Sunday, April 24, 2016

Thai New Year's Festival

Today Don and I accompanied my friend Mel, owner of Thai99, a local restaurant, to her Buddhist temple in Isle of Wight County. Its name, Wat Pasantidhamma, means Forest Temple. Thai, Cambodian, and other immigrants along with their friends and families gathered there to celebrate the New Year today.
Thai Forest Temple

We enjoyed Thai music, dancing, and food--lots of it! We got to visit the temple, tour the grounds, see the monks, and get a blessing from them if we wanted. I bought some hot sauce for our kitchen from one of the booths that dotted the grounds.

The Temple provided a free lunch. See part of the long lines in the background to the right.
Don and I in the Buddhist Temple's sanctuary. Photo courtesy of Mel Martin.

Volunteers in front of a few of the beautiful images of Buddha on the temple grounds.