not have an exact count!
Syaro di sila ka-ihap?! O sya sya, walang basagan ng trip. Kung yun ang deklarasyon nila, so be it hehehe! Some who have visited say 6,000 daw; others say 10,000 daw.
Na! Di ba pwedeng 5,999 lang or even 10,001? Hahaha, bahala sila!
And.., aside from I didn't have much time, here was another reason I didn't push my self to buy a ticket and go inside: cameras (video or photo) is not allowed - in most areas!
Basket? Ma! Baka daw kasi mabilang mo ng eksakto, mawawala ang 'mystery'! One tour guide informed me though, many of those buddhas were donated by devotees.
Interesting. Sa atin kasi, ang dinadala ng mga deboto, hindi images of saints kundi crutches, picture abroad, diploma, etc. Di ko alam paano mag-compare-and-contrast!
Anyway and seriously, it is Vientiane's oldest temple (circa 1820s) - that still stands today. It wasn't destroyed during the Siamese invasion because the roof looks Thai!
Sabi siguro ng Thai army o mga sahay (สหาย), wag nyong sisindihan yan, atin yan!
Kaya ayun, 200 years na yata ang temple na yan!
Haay, if only I still had more time, I'd have learned more about this temple, therefore more of the Lao culture and nearby countries too. But there is always a "next time".
Ok, diagonally across the road from Sisaket Temple/Museum is another attraction.
But that's the next article, and coming soon.
Make the long stort short, I came back!
Oh eh, anupangaba, ituloy na natin ang kwento noong nakabalik na ako. This:
And I discovered... nge, andami nang tao nakapila going inside the temple/musem.
And that's already the 2nd pila. You first have to pay at the ticket counter - pila rin!
Discouraged, pressed for time, I only shot pics at this garden near the ticket booth.
And even outside, by the curbside, where there is this concrete marker (mohon)!
And the vehicles that brought those groups of tourists "upon opening of the gates"!
Observation: 1) the big crowd was part of what I call the opening surge - where every tour guide thinks we better be there first since there are always too many tourists; and 2) just like everywhere on earth, old roads are getting too narrow for today's needs!
Ay, pag-patak ng 8AM, this Setthathirat Road was full with so many parked vehicles! At least nakita ko na ang clean tree-lined ganda nya on my early morning walk (6AM).
Clarification: I did not walk-out just like that hahaha!
Nagtanung-tanong din naman ako sa mga tour guides around, plus online - before I decided whether I should really go, or stay and forget about that thing called 'work'.
Da!
What's inside Sisaket Temple anyway, that too many tourists visit? Aw, it has lots of Buddha statues of all kinds - in the thousands, that they do not have an exact count!
Syaro di sila ka-ihap?! O sya sya, walang basagan ng trip. Kung yun ang deklarasyon nila, so be it hehehe! Some who have visited say 6,000 daw; others say 10,000 daw.
Na! Di ba pwedeng 5,999 lang or even 10,001? Hahaha, bahala sila!
And.., aside from I didn't have much time, here was another reason I didn't push my self to buy a ticket and go inside: cameras (video or photo) is not allowed - in most areas!
Basket? Ma! Baka daw kasi mabilang mo ng eksakto, mawawala ang 'mystery'! One tour guide informed me though, many of those buddhas were donated by devotees.
Interesting. Sa atin kasi, ang dinadala ng mga deboto, hindi images of saints kundi crutches, picture abroad, diploma, etc. Di ko alam paano mag-compare-and-contrast!
Anyway and seriously, it is Vientiane's oldest temple (circa 1820s) - that still stands today. It wasn't destroyed during the Siamese invasion because the roof looks Thai!
Sabi siguro ng Thai army o mga sahay (สหาย), wag nyong sisindihan yan, atin yan!
Kaya ayun, 200 years na yata ang temple na yan!
Haay, if only I still had more time, I'd have learned more about this temple, therefore more of the Lao culture and nearby countries too. But there is always a "next time".
Ok, diagonally across the road from Sisaket Temple/Museum is another attraction.
But that's the next article, and coming soon.
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