Wat U Mong

I visited Wat U Mong - another Buddhist temple in Chiang Mai two days ago. It was very different from Doi Suthep. It was much more rustic, appeared to be less well endowed than Doi Suthep and appeared to support more actual Buddhist practice. I'm not sure if Wat U Mong is older or just less well maintained but it seemed ancient in a way that Doi Suthep did not. I'll share some photos with you and perhaps you'll be able to see what I mean.

The first dude pictured here, guards the temple.











Sitting at the base of the dragon, I found an oddly out of place nose. I couldn't resist snapping a shot of it. Perhaps you can draw some meaning from a disembodied nose resting at the foot of a dragon guarding a temple.















Like Doi Suthep, Wat U Mong has a stupa which is home to a buddhist relic. I liked the juxtaposition of the stupa with the brilliant orange and yellow wrap.












I did not find a lushly decorated hall housing multiple golden Buddhas at Wat U Mong, but I did find an interesting representation of the Buddha in his early years - when he was experimenting with asceticism.



I also met two young Buddhist monks eager to practice their English and get reassurance that they have an ~American~ accent. After a brief chat with one of them the conversation seemed to take an interesting turn.

He asked, "Are you married?"
"No."
"Boyfriend?"
"No."
"Why not?"

....hrrmmm...not really a discussion I want to have with a young Buddhist monk in the heat of the day in Thailand...
"Uh, I'm actually going through a break up."
"Ah, well, you should let me help you with meditation. It is very good for helping pain. Let me give you my phone number so that you can call me."

At this point, I have to admit I was more amused than anything. It's quite odd to be quasi-propositioned by a 20-something monk. I gave him Lizzie's cell phone number and that seemed tomake him happy ;-)