"Spiritual" trip

I tagged along with my parents for a "spiritual" trip for 3days and 2 nights.
It was organised by a local buddhist association called Mudita.
There were a total of 43 participants,
and most of them were in their 40s or 50s.
It was kinda like a family trip,
so there were children as well.
(so at least I wasn't the youngest in the trip ;p)

Day 1 - 25th October 2008 (Klang --> Lunas --> Taiping)

5.30am - woke up, washed up
6.30am - boarded bus which departed to Lunas, Kedah.

At Lunas, we visited two temples.
The first one was this,


The second one was a smaller temple which had a sauna "centre".
The sauna is different from the usual sauna,
because the steam is generated by wood.
Wood was burnt beneath the rooms to "steam" things up.
So I felt like I'm a stuffed chicken in an oven. LOL.


Then, we departed from Kedah, and headed to Taiping to spend the night at Taiping Motel.


Day 2 - 26th October 2008. (Taiping --> Ipoh)

4.30am - woke up, and washed up
5.00am - Departed to Sasanarakkha Buddhist Sanctuary for the Kathina Ceremony.

Nope, it's not hurricane kathrina, though it does sound like it.
I googled, and found this to be a useful explanation of the ceremony.
Kathina Ceremony (Robe offering ceremony)
Is held on any convenient date within one month of the conclusion of the Vassa Retreat, which is the three month rains retreat season (Vassa) for the monastic order. It is the time of the year when new robes and other requisites may be offered by the laity to the monks.

Anyways, the Sasanarakkha Buddhist Sanctuary was a really unique place.
It's situated at the top of a hill,
and we had to sit on the back of 4 wheel drives.
Kinda like how people send immigrants or workers to plantations. LOL.
The place was also beautifully landscaped,
and the architecture of the buildings are modern,
unlike the usual temples which are more traditional looking.


After the ceremony ended, we departed from Taiping to Ipoh.
In Ipoh, we stayed in the Tong Lian Siao Chu Nunnery.
It's a rather secluded temple I would say because even pohyee, doesn't know where it is. LOL.


After we "checked-in", we headed to the Kek Lok Cave which is famous for it's beautiful garden.




Day 3 - 27th October 2008 (Ipoh --> Sungkhai --> Kuala Kubu Baru --> Klang)

For the final day, we left Ipoh around noon to visit Sungkhai's hot spring.
It was bloody expensive.
Entrance fees was Rm10 per person,
and the toilets were inadequate and not so well maintained.

Anyways, hot springs were supposed to be good for the skin, etc,
but unfortunately for me, my pimples started purging out after that. *sigh*
I could be cursing all day about the pimples,
but hey, I have vowed to not look at the mirror this week.
Because once I look at the mirror, I would get depressed,
and my fingers will automatically move to pinch my zits. *sigh*

Back to the trip,
it was a rather long trip,
and I spent most of my time sleeping. LOL.