Tea, Meditation & Philanthropy in Bangkok

If you told me ten years ago that I’d be traveling to Bangkok, Thailand on a regular basis I would never have believed it. It was the second country we visited in 2018 on our year-long travels. We arrived after three months in India and I was immediately struck by the sense of order as we sat in the taxi taking us from the airport to our apartment. There were traffic lights, something you don’t ever see in India. The streets were mostly free from litter, also something that India struggles with. And there was no horn honking. Imagine. I was also struck by the level of respect that the Thai people demonstrate, especially while waiting to board the subway. Yes, Bangkok has a subway system that is far superior to anything we have in the states. Thais in general wait until everyone who wants to disembark from the subway car does so, and only then do they enter. Thais are also warm and friendly, some calling the country “The Land of Smiles”. There are a number of things that keep me coming back to Bangkok. First is my meditation teacher, Hartanto Gunawan. Studying with him for the past six years has been life-saving. Second is Ariya, the young lady we are sending to college in Bangkok. Third is Chinatown, more specifically the tea there.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog you already know about my meditation teacher, Hartanto Gunawan. You also know by know my love of tea. And of course you know about my philanthropic work we’ve been doing with the nursing school in Bangkok. Since 2018 I’ve been to Bangkok a handful of times. Laurie and I were just there for a brief visit. We are spending 5 weeks in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Bangkok is just a very short flight away. So we opted for a quick visit.

We arrived Tuesday afternoon and took then train to the city center. I am very comfortable and know my way around in Bangkok using the subway, trains and elevated rail systems. We found our way to Siam Paragon mall and had a late lunch at Ros’Niyom restaurant. This place is a pretty decent take on This street food and offers many veg options. The mall was packed as usual and the food was great. After lunch we managed our way on the subway to the Itsaraphap stop on the MRT, the closest to our Airbnb and Wat Arun. We walked about twenty minutes and checked into our room. I’ve stayed at this place twice now and it’s a really nice room above an ice cream shop where they make their own ice cream, and they always greet you with an offer of a free cup. It’s in a local neighborhood with almost zero tourists and it’s about five or ten minutes walking to Way Arun where my meditation teacher stays and manages the nursing school. The host had a huge smile on her face when I arrived and gave me a huge hug. That’s a first.

I made a plan to meet with Hartanto later in the week and also to buy dinner for the girls at the school. The next morning Laurie and I were walking to Starbucks and we ran into Ariya, whose nickname is View (everyone in Thailand has a nickname) the young lady that we’re sponsoring for college. What are the chances of that? Eleven million people in Bangkok. Go figure. We visited on the street and made a plan to visit later that day.

After Starbucks we headed to Chinatown, a place I’ve been before and a place that I’ve purchased some pretty good tea. I had the name of the shop and the owner’s contact info. Of course we couldn’t find it. I was positive that I was at the exact spot. So we wandered around and found some different tea shops, had a few tastings, bought some tea and headed back to our room.

I sent a message to the shop owner. She informed me that the entire block of real estate where the tea shop was had been taken over for development. I kept the conversation going and she did have a bunch of tea as she had recently returned from China. We made a plan to buy some herbal tea and she had it delivered in a very short time via motorbike delivery. I was amazed at the process. She sent me a link with the drivers photo, the amount due COD, and real-time tracking for the delivery. I forgot to mention the room we are staying in above the ice cream shop is only accessible by going through a Buddhist temple complex and down some really narrow alleys. Soon enough the driver arrived and we had our tea! Amazing. 

But then I remembered Laurie’s favorite tea. I had purchased it at this very shop last year. I searched through my photos on my phone and found a pic I had taken of the tea box. I texted Charlie and asked if she had any more. She did have one box left. Again, we made a delivery plan via motorbike and we had a new box of Laurie’s favorite tea. Hit us up sometime for a taste of it or maybe the herbal tea if you don’t drink caffeine. 

Thursday we met with Hartanto and talked about meditation, the school and future plans. In addition to clients in Bangkok, Hartanto has meditation students all over the world. He does the sessions via ZOOM. I’m excited for what’s coming next with him. He’s currently teaching meditation at Siam University as well as developing a nationwide program with the Thai Department of Education to bring meditation into the school system. This man does very meaningful work. 

That evening Laurie and I treated the nursing students to spicy KFC, it’s their favorite. I had some private time with Hartanto and was able to refocus my energy with my practice, my teaching and my writing. It was a short but fruitful visit to Bangkok and tomorrow we are headed to Cambodia for the first time. Stay tuned and be well. Reach out if you’re interested in helping out in any way or need help with meditation.