a case of bad timing

Remember when I said I took the girls to the park while josh was gone?

It was ill-fated from the start.

We were supposed to go to a different park, one that is supposedly boasts the best Fall Foliage in the country. I was skeptical, but you know how I feel about fall...

So I arranged to go, but then it fell through.  You don't need all the gory details.  

I tried to make lemonade out of my lemons and walk down the street to a park we seldom go to.  We seldom go there because...

it's a park that is really a place of worship masquerading as a park.  There are Buddhas everywhere.  Vendors hawking idols and incense and paper money at every corner.  Verses from the bible come alive as you can watch idol-makers sit outside their shops adding the finishing touches to their product.  

Anyway, this particular day I needed to make a quick decision.  I knew this park had lots of areas that were just forest and open areas with no idol-ish stuff, so we started heading in that direction.  

Let me remind you: I have lived in this country for over five years.  I am accustomed to crowds.  I have never, ever been in a crowd this big or seen this many people.  Ever.  
This is the street leading up to the park.  All these people were coming to the park.  Only me and my stroller were blocking their path.  
The flow of people never abated.  Rows and rows of bicycles gave testimony to how many people were there.  
Why? I kept asking myself.  Finally, I asked someone else. 

Two reasons: 1) It was elders day - celebrating all the old folks, and parks like these are typically where the elders like to congregate.  2) It was the Ninth month and ninth day of the lunar calendar - a day where everyone goes to offer incense to their ancestors in hopes of appeasing them and fighting off bad luck and curses.  It seems that many people in the surrounding countryside towns want to go to the biggest temple possible - and that was the one we were at.  

Everywhere, people were carrying armloads of incense.  I am always amazed at how real - and how futile - this is for some people.  Even in the midst of my irritation at the massive crowd and the attention that comes with such crowds, my heart still managed to stop when I look into the eyes of people on their way to offer pleas to gods and ancestors who can't hear them at all.   Some, of course, don't plea at all - it's just a custom, an item to check off the list.  But many do it with heartfelt devotion.  My heart breaks and shudders at how easy it is for the human heart to be deceived.   

Anyway, after some time, we made it out of the crowds and away from the crush of people and found plenty to do to pass the morning.  

Abby is always willing to oblige friendly people:
The girls found a winding path through trees, forests, and what seemed a little like wilderness.  They picked berries, sticks, and fallen leaves.
...and had to smile for the camera some, too.  
I guess the moral of the story is: always check your lunar calendar before making plans for the day?