In a few hours, we will leave the city of Chiang Mai. This city is home to about a hundred huge wats (temple complexes) so almost every direction you look, you see the peak of one temple. Gregg spent the day yesterday roaming the streets of the old city, getting lost periodically and taking pictures of the old temples. The old city is confined by a canal that forms a kind of moat. An old wall runs alongside it. It made me feel like I should be living in a medieval castle and running from dragons.
While Gregg was getting asked directions to gay bars by strange Asians on the street, I was taking a Thai cooking class with Orn, a Thai lady who survived the tsunami down south. My fellow aspiring cooks were an English couple ten and half months into a year long world tour. The guy seriously looked like David Letterman's skinny British cousin. I ground curry paste by hand, made some spring rolls, coconut soup, and other delicacies. We'll see how I do when I try to make them at home. The chicken cooking technique I learned was "Thai Massage" - instead of flipping the chicken around, massage it with your spatula to keep it tender. We ate a lot, and had naps, and drank a lot of water. It was an interesting day.
When Gregg was exploring alone, he met a weird Asian man who knows Frank Callaghan of the Callaghan Inn in Medicine Hat. Gregg had trouble understanding him, but apparently Frank gets suits sent to him from here. Small world.
At the guesthouse, a pushy lady named Boo Boo runs the show. She's helped us out a lot, but somehow I feel she's ripping us off. But the main reason we are excited to get out of there is her brother, a limp looking Thai man with no muscles. He calls me "Jennifer Lopez" and then tells me I don't look beautiful. He seems to enjoy freaking Gregg out. In my absence, he asked Gregg if he loved him. Later, he called me his "sister-in-law" because Gregg was his boyfriend. Gregg would like to punch him out, but we're afraid that his family would gang beat us if anything happened. Hopefully, we won't see him today.
Last night, we walked to the Chiang Mai night bazaar and saw lots of lady-boys on the way. The bazaar sells a lot of the same tourist stuff as the rest of Thailand - knock-off Diesel, Von Dutch, beach clothes, jewelry, tribal trinkets. Since we're going to be on the road for several more weeks, we don't want to buy a bunch of stuff and then cart it around. But it's pretty tempting when you see the cheap deals in the little booths and tables that line the streets.
After breaking down and buying a few things, we started walking to the Kawila Boxing Area for a night of watching Muay Thai - Thai Kick Boxing. I stupidly made us walk too far so we were late, but it didn't matter because the evening started late. The arena was an old dingy building full of vendors. We sat on plastic chairs a couple rows from the ring in the midst of other crazy backpackers and tourists. The drums started beating and out came two tiny guys - 42 KG weight class. I think we were watching ten year olds beat each other. They climbed into the ring, did a series of bowing and stretching rituals, and then the five round fight began. The little guys were interesting, but they played pretty clean. As the night wore on, it got more interesting. Match five was my favorite - a super muscly guy against a fiesty guy. They had some good kicks and jabs going. There were two special matches - one Thai vs. French (the French guy lost fast) and one Thai vs. American (the American won easily in the first round because he was way bigger than the Thai guy.) It wasn't as gruesome as we thought it would be, but it was super cool. Of the eight fights, there were about four knockouts. By the time we left, I was tired of the drums pounding in my ears.
Today, we're taking a mini-bus to Chiang Khong and the border of Laos and Thailand. This is a couple hours away from the infamous Golden triangle where Laos, Myanmar and Thailand meet and most of the world's opium is grown. Thailand has stamped out most of the production on this side of the border. There's not much to do at the border but sleep, and in the morning, we'll cross into Laos, and get on a bus or a boat to either Luang Nam Pha or Luang Prabang. We'll update you again whenever we get where we're going.
Friday, April 29, 2005
Thursday, April 28, 2005
Angry Elephants
On Wednesday morning we took off on our trek with a rather random group of people. There was an Australian couple, two very white girls from England, and an older Japanese couple. For once, I was the darkest person in the group. Our guides were San and Pakwa, an actual tribesman who walks around in a Mr. Magic hat.
They herded us like cattle into the back of a pick-up lined with benches and off we went to the national park police office and a market. We drove a long time and wondered when the walking would begin on our trek. They took us to an elephant camp to ride the elephants. Gregg was quite excited about this and we hopped on the back of an old elephant because we thought the young handler looked like a cool guy. Well, I was wrong. Gregg says he wanted the dude in the Nirvana t-shirt. We went down a hill into the jungle and were having an awesome time when the elephant blew his nose on us. The other elephants put their trunks under their bodies to blow them, but not ours. I think he hated us. I had green chunks of cornstalk all over. But it got worse. He started digging in the red earth and then repeatedly blew funky mud all over us. We were ready for the ride to be over quite quickly. Then the handler took him to have more water so we got hosed again. At the end of the ride, we opted not to buy bananas to feed him.
After a lunch of fried rice, we started walking through the beautiful jungle. Bamboo, all kinds of trees, grass, rivers, and mountains. It was hard to keep our eyes on the path. Gregg and I walked close to Pakwa and he kept showing us cool things with leaves. He showed us how to blow bubbles with the leaf of a rubber tree, how to make a popping sound with another, and other cool things. After a few hours in the fierce heat, we stopped at a waterfall and played for a while. We kept a steady pace with Pakwa, while San kept up the rear with the Japanese, continually admonishing, "slowly, slowly." Then we'd take a "break break."
All the time we were walking, I kept thinking: there'll probably be a road next to the tribal village and we could have drove there just as easily. There was a road of sorts. The village itself consists of lots of huts with leaf roofs scattered throughout a hilly area. We marched past a Catholic church, and children playing to the back side of the village and the hut where we would sleep. The people are known as the white Karen because unmarried girls have to wear white dresses. We actually didn't get to interact with many of them which I suppose is just as well for them. I did make friends with one woman by helping her do some hoeing in the heavy red earth. Our guides cooked us curry, cabbage and rice with lychee for dessert. We ate by candlelight. Later, San told us some stories of the Karen people, including an unnecessary monologue on birth control. He also entertained us with stories about Thailand's infamous lady-boys, with sporadic jabs at Pakwa, telling us he's a ladyboy. Pakwa kept replying in broken English, "I'm a man!". He was pretty worried about it and kept declaring his manhood even after San had left. He showed us stick games and told us jokes that weren't very funny. We looked up at an unfamiliar night sky with our favorite constellations turned upside down and went to bed in the hut - but not before hearing the gecko say "gecko" and not before an ugly chicken pecked at Gregg's foot.
In the morning, I wanted to make friends with the kids. But then they started shooing the dogs and chickens away from the table. Soon the toddler had a big stick and was beating a dog with it. I decided I didn't want to play with him afterall.
More walking, walking . . . tons of barren rice patties because this is the dry season. The rivers are low and we could cross them all easily. We stopped at an awesome waterfall where the water shoots over an overhang. We would stand under the overhang and be amazed at God's creation. Gregg saw his first banana tree, pineapple plant, lemon tree, lychee tree, mango tree, jackfruit tree, lemon grass . . . Pakwa the liar pointed out an opium field to us. Turns out it was only lilies. (Gregg had believed him the day before when he told us he'd been to Canada.) Seriously, his uncle does have an opium farm and one time Pakwa took a bunch of opium, "mistaking" it for some kind of vegetable. Then more walking, lunch, and herded into the back of a truck to be taken rafting. At lunch, we ran into another trekking group. Gregg and I weren't totally delighted with our companions but were quite thankful for them after seeing our alternatives. The other group consisted of creepy Chinese men with hairs growing out of their moles and fat obnoxious middle-aged hippie women with their guts hanging out as they smoked and drank beer.
The bamboo rafts are made of about 8 long poles strapped together. Gregg and I were paired with our new Japanese friends - a martial arts teacher and a company president. They sat in the middle, Gregg had a pole at the back, I sat in front, and a child laborer steered the raft. The water was definitely way too low and our precious river guide - a kid no more than 13 and 100 lbs - struggled to keep us going. He'd hop off and reef on the raft just to get it over the rocks. I tried to help, but my sandal came off. Towards the end, Gregg and I swapped positions because he had a headache. We had already been passed by a couple of groups and the trip was getting a little long. We'd go through rapids okay but then WHAM! we'd get stuck on a rock. At one sudden stoppage, the seat that the Japanese were sitting on fell apart. But the scenery was gorgeous - huts along the river, elephants grazing lazily, and happy-go-lucky Thai people splashing us with water as we went past.
We were herded back into the truck one final time and taken back to Chiang Mai where we are trying to decide what to do tomorrow.
They herded us like cattle into the back of a pick-up lined with benches and off we went to the national park police office and a market. We drove a long time and wondered when the walking would begin on our trek. They took us to an elephant camp to ride the elephants. Gregg was quite excited about this and we hopped on the back of an old elephant because we thought the young handler looked like a cool guy. Well, I was wrong. Gregg says he wanted the dude in the Nirvana t-shirt. We went down a hill into the jungle and were having an awesome time when the elephant blew his nose on us. The other elephants put their trunks under their bodies to blow them, but not ours. I think he hated us. I had green chunks of cornstalk all over. But it got worse. He started digging in the red earth and then repeatedly blew funky mud all over us. We were ready for the ride to be over quite quickly. Then the handler took him to have more water so we got hosed again. At the end of the ride, we opted not to buy bananas to feed him.
After a lunch of fried rice, we started walking through the beautiful jungle. Bamboo, all kinds of trees, grass, rivers, and mountains. It was hard to keep our eyes on the path. Gregg and I walked close to Pakwa and he kept showing us cool things with leaves. He showed us how to blow bubbles with the leaf of a rubber tree, how to make a popping sound with another, and other cool things. After a few hours in the fierce heat, we stopped at a waterfall and played for a while. We kept a steady pace with Pakwa, while San kept up the rear with the Japanese, continually admonishing, "slowly, slowly." Then we'd take a "break break."
All the time we were walking, I kept thinking: there'll probably be a road next to the tribal village and we could have drove there just as easily. There was a road of sorts. The village itself consists of lots of huts with leaf roofs scattered throughout a hilly area. We marched past a Catholic church, and children playing to the back side of the village and the hut where we would sleep. The people are known as the white Karen because unmarried girls have to wear white dresses. We actually didn't get to interact with many of them which I suppose is just as well for them. I did make friends with one woman by helping her do some hoeing in the heavy red earth. Our guides cooked us curry, cabbage and rice with lychee for dessert. We ate by candlelight. Later, San told us some stories of the Karen people, including an unnecessary monologue on birth control. He also entertained us with stories about Thailand's infamous lady-boys, with sporadic jabs at Pakwa, telling us he's a ladyboy. Pakwa kept replying in broken English, "I'm a man!". He was pretty worried about it and kept declaring his manhood even after San had left. He showed us stick games and told us jokes that weren't very funny. We looked up at an unfamiliar night sky with our favorite constellations turned upside down and went to bed in the hut - but not before hearing the gecko say "gecko" and not before an ugly chicken pecked at Gregg's foot.
In the morning, I wanted to make friends with the kids. But then they started shooing the dogs and chickens away from the table. Soon the toddler had a big stick and was beating a dog with it. I decided I didn't want to play with him afterall.
More walking, walking . . . tons of barren rice patties because this is the dry season. The rivers are low and we could cross them all easily. We stopped at an awesome waterfall where the water shoots over an overhang. We would stand under the overhang and be amazed at God's creation. Gregg saw his first banana tree, pineapple plant, lemon tree, lychee tree, mango tree, jackfruit tree, lemon grass . . . Pakwa the liar pointed out an opium field to us. Turns out it was only lilies. (Gregg had believed him the day before when he told us he'd been to Canada.) Seriously, his uncle does have an opium farm and one time Pakwa took a bunch of opium, "mistaking" it for some kind of vegetable. Then more walking, lunch, and herded into the back of a truck to be taken rafting. At lunch, we ran into another trekking group. Gregg and I weren't totally delighted with our companions but were quite thankful for them after seeing our alternatives. The other group consisted of creepy Chinese men with hairs growing out of their moles and fat obnoxious middle-aged hippie women with their guts hanging out as they smoked and drank beer.
The bamboo rafts are made of about 8 long poles strapped together. Gregg and I were paired with our new Japanese friends - a martial arts teacher and a company president. They sat in the middle, Gregg had a pole at the back, I sat in front, and a child laborer steered the raft. The water was definitely way too low and our precious river guide - a kid no more than 13 and 100 lbs - struggled to keep us going. He'd hop off and reef on the raft just to get it over the rocks. I tried to help, but my sandal came off. Towards the end, Gregg and I swapped positions because he had a headache. We had already been passed by a couple of groups and the trip was getting a little long. We'd go through rapids okay but then WHAM! we'd get stuck on a rock. At one sudden stoppage, the seat that the Japanese were sitting on fell apart. But the scenery was gorgeous - huts along the river, elephants grazing lazily, and happy-go-lucky Thai people splashing us with water as we went past.
We were herded back into the truck one final time and taken back to Chiang Mai where we are trying to decide what to do tomorrow.
Tuesday, April 26, 2005
Stop hitting your head!
I can't count how many times Gregg has smacked his head on the door frame to the bathroom in our room at the Libra Guesthouse in Chiang Mai. The goose egg is growing on his forehead. In spite of it, the semi-gay Thai guy at the guesthouse still seems interested in him. Gregg is quite uncomfortable about that.
Well, on Monday we did a whirlwind tour of some temples in Bangkok. A nice little tuk-tuk driving escorted us to several sights, including a few tailors in hopes that we could buy suits so the tailors would give him free gas coupons. (A tuk-tuk is a three wheeled cab whose engine sounds like its name.) We were in awe of the splendor of the Grand Palace where Emerald Buddhas are worshipped and everything is made of shiny tiny tiles. We also took in Wat Pho where the gigantic reclining Buddha with mother of pearl sleeps all day long. Last week, I had introduced Gregg to Chinese temples and it was cool to see the colorful difference between Thai and Chinese Buddhism. To get back to the Baan Sabai, we took the ferry up the river while I ate rambutons - which Gregg describes as crazy fruit that looks like hedgehogs.
Monday night, we opted to go the cheap way to Chiang Mai on an air-con "VIP" bus. I certainly didn't feel like a VIP and the air con vacillated between non-existent and mind numbing. We heard horror stories of people being drugged and theived while on these buses, but we were okay. After shifting uncomfortably for hours, we fell asleep and woke up near Chiang Mai - a mere thirteen hours later.
Upon arrival, we were ushered to a guesthouse where a pushy lady pushed us to drink "smile coffee" and tried to take advantage of our sleepy and sleep-deprived states so we would stay at her establishment, get all visas through her, and go on her treks. Rather than succumb to the pressure, we took off with our packs on our backs and walked until we found the Libra Guesthouse, highly recommended by my roommate Erin.
Today, we booked a trek for tomorrow, sent our passports away for Vietnam visas, and explored a little of the Chiang Mai area. We rented a scary little motorcycle with narrow wheels that take us precariously down the road. We rented from the "Mr. Beer" shop so the backs of our helmets are emblazoned with the word "BEER". It took Gregg a bit to adjust to driving on the left side of the road, but he did really well. We drove up a mountain, saw an old temple and looked out over the city.
But the greatest accomplishment of the day was the realization of one of my childhood dreams: I SAW A REAL LIVE PANDA. As a child, I missed seeing them in Calgary because Gregg and I were whiny little children and my parents didn't want to wait in line for hours to see the pandas. So today, we went to the zoo where a big panda lounged around in a huge misty air conditioned room. All he did was lie there, breathing heavily because of the heat, but it was so cool. We also enjoyed the giraffes, a panther, and an orangutang.
Early to bed tonight so we'll enjoy the elephants and tribal people tomorrow. First, we'll go to the night market and then buy a lot of water.
Well, on Monday we did a whirlwind tour of some temples in Bangkok. A nice little tuk-tuk driving escorted us to several sights, including a few tailors in hopes that we could buy suits so the tailors would give him free gas coupons. (A tuk-tuk is a three wheeled cab whose engine sounds like its name.) We were in awe of the splendor of the Grand Palace where Emerald Buddhas are worshipped and everything is made of shiny tiny tiles. We also took in Wat Pho where the gigantic reclining Buddha with mother of pearl sleeps all day long. Last week, I had introduced Gregg to Chinese temples and it was cool to see the colorful difference between Thai and Chinese Buddhism. To get back to the Baan Sabai, we took the ferry up the river while I ate rambutons - which Gregg describes as crazy fruit that looks like hedgehogs.
Monday night, we opted to go the cheap way to Chiang Mai on an air-con "VIP" bus. I certainly didn't feel like a VIP and the air con vacillated between non-existent and mind numbing. We heard horror stories of people being drugged and theived while on these buses, but we were okay. After shifting uncomfortably for hours, we fell asleep and woke up near Chiang Mai - a mere thirteen hours later.
Upon arrival, we were ushered to a guesthouse where a pushy lady pushed us to drink "smile coffee" and tried to take advantage of our sleepy and sleep-deprived states so we would stay at her establishment, get all visas through her, and go on her treks. Rather than succumb to the pressure, we took off with our packs on our backs and walked until we found the Libra Guesthouse, highly recommended by my roommate Erin.
Today, we booked a trek for tomorrow, sent our passports away for Vietnam visas, and explored a little of the Chiang Mai area. We rented a scary little motorcycle with narrow wheels that take us precariously down the road. We rented from the "Mr. Beer" shop so the backs of our helmets are emblazoned with the word "BEER". It took Gregg a bit to adjust to driving on the left side of the road, but he did really well. We drove up a mountain, saw an old temple and looked out over the city.
But the greatest accomplishment of the day was the realization of one of my childhood dreams: I SAW A REAL LIVE PANDA. As a child, I missed seeing them in Calgary because Gregg and I were whiny little children and my parents didn't want to wait in line for hours to see the pandas. So today, we went to the zoo where a big panda lounged around in a huge misty air conditioned room. All he did was lie there, breathing heavily because of the heat, but it was so cool. We also enjoyed the giraffes, a panther, and an orangutang.
Early to bed tonight so we'll enjoy the elephants and tribal people tomorrow. First, we'll go to the night market and then buy a lot of water.
Sunday, April 24, 2005
Gregg is melting . . .
Somehow in the preparation for our trip, I neglected to tell Gregg that we would be in Thailand during their hottest season. I told him it was hot, and he thought he was ready for it, but apparently not. I'll keep making him drink water and he'll be okay. He just may be a lot thinner when we get home. And hopefully his legs won't be neon white anymore.
After a long bus ride to Taipei and a chilly flight to Thailand, we arrived in Bangkok's humid heat. Our cab driver into the city shared his Wriggly's Spearmint gum and entertained us by singing, "Everytime you go away . . . " while simultaneously impressing us with his "look no hands" driving technique. The Baan Sabai was right where I remembered it and we threw our packs into a fan room before I introduced to Khao Sarn Road, Bangkok's infamous backpacker street. The road was pretty much shut down for the night, but he still got to see drunk people singing and playing guitar on the curb.
We'll check out the Grand Palace and Wat Pho (the ginormous reclining Buddha) before hopping a bus for Chiang Mai tonight. We're planning to come back to Bangkok in June to do some shopping so there's no point hanging out here now.
After a long bus ride to Taipei and a chilly flight to Thailand, we arrived in Bangkok's humid heat. Our cab driver into the city shared his Wriggly's Spearmint gum and entertained us by singing, "Everytime you go away . . . " while simultaneously impressing us with his "look no hands" driving technique. The Baan Sabai was right where I remembered it and we threw our packs into a fan room before I introduced to Khao Sarn Road, Bangkok's infamous backpacker street. The road was pretty much shut down for the night, but he still got to see drunk people singing and playing guitar on the curb.
We'll check out the Grand Palace and Wat Pho (the ginormous reclining Buddha) before hopping a bus for Chiang Mai tonight. We're planning to come back to Bangkok in June to do some shopping so there's no point hanging out here now.
Friday, April 22, 2005
Don't cry, teacher . . .
Yesterday was my last day being an English teacher in Taiwan. In many ways the realization hasn't hit yet. There were many times yesterday when I was painfully aware of leaving. My students kept showering me with useful little gifts like bears in pig and elephant costumes, cell phone holders, and my favorite, an autographed baseball from Kevin who doesn't like the Red Sox. Their cards and letters were so sweet. When I'd tear up, the kids would stand around uncomfortably and try to soothe me, saying, "Don't cry, teacher. Don't cry." It's hard not to cry when a little nine year old boy is bawling his eyes out at his desk because his Jennifer Teacher is leaving him. I guess even if I wasn't the best teacher ever, I'm definitely loved.
My brother Gregg and I leave for Bangkok tomorrow. We'll take a bus to the international airport outside of Taipei and then Thai airways will take us away to the land of elephants, rafts, and stunning beaches. Our itinerary isn't set in stone, but will essentially be Northern Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and then some Thai islands. We may try to squeeze Angkor Wat and Cambodia in. Six weeks is much too short a time. Hopefully I'll write again from Bangkok.
My brother Gregg and I leave for Bangkok tomorrow. We'll take a bus to the international airport outside of Taipei and then Thai airways will take us away to the land of elephants, rafts, and stunning beaches. Our itinerary isn't set in stone, but will essentially be Northern Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and then some Thai islands. We may try to squeeze Angkor Wat and Cambodia in. Six weeks is much too short a time. Hopefully I'll write again from Bangkok.
Thursday, April 14, 2005
You said I should have a blog . . .
Several months ago, I received an email from my friend Amy, urging me to start a blog. She said that I needed one because I'm "so fastinating". Well, I don't think I'm very fastinating, but as I anticipate my trip to Southeast Asia, I realize it's probably easier to keep you updated this way than to rely on mass updates through Hotmail. Hopefully my words will be able to capture a bit of the adventure my brother and I will have. Now if I only I can figure out how to set this blog up the way I like it.
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