Alba, Wine Country

Alba, in Northwestern Italy, was a nice place to unwind and uncork from the intensity of my few days in Rome. And what an uncorking it was, literally! The area around Alba is known for wine and its gorgeous countryside that still maintains the feel of the small city-states of old: each hill having a town, topped with a castle, with a sea of vineyard fields flowing out to the foot of the next hill town. Some of the wines we tried in the area included dolcetto, barbera, barberesco, nebiolo and barolo.The Corkscrew Museum with the Barolo castle shown in the reflection.

I can't talk about Italy without mentioning food. Italians have one way and one way only to eat: their way. One evening when I asked for coffee along with dessert I was curtly informed of the Italian eating sequence by the waiter: "Absolutely NOT. No drinking espresso with gelato! I will bring it after you finish ..." But I am happy to eat and drink by the rules: dress up when you go out, order vino spumante first, then several courses, dessert, have coffee (after!), and take a really long time dining. All fine by me! I'm happy to abide by any rules that involve more food, drink, lounging and looking good!









The little dog above is excited about the cheeses and ice cream. That's pretty much how I felt! except I was a little better, I hope, at not showing it quite so much.

Total weight gained on the trip from the Islands to Italy: 4 pounds. It was worth every single bitty ounce of goodness! I even as much as ventured to try carne cruda (and that was my first and will be my only time).

Thanks to DrH and many others again for making the trip possible.

At Last Italy, We Meet in Rome

Rome: amazing food, drink, art, churches, ruins. What could be better? My friends and I have known for a long time that Italy and I are soulmates of sorts who'd never met. We've finally gotten a chance to meet for the first time, starting in Rome. Starting in Rome is a myriad of wonders. Rome is at once romantic - at every corner, history; behind every nook, beauty - and, like the old days, a circus spectacle, a clash of tourists and charged locals that is inevitable once a city has become the numero uno most visited place on earth. And who wouldn't want stare in awe at the Colosseum? And stand inside the sheer enormity of it, imagining when almost two thousand years ago, people inside cheered on gladiators or the latest Christian being torn apart by a lion?

There's no way to describe Rome, I can but give a taste with my impression, and hope people aren't sick of hearing about the plazas and the Caravaggios and Da Vincis and the crypts. Here are a few favorites.

The Pantheon (above). I was impressed by this great concrete dome that stood alone for so long, and how they pulled off such a huge and ambitious architectural project. It was later taken over by Christians of course, and is used to house tombs - like Raphael's.

Some things in the Vatican Museum worth mentioning. In terms of classical sculpture, The Laocoon and his Sons, and Apollo in the Belvedere garden of the Vatican Museum (above). All photographs posted are taken by me or DrH, so this shot doesn't capture the full frontal complexity of the Laocoon, but you can see how amazing it is. You can also understand from the sensitive facial expressions why there is controversy about whether it is in fact classical or whether Michelangelo is the real secret sculptor after all.
There are two Raphael paintings I want to share. The first is Raphael's The School of Athens. I've been waiting to see this painting for a long time now. I preached one of my first sermons at the Boston Temple using it as an illustration, with Plato and Aristotle's argument about where to find truth. I changed that be where to look for God: Plato pointing up to the forms, and Aristotle pointing to down around us.
The other is Raphael's painting of The Ascension which I couldn't stop looking at. With two centers, what is most moving to me is the woman. my eyes go right to her pose and her blue robe, blue being the most expensive paint, a sign of importance. She exemplifies faith by being calm, bold and courageous through the confusion of doubt and fear.

Then there is the Sistine Chapel, which needless to say, is amazing. I know because if it weren't so, the crowd of people would have driven me insane (so many people! so loud!). Below is the most famous anthropomorphic creation story, The Creation of Adam, God touching fingers with Adam to bring him to life. (My favorite character representation is the oracle of Delphic Sibyl.)

On to St. Peter's Basilica. St. Peter's is so loaded with art of all kinds, relics, and tombs of great leaders at every corner wing and on every wall as far as your neck allows you to look up, you hardly even notice its interior magnitude. It's hard to imagine worshiping inside a church with 60,000 other believers (its capacity!).

Two more sculptures that I'm still thinking about: one is in the Basilica, Michelangelo's La Pietà. The Virgin looks so young and natural, yet powerful holding her son's body (below, left).

The other is Bernini's The Ecstasy of St. Theresa in the little church of Santa Maria della Vittoria (above, right). Those facial expressions, an almost mischievous angel, and well, the Ecstasy of Theresa! Need I say more? I'll go back in a second and just visit churches and ruins, and of course eat and drink. Soulmates!? A very special thanks to DrH for making it possible.

Easter Weekend Beaching in Bonnaca

In mainland, mostly Catholic Honduras, Easter is filled with religious celebrations, processions, flowers, as should be at the height of the most important Christian holiday. The whole country closes down for Semana Santa. But on The Bay Islands in the Caribbean which is mostly Protestant, the dominant mode of celebration is going to the beach. Days and days of beaching! Days and days of local food and music, celebrating with friends and family. It's the time of year islanders living all over the world 'come home.' It's also a time for those who live in the mainland to get in a beach holiday. It's been years and years since I've had a chance to spend Easter at home.
I'm very grateful I got to get there this year. Here's a few pictures, and a favorite Soca style song from our local Roatan band, Sherman and the Boys:

[Listening may require Quicktime plug-in and settings]

Chiang Mai Dinner with Friends & Teachers

A picture of a lovely dinner this last year with my former professor Donald Swearer, Director of the Center for the Study of World Religions at Harvard Divinity School, along with his wife Nancy Swearer, Adam and Naoko. Professor Swearer recommended Adam and I to our currents posts in Chiang Mai, Thailand, for which we are very grateful. How I was first persuaded into his Buddhism course is a funny story for another time :)

Here is the full copy of the Newsletter for those interested.

Ecumenical Retreat 2009 in Nakhon Patom, Thailand

Last month senior students and staff joined an annual Ecumenical Retreat between various Protestant and Catholic Christian theological schools throughout Thailand. It was mostly meant for students to promote mutual understanding and cooperation between Christians groups. We were happy to have groups from all across the denominational spectrum. The Seventh-Day Adventists from Mission College did not join, or come to 'observe' as is sometimes preferred over officially participating. The organizers had spend much time and effort to get them involved last year, so that was a disappointment. Other than that drawback, it was a success. Some time was spent in conference style lectures and discussions. And of course prayer and meditation. The retreat was hosted at lovely grounds of the Catholic guesthouse and retreat center, Baan Phu Waan.We also had the chance to visit some of the different orders and ministries in the surrounding area. One was a house of sisters from the Capuchin tradition. The nuns do not take drop in visitors, so people coming with prayer petitions speak into the wood cylinder below the picture of St. Clare while spinning it so the sound goes to a nun on the other side.

The sisters made a special exception for us and came out to the visiting hall to greet us. Still, we were separated by bars. We didn't quite know what to make of this at first. They knew we would ask about it, and they quickly explained it was a symbolic separation - and protection - between them and the world, holy and unholy, ordinary and sacred spaces. This photo is with the head mother. Some of the nuns had been there for decades, some were just coming in, as young as 14 years old. We were also interested to know that a good majority of the Catholics we met were from the Karen ethnic minority. It's quite something that these women are willing to go into the order with little contact with the world and dedicate their lives to prayer and meditation.
On our way there and back we made a number of excursions, I'll just mention one: Above, is The Church of Saint Joseph, the oldest Catholic Church in Thailand, a lovely yellow church facing the Chao Phraya river in Ayutthaya.

2009 New Year in Singapore

So I spent a few days in Singapore to pass the new year. This was my first time, and I'm glad to have also met up with friends of friends and my housemate Jloh and her family. This picture is with the "durian dome." Doesn't it look like a huge durian?
The diverse cultures that makes Singapore special was really something for such a small place. Although the majority of people are from Chinese backgrounds, they really try not to give preference to one ethnic group or language. I like to navigate the diversity through sacred spaces and, of course, food!
Here is a Chinese temple, and the rubbing of the belly of a Bodhisattva for good luck. Naturally, with the coming new year, the temples were crazy full of people praying, giving offerings, and burning incense.

This is a statue of the Hindu God/dess Kali in little India doing her destroyer thing.
The little place I stayed in was a family owned spot (they were so warm!) near Bugis station in the Malay-Muslim side of town. Right down the street was this beautiful mosque (below).

There seems to be two big things to do in Singapore: eat and shop. Now every big city has a variety of food choices. But compared to other cities in the region, Singapore excels and is unique for the restaurants and food joints that specialize in and master a specific dish. And locals go out to the many restaurants and eateries to eat a particular dish or two. It goes something like: "We'll go to this place in Chinatown for the best chicken rice," and "To this noodle stand for the best seafood soup," "let's go to Zam Zam's for the best moktabar and biryani." (Which was fortunately right in my neighborhood so I went twice. As for the chicken rice, I tried a few pieces, the best I could do, and yes, it was amazing! I decided to emphasize the 'flexible' in my flexitarianism and be let by locals for this trip. Below are JLoh's pics of Zam Zam's biryani, and Chinese rice chicken, veggies and sauces.)

As for the second big pastime, shopping, well, I'm not a big fan! That IS a problem, since there are more malls and shopping centers crammed into the city than you can imagine. Really. Malls in the lobbies of hotels, malls in the subway, malls every other building! And all as air-conditioned and as interconnected as possible, which after three days made things feel artificial.

I should mention that I was starved for art so Jloh and I went to some decent museums. Notable was a powerful and sober photo commentary by Chien-Chi Chang. One part documented the explosion of 'buying' brides through marriages of Taiwanese men and Vietnamese women. Others included looking at migrant workers in Chinatown New York.

Luckily, the crowds and shopping centered-ness didn't burned me out until just before I left for the airport, so the trip was really fun, and its always nice to meet new people.
Happy New Year to all. Bring in the Year of the Ox!

Christmas in Phang Nga

My mom, step-dad and I spend the Christmas holidays in Phang Nga bay area and Phuket on the Andaman Sea of Thailand. Phuket was ok, a few nice beaches, very developed and all that; but it was mostly a way for me to get to Phang Nga province and visit some of the gorgeous national parks and hang out in the many mostly Muslim fishing villages and islands.
And to kayak! through the many beautiful collapsed limestone caves. You have to basically lay down to get under some of the small entrances, and you can only do it at the low tide point of the day, but its really a great experience. Above we explore one of the caves. From pictures I've seem of Halong Bay in Vietnam, Ao Phang Nga is Thailand's equivalent with hundreds of limestone islands and formations jutting out of the emerald colored sea. It also has many species of birds, plants, mangroves, and coral formations.
I would definitely recommend a few days, a few weeks if possible, in Phang Nga province. I noticed that there was some boats that take people on day trips from Phuket going just to the Phang Nga park, but it is not worth it; plus the bay is too shallow for them to get into the more interesting parts of the park like the mangrove canals and to get good kayaking in. These two pics are the views from our balcony. Needless to say, I keep the curtains open to watch the sun set and rise.

These are some views from the bay of islands and caves - some of the caves contained ancient paintings.

The people that live in and around the national park are ethnically Javanese or Malay of Islamic faith that migrated to the area as much as two centuries ago. As was the case on the island of Panyi where we stayed for a night (below).

The first thing my mother when we arrived at Ko Phanyi was that it was reminiscent of where we're from, Bonnaca Cay on the Bay Islands of Honduras ... a small Cay with many of the houses on stilts and connected by bridges. Yes, mom! I was a bit homesick and that was part of the point :)

The mosque in the center of Panyi above is one among the many cute and brightly painted ones around Phuket and Phang Nga provinces, familiar sights in the south of Thailand where Islam has a strong presence. Everywhere we stayed on this trip (even when in Singapore for the new year) was within a block of a local mosque. So we could enjoy the solemn yet beautiful Call to Prayer alerting us to new morning, greeting us throughout the day, and welcoming the evenings. Listen to one call to prayer here:

[Listening may require Quicktime plug-in and settings]

Christmas Prison Ministry

I want to share a day of a special Christmas program at a local prison. Not long before Christmas, and through aj.Chulee, we teamed up with the International Prison Chaplaincy Association to provide a Christmas service for inmates at the Chiang Mai Central Prison for men. We had quite a big group for quite a large production: interactive singing and dancing, caroling, preaching, praying and a dramatic performance (yes, all this, we only had a couple of hours to do it!). It was quite an undertaking. This was the first time I'd been a men's prison, and first time to do prison ministry with such a large group.

For a group of our size, entering layer upon and layer of steel bars involved a fair bit or waiting, confusion, commotion, and guards shouting instructions two feet next to us through hand-held megaphones.

We watched as new prisoners were transported to the prison, like cattle, in the cadged backs of pick-up trucks, like this one below. Part of the delay was waiting for them to get through. When we were finally two layers of bars inside we noticed they had brought in two frightened teenage prisoners who were squatting in the temporary containment cell next to the walkway we had to pass through.

The prison is one contained cage after another, separated by steel, fences, or barbed-wire. Most prisoners are separated by whether they are sentenced or not. Most of the men are in for drugs, many Burmese immigrants, and many are very young men, teenagers even. We were only allowed to see those awaiting sentence - which can take years. Upon entering, we found ourselves in an open but fenced-in hall. Next to the hall was the one open courtyard where prisoners were loafing, playing, making cement in pipe tubes, and washing laundry. They didn't expect to see us, nor could they join in, but those that noticed looked on eagerly. We arrived to find hundreds of prisoners dressed in blue and seated behind tables, awaiting us quietly.

The place was intolerably crowded. The whole building stank of a strong scent of urine and a faint hint of feces. Dust everywhere, from the cement making. Constant noise from banging plactic tubes and guards on loudspeakers every few minutes. I don't need to go on. Thailand is notorious for prisons with terrible living conditions, negligence and mistreatment, and extreme sentences. (This one was not the worst of Thai prisons; there are many movies and books on places far worse: some of you watched Brokedown Palace, or read The Damage Done, or Forget You Had a Daughter about the Bangkok Hilton, or maybe remember the Bridget Jones II prison mixup).

We were happy to have a successful program; we sang our songs, prayed our prayers, and shared food with them. They men smiled widely, sang enthusiastically, were in relatively good spirits. What we did is but put a speck of joy and Christmas cheer into an otherwise dreary prison routine. By the time we left, the men in the courtyard were aware of our presence. They all gathered close to where we would pass to get out, and took in a good look. Even the few western foreign prisoners did it. We may be the only people coming for a long, long time. We hope that those who could join, and those who might have seem us from afar, were uplifted by our program.