As I have mentioned earlier that this is our six consecutive years attending the July 4th celebration event at Wat Lao Buddhavong in Catlett, Virginia and it is their 32nd celebration.
My first time visiting the temple was in 1997 during their July 4th celebration, the temple was buzzing with people back then. I was impressed with the local community and my mom fell in love with the temple. Time has changed and the crowd was a lot thinner this year, one reason might be that many temples held events the same time as Wat Lao Buddhavong, and most visit their local temples instead. We traveled 6 hours to get to the temple and never regret that we have made the trip. I was so sick several days before the trip and didn’t think that I would be able to make it this year, and let along be able to shoot videos and photograph the event. I’m a firm believer of mind over matter and felt great the whole time I was there regardless of how I look. Below is a photo of Lee and my second sister.
A storm hit the area on Friday night and the temple had no power or running water until the next morning. It knocked down this elephant.
And broke some tree branches. I’m glad it didn’t do more damages and the power came back just in time for the Saturday morning event.
I took this picture early Sunday morning and I didn’t see many Buddhist worshipers giving alms.
I made a donation to the temple for an alms’ bowl, and it was $10 this year.
Buddha Garden
The lily pond
And the frog was smiling at me. 🙂
The ladies that worked at the ticket booth. The ticket was $10 this year and children get in for free.
Lao Rocket on display.
Chinese watercress near the entrance.
Food vendors
Temple booth
Despite it being extremely hot on Saturday, the concert area was probably the best place to stay cool. This is my last post for the temple and thank you for reading and watching the videos.
All photos were shot with Canon T2i and EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens.
