NEW YEAR IN CHIANG MAI

Hello All,

Right Now I am posting from the Northern Part of Thailand. I will try and type what I have written so far, as I can keeping a written journal so I can share every little detail. I am sorry but I forgot my camera cable back at the guest house, I will try and post some pictures as soon as I can.

April 10 – Bangkok to Chiang Mai

I taught my adult classes this morning and then visited both the adults and the children in the AIDS hospice. We packed in the afternoon, did some laundry and played with the children. Misty and I were both falling asleep and the little girl was lying between us. She put my capris on, which fit like pants on her. To snap the button she used her teeth. It was quite cute.

We packed our backpacks and were off. I couldn’t help but smile as we walked down our street to find a taxi. I felt like we were going home. The taxi driver charged us 400 Baht to go to the airport. Considering the traffic was busy as people were getting off work, I think we ended up getting a better deal than he thought.

We arrived at the airport an hour later. We checked our baggage and went to find our gate. We flew with AirAsia, which is one of the cheapest airlines in Asia. However, since the airline flies so many shuttle flights, you are not assigned to a seat. Misty and I sat in the front row at the gate and when the plane arrived people already started to line up. Since we were right at the front we were one of the first people on the plane. We chose to sit in the front row of the plane so we had endless leg room. Another bonus, we were the first ones off of the planet, so we are ahead in the amazing race. The flight was pretty smooth and we witnessed lightening for half of the flight.

When we arrived we easily found a taxi to take us to our guest house.

Chiang Mai appears a lot different than Bangkok. It seems to have more of a small town, country feel. Our guest house is very interesting. There is a pane falling out of the window in the bathroom so for the first night I was paranoid that we would have a creeper. Our bedsheets were stained,…I do not even want to know what with. The bed is very uncomfortable and I honestly think I would have had a better nights sleep on the floor. Another interesting thing…the shower is just in the bathroom. So basically when you shower you are standing in front of the mirror, beside the toilet. I will post pictures soon.

The best way to describe this places is that it feels like we are sleeping inside a camper trailer.

We explored a bit of the streets around our guest house looking for something to eat. Some places were quite expensive. When we found a place that looked delicious and was reasonably priced we were further disappointed that it just closed.

Back down the street we ventures, finding another places called the Zest, that looked like you ate in an outdoor garden. One of the friendly waitresses lured us in and helped Misty select her food. I settled for some familiar Thai food. The food and drinks arrived fairly quickly. Both were nothing to boast about. My fresh squeezed orange juice tasted like it came from a rotten orange. The food was edible but not something you would lick your lips over. Misty did not like her food at all and was disappointed that it was more like a soup.

Sadly, we had to stop at the 7/11 on the way home to get rid of the hunger.

All in all, our first experience here was nothing to boast about. However, we still have a good feeling about this place. Let’s see what tomorrow brings.


April 11

Tomorrow brought an achy back and a sore neck. At first glance the bed looked okay but after spending a night on it, we both feel that we would have been more comfortable sleeping on a rock. Seriously. However, this experience reminds us that there is a difference between comfortable and uncomfortable beds, and thankfully now we can also appreciate the bed at Mercy a little bit more.

The shower in the bathroom was quite an experience. It brought a whole new meaning to having a wet floor.

We ventured out to the main road to find a ride to a place where umbrellas are handmade. While standing on a street corner looking at our map, an English speaking older couple approached us and asked if we needed help. We showed them where we wanted to go and the male proceeded to call over a songtheaw for us. He did all of the talking while I stood back. This made me a little frustrated but I know he was just trying to help. The driver agreed to take us for 150 Baht. Off we went. After driving for a while, he pulled over and shut the vehicle off, in an area that looked nothing like where we had hoped to go. We found ourselves at the railway station. We were a little confused but thought that the driver might have been showing us the stops along the way.

The driver came in to meet us, he asked if we were okay and ready to go. Back in the truck we go, ready for our next stop.

We drove a little longer and then found ourselves at a gas station. Time for a fill up. On the road again, we stop right where we were picked up. The driver was a little confused when we did not get out so he brought an English speaking shop keeper over. We explained to him our intentions and he translated to our driver. The driver understood and seemed rather embarrassed. We were off again. We drove quite a ways this time, in what we believed to be the right direction. We ended up at a Gem Factory, a few stores down from where we desired to go. Once again, with the help from shop owners we were off again. Finally this time we ended up at the umbrella village, exactly where we wanted. Our driver waited while we explored the shop and factory area (I will post pictures).

When we were ready to go, he drove us back. Because of the Songkran festival we have already been refreshed by some of the water. People stand on the side of the road with water guns, buckets, hoses and big bins of water. They spray you in your vehicle from the side of the road or from passing vehicles. While crossing over a bridge there was a pipe with holes that randomly turned on to spray people. It was funny to watch the motorbikes drive through.

You can also literally buy water guns on the side of the street!

After awakening from an afternoon cat nap, we went to one of the local travel agents we met earlier to book our adventure for tomorrow. We decided on one that had almost everything we both wanted. Total cost for the day 1100 Baht.

We headed for the Night Bazaar, getting sprayed by numerous water guns along the way. Buckets of water were being thrown from windows above shops and from people riding in the back of pick-up trucks. We managed to stay pretty dry until a group of ‘farangs’ our age found us and thought we were way too dry. I tried to use my map to shield me, but when it fell apart, I knew I was done for. I ran out of that group soaked, but some what refreshed.

Misty and I bought our own water guns at the next stand, so we now at least can give some pay back. However, my water only lasted so far and I was back to where I started…defenseless. However, it was totally worth it as I had some good fights. I especially enjoyed getting a man wet as he had his back to me, trying to back up in his truck. Both him and his wife were amused.

A few more water fights along the way, one I had no defense against as my water gun could not compete with the garden hose.

Also a little boy thought he had me good when he ran towards me with his bucket. But as he raised the bucket above his head to soak me, I turned it back on him and he was soaked from head to toe.

The Night Bazaar was very big, but a lot like the other ones we have seen at other places. We walked around but nothing really caught our eyes.

We decided we’d have a local meal at one the vendor restaurants on one of the side streets. These restaurants are usually less than half the price of what you’d pay at a restaurant. The food was okay, and tasted a little different than the food in the Southern part of Thailand. The real shocker was when a rat ran past our table. Thankfully I was already done eating at this point, so we did not stay much longer.


April 12 – Trekking!

Today was our trekking adventure. A van picked us up from our guest house at 8:30 am. On board was a man from Italy and his Thai wife, 2 Korean students, and a young man from China. We drove for about 45 minutes to our first stop = butterfly farm and Orchid farm.

There were plenty of butterflies but they were not as colorful as some of the ones I have seen. The orchids and the orchid nursery were beautiful.

We quickly boarded the van and drove for another bit to our next stop, the Long Neck Karen Hilltribes. We got dropped off at the top of a hill and then walked our way down. All we really saw were vendors which was pretty disappointed. Most of it was staged for tourists so I did not really enjoy that, and I also did not care too much for the whole experience as I felt like I was completely intruding and felt rude for asking to take a picture.

Also, there was no information on anything, so when I left I felt no better educated. All in all a disappointing stop.

Back in the van and about 10 more km down the road we came to the stop I have been waiting for since we arrived in Thailand. ELEPHANTS!!

The elephants walked up to the edge of a hill where we climbed on back. There was a man who rode on the head of the elephant and 1 or 2 people rode on the seat on it’s back. At first I was wishing we could actually just ride it bareback but I quickly learned why we were strapped on as we made our way down one of the steep mountains. The ride lasted about an hour and involved us riding on mountains, through the trees and down the river. During some of the more steep parts I literally had to hang on as I was completely standing up. The elephant also takes huge steps so you are constantly moving from one side to the other, which makes taking pictures challenging.

One of the baby elephants came along with her mommy which was absolutely adorable. I took tons of pictures of him. He decided to play in the water on the way home, splashing, rolling and making nice elephant sounds.

We also had a fun challenge on the way back as several bamboo rafts were making their way down the river, so we had to go around them. However, one of the elephants was very helpful by pushing one along when it got stuck.

After we got off the elephants we tried to pet them but they quickly showed us “no food, no fun.”

We had a buffet lunch here before our next adventure.

Driving further up the mountain we passed several more elephants, banana plantations, small communities and beautiful scenery. I should also mention that things are a little hazey in the mountains because Northern Thailand still practices the trash and burn method. This was the time of year, immediately before the beginning of the wet season.

Speaking of wet, our next adventure was impossible to finish and stay dry. We went White Water Rafting! We got geared up with a life jacket and helmets and were given a lesson on how to go and we were off. We had one captain per boat who told us when to paddle forward, backwards, move back, to the left or to the right. Now white water rafting is nothing I imagined it to be back at home. The water level was not that high so it was a lot of working paddling through the currents and then trying to avoid the rocks. I swear we hit every single rock that we possibly could. At one point we were stuck and not moving and then Misty pointed out “Jodie, you are sitting on the rock.”

The voyage was accompanied with lots of laughs, and lots of water. Not only were we getting wet from the paddle water fight we had with our traveling mates but we also seemed to go through a huge community of families going on tubes or swimming in the river. As soon as they saw us they shouted ‘farang’ and we were attacked.

At the end of our run we went for a little swim in our clothes and then we went for a more leisurely sail down the river on a bamboo raft. Each raft had about 3-4 passengers and the captain. We sat directly on the raft so our bums were a little wet.

On the way down the river we passed some grazing elephants, villages and children playing.

Back in our van we went for our final destination, a stop at a Waterfall. We had to hike up the mountain and back down the other side to the river. The waterfall was very small, but we could swim in the pool underneath it. The scene was breathtaking.

On the drive home we witnessed many people playing Songkran. I tried to take some pictures from inside the locked van. I will post them as soon as I can.

We were dropped off at our front door at 6 pm, said goodbye to everyone and went for a rest.

What an exciting but exhausting day.

For supper we ate at some of the street vendors on our main street which turning into walking street, complete with food stalls, and street vendors. What a great atmosphere. Misty and I just sat at the table for a while watching people walk by. Everyone is a happy, festive mode.

April 13 – Sunday

We had a very lazy morning, some what sleeping in and then going to the little outside restaurant next door for some breakfast as we ran out of bread. I ordered an orange juice, toast and a plate of seasonal fruit, which included apple pieces, mango, watermelon, pineapple and dragon fruit. The dragon fruit was quite good, but I cannot describe the taste as it was like nothing I have ever had before.

Following breakfast we went to talk to a few different travel agents about our upcoming trip to Laos. Because we already have our visas we have a lot more options. However, because of the Songkran festival a lot of those options are on holiday, including the slow boat up the Mekong River. We are looking into a few options, but it is looking like we cannot leave until later in the week.

We went for a walk down some of the side streets and then went for a foot massage at the Women’s Prison. Female inmates give the massage, and save the money for when they are released. The women are trained in prison and are only allowed to work when they are going to be released in the next 6 months.

Besides the guards walking around, you could not really tell you were in a prison once you were inside.

The massage was quite good and included feet, legs, arms and back. It lasted an hour. I know it was meant to be relaxing but I have concluded that massages are just not my thing. I cannot enjoy them without feeling awkward. I also cannot imagine it would be too exciting for them either, to rub someone’s feet for an hour. Also, having your fingers entwined with someone’s toes does not sound like something I want to spend my Sunday afternoon doing. Maybe I am just feeling a little like this because I hate feet. I think in the future I would prefer an hour of hand massages instead of feet and legs.

Thais are also famous for the Thai massage (imagine that). This is rougher than a traditional oil massage and the person receiving it is fully clothed. The massage is also more of a workout for the masseuse than a massage, requiring a lot of body strength and some very impressive and intense positions.

The thought of having someone beat you with your clothes on and paying them to do it does not sound too exciting for me, but maybe I am too quick to judge, never having tried it before.

After our massage we walked back to our guest house on walking street. The street is slowly converting to the Sunday Market. We stopped at one of the temples across the street. Chiang Mai is famous for its many temples.

We went for a walk along one of the main streets and got absolutely soaked. I wanted to take some pictures to show you so we wrapped my camera in 3 ziploc bags. I got some pictures of the parade down our street as well. From what I could tell, it was the Buddha image from every nearby temple. People threw a small cup full of a water mixture that had flowers in it to the statue. Also, some of the water was given back by monks or poured on people’s heads.

Venturing down another main road was a huge dance party with people dancing in the now flooded streets. Traffic is just at a standstill. We grabbed our water guns and joined the festivities. I have never been hit with that many buckets of water in my life! The whole afternoon was awesome as we met some travelers (and yes ladies, they were very good looking). It was a constant dip your bucket in the river, fill it, throw it at someone and repeat. What a workout.

We are going to meet our new friends tonight. And add a few more names to our list of Canadians we met abroad as most of them were from out west! One very good looking Denmark boy also caught our eyes, but sorry no pictures.

That’s about all for now. My fingers are exhausted and I should probably go pay for this. Hope all is well in Canada. I will post pictures as soon as I can! And also, I already filled a 3 GB memory card.

Sending love,
J