PHOTO ESSAY

A Magical Sunrise in the Gulf of Thailand

Overlooking the Bay of Bangkok

Sunrises speak of tranquility. When the sun rises very early in the day not many are out and about. There’s still a calmness above the village and even the animals aren’t really awake yet.

I do find those moments awe-inspiring. When the first part of the sun appears, just a tiny part of the roundly shaped sun, then I hold my breath. I hold my breath to soak in all the beauty of the moment.

Yesterday I explored the island of Koh Sichang with a scooter and came across this shrine on top of a hill. Well, I didn’t just happen to drive past there. It’s an incredibly steep road leading straight up the mountain. The way they build roads in Thailand, nothing special. No sharp turns, just up.

Mondop Roi is a very sacred place for the Thais. In the white building is Buddha’s Footprint enshrined. The mountain with its religious history is supposedly the center of faith in Buddhism on the island.

While this place can be very crowded at certain times of the year when turning into a pilgrim site, I had it all for myself. Yesterday when I arrived there was one couple at the holy site but left just after I had stopped my scooter.

I truly enjoyed the view from up there and decided to set an alarm for this morning to come up here again and witness the sun rising above the Bay of Bangkok.

I was hesitating for a moment when the alarm rang but I am so glad I found my motivation to get up and drive to the sacred place. The sun had just appeared above the horizon when I arrived.

Of course, I was all alone.

Oh no, I am lying. Just as the sun was rising, the birds were waking up and chirping some morning melodies in the trees surrounding the shrine.

And while the fishing village far below me was quiet and seemingly still asleep, I was getting more awake and more alive by the minute.

I walked around the site exploring different photo opportunities and angles. My GoPro was set on time-lapse to capture the entire scene of the rising sun.

While I am thankful for those stripes of clouds above the horizon knowing they make a sunrise even more beautiful, I do know that it isn’t anything romantic about them. It’s not fog. It’s no haze.

It’s smog.

And so be it. Face the reality. There’s lots of smog in our world, especially around mega-cities in Asia. If you don’t like it, don’t go there. Or just imagine it’s some soft morning haze decorating the sky.

All of a sudden I heard some different sounds. Nothing like a bird’s song. I turned around and saw two white-furred squirrels in the tree behind me. I had never seen anything like that.

A white squirrel in the white building protecting the sacred and enshrined footprint of Buddha.

Walking around the site I lost focus of the rising sun and stopped for a moment to capture this perfect flower on the path. Shining in its morning glory despite being in the withering process.

Back to the rising sun.

The longer I watch her climbing above the horizon, the more she pulls me into her charm.

The sun was now shining strong. Rising above the city of Sriracha, the mainland of Thailand, she’s now lighting up the entire Bay of Bangkok.

While the Gulf of Thailand had been active all night long with fishing trawlers operating throughout the night, the island starts to wake up only after sunrise.

And while I am writing down my feelings about this special moment, I receive an e-mail from Jack Road about his latest article being published. “Sunrises are Always Better Than Sunsets” describes beautifully why I got up this morning.

Thank you to K. Barrett for this awemazing publication. I truly embrace moments of awe while watching the sun rise. But there is so much more out there. Awe can be found in so many situations in nature. Just open your senses.

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