This post is the second part of my visit to Wat Mahathad during the temple’ 338th year anniversary. I spent almost three hours walking around the temple and taking photos for posting later. The atmosphere inside the temple was pleasant and friendly. I felt very easygoing and relaxed that I decided to have dinner at the flea market at the back of the temple.
I was very impressed by the cleanliness and orderly displays of vendors’ stalls. This told me that some monks has been working very hard to make sure the temple’s anniversary celebration would turn out well and impressive for visitors. They did a very good screening of food and sweet vendors for the flea market. I found out that most vendors were quite famous and won prizes in food competitions over the years. I wasn’t surprised that food vendors didn’t use MSG in cooking.
There were so many foods, traditional snacks and sweets available in the market. I had to walk around all the food stalls twice to make a mental note of the food and sweets that I wanted to taste amd take away. I forgot the location if a sweet stall, so I had to take a third round. That made me quite hungry. So, my first order was PadThai.
Most vendors wore periods Thai clothes, some visitors also came in traditional Thai costumes. The crowds were very nice and friendly, this was a very enjoyable temple fair. The car park was turned into a big open air dining area with bamboo seatings. I observed how the vendor cooked the PadThai which should taste very good being cooked on charcoal stove. I had the usual PadThai without the big prawns as I was afraid of making a mess while trying to dissect the big prawns.
Sitting on bamboo bench with cooling brrezes and seeing other people enjoying themselves made me realised how lucky I was to be there. Simple life and humble food made me very joyful and contented with living in the moment. I liked the old style PadThai very much. My mind had to make plans for the next menu. It was very difficult to decide as I liked to taste four dishes and at least two kinds of sweets. But I was already full after my PadThai.
So, I had to walk around the market twice to help with digestion. Looking at the big portion of Thai sweets in coconut cream, I knew I had to skip this one as it would be too heavy for me. I intended to have the special noodles from the south of Thailand. This one got several prizes over the years. Most food stalls were chosen for their reputation and high quality. So, visitors could be assured that they would get fresh food at very reasonable prices. I had to applaud the organisers of this market.
After ten minutes’ walk, I returned for a bowl of noodles which were made from fish. The soup was made from boiling special fish imported from China for its fragrance and naturally sweet taste. I had my noodles with special home made sauce. The sauce was made from fermented beans with old Chinese liquors. I was so amazed and impressed by this menu that I ordered one set for taking home. I could have these different kinds of noodles everyday.
I had to walk around the market one more time to aid the digestion. I looked around for old style Thai sweets which became quite rare these days. I settled for ‘miang kam’ which was made by using some green herbal leaf to wrap around seven different ingredients and made into a green ball. A few drops of sweet coconut sauce would be poured on top of all the ingredients before being folded inti a small bundle.
These were my favourite Thai sweets since I was kid, but I woukd opted out of the pieces of red chili. This eas a strange sweet with four different tastes exploding in the mouth when one started chewing it. Such a fantastic experience for the taste buds! I bought a small portion to take home with me and two portions for immediate consumption.
As I had to take a boat ride home, I couldn’t get several items which I would have liked to very much, I had to travel light. So, I could only taste those food and sweets with my eyes. I had to walk through the temple to get to the nearest exit to the pier. The evening light was dimming and spot lights in the temple were switched on making firva cheerful atmosphere. There would be dancing performances in the evening but I gad to catch my boat.
The evening boat trip was also very enjoyable with reflections of lights on the river. The boat passed several luxurious condominiums, hotels and restaurants by the river. IconSiam looked much more dramatic at night with all the lights on. I had a very nice break from my dull routine. I wished there could be a nice temple fair once a month so I would have the excuse to go out to take photos and have good food. Then, it meant I had to becom a diet later on and to be more consistent with my posting.
Wishing you peace, good health and prosperity.
Stay strong and cheerful.
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