We decided that we would attend the procession but do so from a good distance away. We sat quietly across the street and I took most of my (very blurry) photos from the hip.
But really, the whole experience was just kind of weird.
Guidelines for participating in or observing the alms giving are posted around the city, at guesthouses, and in guidebooks. There’s definitely a right and wrong way to do it. Unfortunately, most of the people we saw did not get the memo. It was embarrassing.
It all started when two buses pulled up to the curb we were sitting on. We had to laugh. Not only did they block our view of the entire street, but we had been told to arrive by foot or bicycle so as not to disrupt the peace. Fortunately, after the buses unloaded their groups of tourists they took off. Next, a mini van loaded with people rolled up to the opposite side of the street. A guide directed the people to their designated offering spot and gave them a quick run down of the procedure.
Then the monks arrived.
I’m not an expert but because I had read the guidelines beforehand I had a pretty good idea that some people were doing it wrong.
Following the monks down the street with your camera two feet from their faces? Wrong!
Posing for a picture while you give alms? Wrong!
Buying food from street vendors as donations? Wrong!
It was almost comical.
I’m definitely not one to ignore my own role in the tourism industry. But I can honestly say I’ve never behaved like some of these tourists did. To be fair, they probably had bad information (or no information) but is that an excuse?
xo, jill
