Bangkok Blitz- January 9-13, Part 1

I'm trying to make this as interesting as possible, so I may change up the format now and again. Also, I know I don't have pictures in my last post... I'm still working on that. I promise they will be up as soon as my computer cooperates. Instead of going day by day, I'm going to highlight the activities we did during the week.

Passing/ Dumping/ Handing Out Tracts

Any term you like to use, we did a lot of this! While we were in Bangkok, we passed out tracts every day, but mostly Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. If you're not used to big cities, the number of people in Bangkok might have been overwhelming. I enjoyed the bustle, riding the Metro, the traffic... perhaps it just reminded me of home. ;-)

One of the most memorable things from our trip is how many tracts you can pass out in a short time. Let me explain "The Herd Principle." If there was a line of people approaching you and you got the first person to accept a tract, every person afterward would take a tract. If one person refused, everyone after that would refuse as well. I think Thai people are shy, but also curious. If one person was brave enough to accept something from a farang, then they all wanted one, too. You had to be ready when you got a stream going... sometimes you couldn't get the tracts out fast enough. If you had a break, you just had to be patient and wait until you got another stream going. I remember one morning I was paired with Andrea and I believe we passed out at least 800 tracts before lunch. It was incredible and just something you don't experience in the States.


Tailor Made Is Best

Bangkok is full of tailors, and Bro. Tom has worked with one in particular. To get a tailor-made suit for about $100 is awesome, so many of us took advantage of the opportunity. Mine was the only suit with a skirt at the bottom, but it was fun to hang out with the guys (and two helpful wives) on our jaunts to pick out fabric and get fitted. I got to hand out a little fashion advice, which was great fun. I'm sure all the guys look quite spiffy in their suits. Too bad I couldn't see them all wear them to church. I have to say there's just nothing like tailor made clothes. That's a luxury I've love to experience more!


We Were Still Tourists

Although the main purpose of our trip was one of ministry and evangelism, we did take time to do some tourist-y things. The experiences were amazing.

"world renowed" Floating Market

The Floating Market is basically a bunch of buildings around a river. You can shop in the buildings or hop on a boat and shop from your boat. The boat vendors would hook your boat and drag you over to their wares. I think they were disappointed in our boat because we wouldn't buy anything. :-)

My first contact with vendors was intimidating. If they saw you point or look at anything, they practically tackled you to try to get you to buy it. Once you get the hang of bartering, it's fun. I felt like a worldy-wise American when I bartered. Okay, the secret is just act like you're walking away and they'll usually meet your price. It's a bit of a race to see who can wear the other person down first. Those of you who know me, know I can be stubborn about things when I choose to be. Once I set my price, I wouldn't come up.

I think I finally figured out the pictures.

I just had to show you my favorite spot of the Market.

- Julie -