Last January, we had the oppotunity to travel to another part of Thailand and during the trip, we  came upon one of the historical churches  in this country. The Nativity of Our Lady Cathedral  is nestled along the banks of Mae Khlong River.  The architectural design is European and inside the church are treasures of antique statues of saints , furnishings and others. The visit was worth it, very interesting and educational.

Above is a photo of the main altar of church.

A photo of the church interior.

We spent the 1st day of this year touring places out of the city and took photographs of beautiful and unique landscapes and an Asian style  of welcoming the new year. We enjoyed the change  surroundings and had fun having lunch at a traditional restaurant made of bamboo and coconut leaves.

Asian style of welcoming the new year.

We passed by this immaculate white salt farm and watched how salt crystals are produced.

A quiet harbour on new years day.

A traditional Asian garden with a pool surrounded by Bonsai plants.

A Thai style house amidst the greens.

Beautiful !

Bonsai plant animal carvings.

We’ve been to several places of worship and the last one we visited is a very old Chinese temple. Exploring places of worship of other religions is a good learning experience for my son. He learns  how the Catholic religion differs from Buddhism , Chinese religion, Anglican  etc.

Full view of the main temple.

JM at the temple door.

A contrast of the old and the new.

Smiling Buddha.

Monks chanting.

A trip to an elephant ground and zoo proved to be a very enjoyable experience. We watched several elephants of all age and sizes perform dances, play football, participate in a historical show and show their affection to the audience. Our favorite is a baby elephant I named Chaiyo pictured above.

An elephant accurately kicks the ball which headed directly to the net.

Elephants participated in a historical presentation.

Chaiyo, my baby elephant , so cute,  so friendly,  so adorable !

JM feeding Chaiyo with bananas.

The Holy Rosary Church was  built in 1787 on the bank of Chao Phraya River on a plot of land given by King Rama I to the Portuguese in recognition of their assistance  in the defence of Ayutthaya against the Burmese.

Since then the church has been the center of worship for Catholics in Bangkok. The present neo-Gothic brick and stucco building was built in 1890 to replace the original wooden church which was burned down earlier. It is one of the oldest and most beautiful Roman Catholic churches in Thailand. The colorful stained glass  of the church  depicting stories from the Old and the New Testament is still in its original condition though it is 110 years old.

This is the second historical church we visited since Sunday last week. The first one was the Sta. Cruz Church on the opposite side of the river.

Below are some of the photos we took during our visit to the church yesterday :

Holy Rosary Church

Side view of Holy Rosary Church

JM resting in a shade overlooking the river.

View of the river and the city from the garden of the church.

View of the church interior from the front door.

Main Altar

The tabernacle and the statue of Our Lady of the Rosary with the Infant Jesus.

Our Lady of the Rosary

Saint Vincent de Paul and Our Blessed Mother with the Infant Jesus.

Stained glass windows.

Antique Pews

After mass yesterday morning , our parish organist informed me that there was a celebration going on at Sta. Cruz Church . The day was the Feast of the Holy Cross which the church moved three days later of its original schedule . The day was cloudy and rainy as usual , but we stood firm on our decision to join the celebration. We arrived at our destination nearly noon , with the rain pouring at it’s heaviest making it very difficult to have  lunch with the rest of parishioners.  Anyway , we  made it through lunch standing as there were not enough chairs and tables in the canopies for us to sit and eat. JM went shopping for  toys in the rain  , but had to cut it short as we were in the brink of catching pneumonia from the wet and the cold weather. We immediately went inside the church for prayers and a historical tour. The church itself is old , built in 1770 by the first descendants of the Portuguese traders , but the interior and the altar are very beautiful .  What  caught my attention was a relic , exposed for veneration , which according to parishioners is a  piece of the cross where Jesus was crucified .  Photos below :

Sta. Cruz Church

JM at the entrance of the church.

Front view of the altar.

Side view of the altar.

Our  Lady of Lourdes at the left side of the altar.

St.  Joseph and the Child Jesus at the right side of the altar.

Pulpit with the statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Relic of the Holy Cross exposed for veneration.

Wide open and glass stained windows.

Front entrance of the church.

Rain drenched Sta. Cruz Pier

Here is an interesting article about the Cathedral of Notre Dame with bits of history, literature , religion and  romance. Enjoy reading . Courtesy of Catholic Life Magazine .

Last Sunday was different from other Sundays in the past . For the first time , all three of us toured the mighty river of kings way far out of the city. It used to be just me , or my husband and I. This time JM was with us . This is the third boat trip he’s ever had and the longest at that. Before reaching the port , we passed by Assumption Cathedral (this church leads to the port) , took some photos and were off. The weather was cool , and the skies grey and gloomy as it’s been for the past several months now. The boat was full of people and it took three ports before I finally got a seat.  We saw lots of famous landmarks along the river but its a pity I failed to take photos of them all . Inspite of the rain and rough waters the boat trip turned out to be an enjoyable , educational and memorable one . Photos below :

 Assumption Cathedral

Memorial Bridge

Chinese Pagoda

Rest House

Navy Station

A river barge used to transport sand , rocks , stones , rice and other heavy commodities to the city.

JM enjoying the boat trip

Houses obstructing the full view of Sta. Cruz Convent

Suspended Bridge

Temple of the Emerald Buddha

Temple of the Dawn

View of the city in the impending rain and rough waters.

For a young boy, these things look like life size toys that he can play with and he loves them ! A real cool ship he explored from every nook and corner, machine guns, cannons and all kinds of vintage ammunions and navy stuff which he enjoyed looking at and playing with all day. All these at the Navy Open Air Museum. Plus, a real cool navy park with all kinds of sea animals  and plants surviving in sea water which he explored all afternoon! He really had a great time, he kept  re-telling his nice experiences all the way home. Photos below :

After mass this morning, we took JM to the Children’s Discovery Museum where learning and fun takes place. A lot of hands-on activities in science, history, geography and technology are available for children to get involved in. The place has a Kids Studio where the children learned how fantasy movies like Harry Potter are made using actual TV cameras and other studio stuff . Volunteers were used as models and with the help of camera effects made them look like as if they are actually flying in the sky. There is also a recording studio, models of houses from different countries,  train station, a park where children can get involved in outdoor activities and lots more. Fun is the word of the day as shown in the photos below :

Experimenting with concave and convex mirrors.

Examining bacterias and microscopic parasites.

Playing at the model igloo.

Digging up the sand.

Testing the sound pipe.