Chiang Mai Market

Since the market is best experienced through photos rather than a whole lot of text, I'll make my description short and try to load a bigger group of pictures. The Chiang Mai market is housed in a large, rambling place. It's a permanent location but all around the outside are little stands that look temporary - but seem to be there every time we wander through. We haven't bought anything in the market - yet! In this market, the items on offer are mostly food (and a few flowers)- and that is what interests my camera eye - but there are also diverse items like trinkets and underwear. In the surrounding shops, you can find anything, including fabric, stationary, LOTS of clothes, kitchenware, hardware, etc. I'm a bit shy about photographing people and their wares but I think you'll get a "taste" of what the market was like. Sorry that I can't send the smells and sounds, too!

These fresh flower decorations are intended to be used for worship - on Buddha images and in  spirit houses.

                                                            Sacks of rice

Sweet Chinese treats wrapped in banana leaves (I believe)

Dried fish

A fruit being cut up. I'm not sure what it was. It was dripping with milky juice. Anyone out there know??




Well, this seems to be the limit of what I can upload here. More later!

Mountains and waterfalls

The Chiang Mai International School is full of good people who do kind things. We are the lucky recipients of some of those kind things. Last Friday was a half day at the school, and one of the teachers, a Canadian woman named Sandra, married to a Thai man, offered to take us along on her family outing that afternoon. The expedition would begin with lunch at her home, followed by a 1 1/2 hour-long car trip out of the city to Doi Inthanon National Park and a breath-taking waterfall.

We felt very privileged to be invited into the home of a local family, as well as chauffeured to a spot of natural beauty that I'm sure we wouldn't have seen otherwise. Our new friend shared her story of meeting her Thai husband in Canada, where they were both studying to be engineers. That was many years ago. For more than 20 years they have lived in Chiang Mai, where they are raising their 3 sons. Their home is a small compound of lovely Thai architecture that had been in her husband's family.

This is the "guest house" on Sandra's property, built in the old style.

After lunch, we piled into Sandra's car with her youngest son, a 13 year old, and a driver. Our trip took us southwest of Chiang Mai, through a long area of suburbs and a few small towns, past rice fields, and eventually up into a wooded mountainous region. Our destination was a stream that wended its way from the mountain over smooth rocks. The area reminded us of Rangeley streams. We were not prepared, however, for the majesty of the magnificent waterfall that cascaded down in lacy patterns. We stood looking at it for awhile, clicking lots of photos, and absorbing its grandeur. After awhile, we found a pooled area and waded and soaked our feet. I must admit that I was a little hesitant about this at first, wondering what kind of unusual creatures might be lurking in the water. However, I followed our friend's lead and found the water to be so refreshing and lovely. We were surrounded by leafy trees and a peaceful environment. Sandra and her son followed the stream, while Bruce and I luxuriated in the bubbly quiet.

The Mae Ya Waterfall at Doi Inthanon National Park

The second part of our outing involved a rendez-vous with our friend's husband who was at the park for a meeting of officials interested in water power (which was being generated by the waterfall). Before heading back to the city, we were invited to share snacks outside on an orchid-ringed lawn beside the stream. The officials sat at small tables. A small celebration took place. It was a delightful afternoon in Northern Thailand!

Back to School - in Chiang Mai

Our journey from Bangkok to Chiang Mai last Friday was a wonderful adventure. We slept on a train and it was rather magical! I've always wanted to do that, ever since seeing pictures of sleeping berths on the Canadian Pacific Railway when I was a child. Our small traveling room had sleeping accommodations for 4 people, two lower berths and two uppers: bunk beds! (Another secret desire.) We boarded the train at 7:30pm. Immediately a woman came and offered us a tray of fresh fruit, followed by offers of beer & dinner. We declined these but did order breakfast to be brought to us the next morning. We had mistakenly thought that the train was an express. Not so. One or two stops down the line, a young man entered our little room, gave respectful greetings, and soon retreated into his little cocoon behind the curtains and began quietly snoring! Guess he'd had a hard week of work in Bangkok.

            Our purple overnight sleeper train.  Thais love the colors purple and pink.

When we had arrived on board, the top two bunks were already made up with fresh linens, ready for sleeping. As it got to be a bit later in the evening, the steward came round and made up the lower bunks, which had served as seats for traveling during the day. Each of the four compartments had a curtain to be pulled around them, like in a hospital, giving privacy to the occupant. The beds were surprisingly comfortable, and the rocking motion of the train soon lulled us off to sleep. Despite this, I did not sleep well. I guess I was too curious to see what was happening outside the window, each time the train stopped, which it did throughout the night.

In the morning, we were still rocking along - but the landscape outside had changed to a much more hilly terrain. In our little sleeping room, a young man emerged from the opposite berth - but it was not the guy who had entered the previous evening! Apparently the first guy had gotten off in the middle of the night, and one of the stewards had snuck in for a little shut-eye! (This would be a great setting for a mystery novel.) We got ourselves organized for the day. It didn't take long. The bathroom at the end of our car left a little to be desired! I decided to wait until we got to Chiang Mai to do any washing up.
Despite being an hour behind schedule on our arrival, Barb & Paul, our Prince Edward Island acquaintances (good friends of Dori and Dan) met us at the station and whisked us off to the dorm, of sorts, that Barb had arranged for us to live in for the month that we are here. Barb is the elementary vice principal at the Chiang Mai International School and has warmly welcomed us into the school community. That woman gets things done! In the short time that we've been here, she has found meaningful volunteer opportunities for us at the school, introduced us to the community church that they attend, taken us out to eat twice and to the grocery store, procured a toaster for our room, and on the very first day, she got Bruce into a pulmonary specialist to assess his continued coughing/breathing problems. It turns out that he has acute bronchitis. The good news is that his Guatemalan pneumonia is finished! The other good news is that he's on some new med's and is beginning to feel his energy flow back. We are so grateful to Barb for all that she is doing for us!

If you look closely in this photo, you can see wooden elephants beside the sign and orchids behind the sign (in addition to Barb, Bruce, and Linda).

We were lucky to begin our volunteering at Chiang Mai International School during Teacher Appreciation Week. This is the lunch that the Korean mom's prepared for the teachers.

The Chiang Mai International School serves pre-school through Grade 12 with an American educational approach - and a triple shot of Asian academic rigor! I was quite taken aback on my first day in the kindergarten class. These little tykes are doing what would be first grade work - in my experience - with nose to the grindstone all day. They have fantastic teachers and wonderful lessons. I'm really enjoying my time and learning a lot. Chiang Mai, it turns out, is a hotbed of missionary activity, so many of the children come from missionary families. In fact, the school originated to serve the children of missionaries. Nowadays, the student body also consists of many Thai children (whose parents want them to be immersed in English), as well as other ex-pat families from all over the world.
Bruce is working with a Korean high school student who needs more practice in English. He's also been a chaperone on a 4th grade field trip to the market, as well as doing a clinical assessment of a student. It's not always easy to plug in a couple of random volunteers who show up for a month only, so we're impressed with how the school is able to use us.

This high school student performed a traditional Thai dance for the Teacher Appreciation assembly.

Our new "home away from home" is interesting. We are in a 3-story building next to the school campus. It is a modern administrative building for the church organization that runs the school and has offices and meeting rooms on the first two floors. There are dorm rooms on the third floor, but they are all empty except for ours! So at night and on weekends, we're here alone, down a long, dark corridor. It was a little weird and spooky at first but seems quite normal now.

       Our room is on the top floor on the left corner.  At night we're the only people in the building.

The room itself is delightful - large and bright with big windows looking out to the school gym and trees and other big buildings. It's on a very busy street with lots of traffic at all hours. In the morning we hear announcements and beautiful, soft Thai music being piped out from another, massive and toney private school nearby, followed by the national anthem at 8am.
One of Barb's most important revelations to us was her secret for easy meal prep in Thailand: order dinner from the chef at the school cafeteria! For $2.50 total, we order dinner each morning and pick it up at 2:30pm, bring it "home" and heat it in our microwave. Alcohol is not allowed in the dorm, so we often walk down the street for a beer at an outdoor Thai bistro (we're always the only "farongs", ie foreigners, and must point to what we want in the cooler - except that they know us now!)

                                 Sightseeing boat on the Mae Ping River in Chiang Mai.

So, that's our new life, so far. No elephant training or Thai cooking classes or temple visits yet - but we're eager to do all of those activities. In the meantime, Bruce, our travel arranger, is spending great amounts of time trying to stay ahead of our ever-moving caravan, so that air flights, visa conundrums, hotels, etc. can be worked out in advance, which saves money, of course, and keeps us legal, we hope. Our friend, Paul, Barb's husband, visits inmates in the Chiang Mai prison. Some of them are farongs who have had visa problems. We don't want to be one of his visitees!

Chiang Mai weekend

It's a beautiful sunny Saturday morning in Chiang Mai. The sun is streaming in the open windows. (Love it: real outside fresh air) From out little aerie on the third floor, we can hear the growly motors of the scooters and cars outside, as well as the faint voices of people setting up stalls along the street for selling stuff (mostly flea market type items). Bruce and I are planning our day: an exploratory walk to a large market that B describes as a "warren of stalls selling absolutely everything". He went there on Thursday with the fourth graders on a field trip. I'll try to do a more descriptive post when I've seen it myself. Then we'll join our new and oh so supportive friend, Barb, for an outing in the late afternoon.
I have a post almost ready describing our new life in Chiang Mai, so stay tuned - and enjoy your own weekend, wherever you are!

Bangkok

This first week in Thailand has flown by. It is SUCH a new and different culture for us! I am grateful for the limited knowledge of Thai culture that I do have, thanks to studying this fascinating nation several times with Deb Smith and the kindergarteners at Breakwater.

As I write this in our hotel room (the Lamphu Tree House Hotel), located beside a quiet old canal, it is early evening and the glass doors are wide open to the tiny balcony outside our room on the 4th floor. The air is still fairly hot. Our swimsuits are drying on a hangar after our dip in the small hotel pool to cool off from our long walk today. Even though we are in a city of millions, there are a few trees in this old section of the city and I can hear exotic-sounding birds squawking and chirping. As I look out from the balcony, I see corrogated tin rooftops on one- or two-story homes/businesses nearby. Beyond them are old apartment buildings and in the far distance some high rise buildings and golden temple spires.

Leading away from the canal is a small path, lined with a dozen or so birdcages. I can see a spirit house in the corner of someone's yard. It is a tiny temple replica, said to calm the spirit of the land and assure blessings. The home owner/business owner brings food and flowers for the spirit each day and says a small prayer. There is actually a spirit house in the corner of our hotel garden.

Every morning we hear a loudspeaker from the nearby boys' school, located in an extensive temple complex. There is some singing, which we imagine to be the national anthem, as well as long periods of announcements. We marvel at the students' ability to sit cross-legged on the outdoor pavement for such a long time.

During the past few days, we have had the wonderful good fortune to spend time with New Zealand friends, Vicki and Simon, as well as a Portland friend, Arline! Vicki and Simon are finishing a 20 month world odyssey, and, needless to say, are intrepid travelers with a spiritual approach to the wonders of life. They have inspired us in our own adventures.

The Webb's and Vicky and Simon at the Jim Thompson house in Bangkok.  Jim Thompson was an American who invigorated the marketing and sale of Thai silk and high quality crafts.  His house is a beautiful traditional Thai house, situated on a canal.

Arline is about to embark on a 10 day biking trip in the northeast of Thailand with a Breakwater family, Dtaw Tiparos, Katie Murray and their two sons, Tahn & Cody. We are so impressed with the determination of this woman, who is not young and has not done any previous biking - though she has been training on a stationary bike for several months. Go, Arline!!

After our first five days in Thailand, here are some initial impressions:

* We've never seen such devotion & affection for a king! (Not that we've spent much time in monarchies!) Over-sized posters dominating street intersections, gigantic gold-framed photos for sale along the street, small photos displayed in restaurants and stores. King Bhumibol and Queen Sirikit are everywhere! (Incidentally, the kinders once sent birthday greetings to the King.)

* Monks with shaved heads and eyebrows, dressed only in brilliant orange robes and sandals, are commonly seen. Yesterday, we encountered a single file line of about 30 monks of all ages (only male) returning from their morning walk to collect alms. They each carried a simple metal bowl. Some of the bowls contained plastic bags of food stuff that had been donated by the people - in appreciation for the spiritual work of the monks.

* The temples are numerous and almost beyond description in their ornateness! Gold leaf covering massive spires. Detailed, intricate designs made with lots of small mirrors and ceramic flowers. Each temple seems to be part of a complex of buildings which are walled off from the bustle of the streets.

* There is such a gentle and respectful approach to the customer, manifested in soft-spoken greetings and slight bowing of the head.

* At the same time, there is a widespread and intense sales pitch directed at tourists by street folks who hope to sell a ride in a tuk-tuk (a small, open, 3-wheeled, motorized, FAST vehicle) to a tourist site, along with a visit to a tailor or jewelry shop. These guys can seem so earnest and sincere, totally taking in those of us who are too trusting. Having said that, SOME of them really are reasonably honest. As you may be able to tell, we have had experience in this realm!

                                       Tuk-tuk, ubiquitous form of public transport

* Street food is being cooked everywhere you glance! We have stayed totally away from street food but we may have to soften that stance. At Vicki's suggestion, we did have a Thai pancake which is a crepe filled with bananas, cooked right in front of you on a hot griddle. Yummy. Vicki also advises not eating any meat from these stands and only food that you witness being cooked.

                           Bruce and Vicki ordering an ice coffee from a street vendor

* Water transport is available all through the city, on canals, as well as the historical main artery, the Chao Phraya River (River of Kings). We took a long boat to get to the Jim Thompson House. The boat was powered by a big engine and roared past canal-front houses with leafy trees overhanging, at points. Lovely.

                                             Canal boat offering passenger service

* Mornings are cool as we eat breakfast outdoors beside the pool. Fairly soon, however, the temperature climbs and it's quite hot, but not unbearably so. We wouldn't think of complaining, in any case, given the reports of snow and freezing rain back home!

* Other parts of the city are exciting centers of commerce with fancy steel and glass high rise buildings, expensive hotels and restaurants, and beautiful parks (complete with 4 foot-long lizards!). Vicki and Simon's friends are working to open the first Holiday Inn Express in Southeast Asia. Apparently, this is where the action is now! Lonely Planet refers to Bangkok as a sexy broad!

                                               Glitzy apartment lobby in Bangkok

So, from sexy Bangkok, ta ta for now. Tonight we take an overnight train to Chiang Mai in northeast Thailand, where we'll be volunteering in an international school with Dori and Dan's friends, Barb and Paul.

Land of Smiles!

Landed in Bangkok a couple of hours ago, 24 hours after we boarded the plane in New York. It's mid-evening here and the temp is about 84 degrees. Our taxi driver from the airport didn't seem to know just where our hotel was located and tried to drop us off prematurely several times. The first was on a narrow street teeming with white tourists who were eating outdoors at tables that were nearly clipped by passing cars. Other tourists were stretched out on lounge chairs lined up along the street while their feet were massaged!  Lonely Planet called the area "a tourist ghetto".

Since we wouldn't get out of the taxi in a place that clearly wasn't our hotel, the increasingly frustrated driver was forced to stop and ask directions a couple of times. Good thing we stuck to the back seat, as the final destination was quite a few blocks from the "ghetto". He finally did convince me that our hotel was right around a corner. We paid him off and dragged our stuff down a slightly dodgy-looking alley and were delighted to spot our hotel nearby. Along the way a cute little toddler grabbed my suitcase handle and insisted on accompanying me. Inside the hotel lobby, we were greeted by gentle, smiling hosts and glasses of roselle tea. All is well, and a fresh bed awaits.

                                           The pool next to the lobby in our hotel

On the Road Again...

On the road again....spending the evening in a Best Western hotel at JFK airport in NYC, poised for an early morning flight west in order to end up in the Far East!. After spending a wonderful fall in Guatemala, followed by two delightful holiday weeks in Maine, we're off now to explore a part of the world that is new to us - and, oh, so exotic.

In a hotel at JFK Airport in NYC, ironing, watching tv, chilling, getting ready for our next adventure.  

Our tentative itinerary for the next 8 months goes something like this:

January and February: THAILAND (Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Kon Khaen, northeast Thailand)
March: LAOS & INDIA
April: SCOTLAND (Isles of Skye and Iona)
May/June: BELGIUM
July & August: ??? (maybe ENGLAND, maybe FRANCE & SPAIN
Mid to late August: MAINE!

We expect to be challenged by our lack of ability to either read or speak the local languages in Asia. But we also expect that there will be enough English spoken to get us through, coupled with our growing ability to mimic and mime!

It's a privilege to be doing this, and we appreciate the fact that we are lucky devils!