First, let me introduce the players:
(from right to left: Anne Kirkner, Gill, Christie, Anne Sheldon, and Kevin)
Our group all peeled off around mid-afternoon on Saturday. It was after our Thai final and presentation of our final Thai projects. My group -- who included Alyssa, Kelly, Christie and Whitney -- made a video parody of the Wizard of Oz. We swept the popular vote, which I'm pretty proud of. If we get the video up on YouTube, I'll post a link. Until then, just know it was life-changingly funny and heart-warming. And mostly in Thai. Our prize promises to be a dinner with our Ajaans (professors).
After a mid-afternoon drink with the gang, I finished packing and headed off to the bus station. All six of us piled in for what proved to be an eleven-hour bus ride. It was advertised as a twelve-hour trip, but I suppose we lucked out there. My seat was next to Anne Sheldon, and we had a fine time, zonked out like we were. Anne Kirkner and Gill behind us, were not so lucky. The airconditioner dripped on them throughout the entire journey, and their position in the back of the bus made reclining difficult.
We drove through the night, ending in Chiang Mai around eight in the morning. Chiang Mai is one of the biggest cities in Thailand, the center of the north. Saying it's a big city, however, doesn't really necessitate comparison to Bangkok. Bangkok is a metropolis; Chiang Mai's importance comes as a regional center, historical monument, and marketplace. It's still really beautiful, but overrun by farang (foreigners). I haven't seen or heard this much English spoken outside of us students since Bangkok. Strange.
Renting a songtaew (minibus) to the guest house was easy. The drivers all line up on the parking lot and come up to you, asking, "Where you going? You want a tuk-tuk? You want a songtaew?" Useful when you need a ride. Overbearing when you are just enjoying walking. This transportation hawking was to be a common theme throughout our Chiang Mai adventures. Usually we responded in Thai.
The guest house was clean and simple, but centrally-located in the old city -- a real plus. Gap's House, as it was called, was only a half-hour's walk away from the bus station to Doi Suthep, Chiang Mai's mountain temple. After dropping off our bags, we took a leisurely walk to the station, admiring wats and monuments along the way. One of Chiang Mai's most famous monuments, the Three Kings Monument, is on the way. Although we hummed the Christmas carol, that's not actually what it's refering to; this references three ancient kings of South-East Asia.
Doi Suthep lies up a twenty-minute, winding mountain road with breath-taking views. Honestly, the ride alone is probably worth the trip. The north of Thailand is dotted with mountains, each more beautiful than the last. Where the temple is, swarms of tourists -- farang and Thai alike -- fill up the parking lot, and with them come the locals hawking their wares. You could buy a wide aray of products up on that lonely parking lot -- anything from fruit to masks to hilltribe souveniers.
Like many mountain temples, the climb up the naga (snake) stais is the first - pardon the pun - step. Once at the top, the wat complex shines of gold, clammers with conversation, music, and advertisement. At first, we circled the outside, where you can see the city and valley, surrounded by hazey mountains. After that, we entered the inner temples. You are supposed to walk clock-wise around the central, gleaming gold spires. Along the way, there are oodles of Buddhas, shrines, and donation boxes for pilgrims. On one side, there were pots of oil with wicks burning. If you pour oil into each pot with a ladel, it is supposed to mean long life will follow you. I did it, so I expect now to live past eighty.
We met a woman originally from Laos, now living in New York City, visiting the temple for the first time. She was fun with her New York accent and white sneakers, usually claimed by Americans everywhere. We started off speaking Thai to her, but she was far too wise for our skeletal Thai, countering with her significantly more fleshed-out English. You win here, superior language skills.
We stopped the songtaew by Chiang Mai University, choosing to walk the last mile and a half. Probably some of the motivation for this, honestly was the various and sundry cafes, each promising different cuisines from all over the world. That's one thing about the food here. I love Thai food, it's more that I'm accoustumed to more of a variety of food. Well, after this week I am satisfied to eat Thai food and only Thai food to my heart's content, after filling my belly with delicious pasteries, fresh coffees, pastas, baked bread, and falafel. And plus, next week we're going to Bangkok, so we are guarenteed some sort of Western cookery at our disposal.
That evening, we made our way back through the night market, where various hilltribes sell wares. The night market is bustling as always -- even moreso than here in Khon Kaen. Our practicing Thai with the vendors paid off -- literally and figuratively. I was able to barter 150 Baht off of a wall-hanging (fun!) and we met some nifty people, including a drink saleslady who works with organic agricultural NGOs in the north!
I've been thinking lately, especially in conjunction with my exploration of the North, that a CIEE Khon Kaen program would tranfer really well to the North of Thailand. They are dealing with many of the same issues as Isaan, namely natural resource loss, cultural erosion, and struggles with the government. The North has a huge issue with tourism, noteably dealing with the hilltribe villages and letting foreigners treat their culture like a "living museum." It brings up really cool issues with tourism, sustainable tourism, responsible tourism, and frankly elitist tourism. Plus the north is hella pretty.
More coming. Organic farms. Backpacker. Mountain roads. Hippies!
What more could you ever need?
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