Jeff's world Travel

Chiang Mai – This certainly isn’t the slow lane!

jeffbrad — Sat, 4 Oct 2008 12:20:00 GMT

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Mon 29^th Sep – Was hoping that my package was going to arrive from the UK today so headed off to the post office to check…no luck unfortunately.

The rest of today was nice. I met up with a lovely lady for a meal and chat which turned out to be interesting and hopefully the beginning of a long friendship. Afterwards spent some time with another friend at a local bar talking about stuff which got very personal, but that is a good sign when someone trusts you enough to talk about things they need to resolve in their lives. There are many people here with issues and it isn’t easy, but I spend much time listening to people and what brought them here and what they want out of their lives. It is an odd situation when I am sort of doing the same thing myself. But it all puts things in perspective. Off next to visit a bar that an acquaintance has just bought a few days ago to see what shape it is in. Had a nice time as familiar with the staff there, and did some dancing too which was a bonus. On the way back stopped for a chat with a portuguese guy working in the middle east but taking a break here for a while. He had just been to a bar where they attempted to drug him. Apparently a couple of girls in one of the more dodgy bars were acting as a double-act and whilst one girl was distracting the guy, the other was putting a drug in his drink. He spotted the other girl doing it and stopped what was going on. Had he not noticed it, the stories you hear are that they then might have carted him off to steal his money or do other stuff to him. You have to be careful and not take unnecessary risks and maybe he was reaping the results of that risk….they have a saying for it here…”Som nam na’ ..it’s your own fault!

Tue 30^th Sep - Got a call this morning that my package had arrived, so Back to the post office again to collect it. Spent the rest of the day getting my accounts back in order as new cards meant that most of my direct debits were now wrong, and set up for the old card, so had to sort that stuff out. A fairly boring day. Went to a nice vegetarian restaurant on Tha Pae road in the evening. Only one couple in there, so very quiet, but meant that I got really good service from the friendly staff. Afterwards it threw it down again, so ran for cover at a pancake stand nearby. Whilst I was indulging in some dessert, I was chatting to a great old lady who had so much character. She gave me some sweetcorn to eat whilst we talked. Originally from Bangkok, she left because her son suffered with his health due to the increase in traffic pollution, so came up north to the fresher air. I do wonder about the state of even Chiang Mai, as the traffic here is excessive on the ring road around the moat, and the roads into and away from it. The rest is ok though.

Wed 1st October - A nice wake-up call from a friend this morning. A bit too early for my liking, but made me get up and on with the day. Off for breakfast and read the newspaper. As you know, some articles catch my eye and I have to mention them.....

One article from Tokyo, entitled 'Knicker Fisher Netted' was amusing. A 51 year old guy was caught with a fishing rod stealing the knickers from washing lines. The police followed him back to his apartment and arrested him....he had a stash of around 500 pairs of women's knickers which he said he had collected since he was 18. Didn't know why he did it of course!

An article from Thailand about law students who were forced to have their hair cut whilst they were taking their law exams...they were trying to set a standard of course...odd thing is they will end up wearing a wig in court anyway! I wonder if any ladyboys go in to be lawyers here...would they cut their hair or are they exempt? The students also complained that people would enter the room during the exam and attempt to humiliate them...Lawyers are said to be called to the 'Bar'...this form of humiliation is normal isn't it when you go to a bar?

An article about the future of education was interesting. Sun Microsystems, the major computer systems designer has this great plan....think of the old fashioned university education system as 'Education 1.0'...a professor stands up in front of a class and the students go to the library to borrow books and read about the subject....no technology. Now for 'Education 2.0' where the students do a lot of the research on-line and don't read books as much...enter 'Education 3.0'....no professor or attending lecture theatres. Instead enter your virtual world on a computer and wander around what they call 'Wonderworld' in search of your global information. Qualifications would be global ones rather than country specific and your professor is there on-line if you just need a guide. The philosphy behind this is that knowledge is universal and should not be contained within one person's location, but available anywhere at any time. Will be interesting to see if this cyber-world of virtual reality students really works out for the best, or just develops an anti-social world where people don't gather to discuss subjects anymore?

And finally...a british economist was awarded a prize of 5,000 euros by the venerable 'Institue of Venice' when he suggested that the whole of Venice was turned over Disney to manage. He claimed they had people's interests in mind and could manage tourists better than they are currently doing. He didn't get the job to carry his plan through of course...could you imagine the beautiful canals of Venice alive with the sound of cheery little tunes like 'It's a small world after all' whilst you get paddled along in a gondola! You Know the tune....sing it now! The gondoliers would be wearing cheery little McDonaldesque hats instead of their present hats and St Mark's square would have theme rides whizzing thought the lovely alleys.

Erstwhile...now that's a word I haven't used in a while....have now....that feels better! Have decided to try and use a new word every day...now that's exciting isn't it?

Further on in the book I am reading and Rene Descartes...the man who came up with the immortal phrase..'I think, therefore I am'. Monty python added that line into their 'Philosopher's song'....one the highlights of my early musical life....I was only a kid!

One of my life's great dilemmas (have a few of those at present) is a backpacker's worse nightmare. The decision to replace my backpack with a wheeled suitcase has been dwelling on my mind recently....scary thought! Could I cope without my backpack...a life changing decision such as this takes a lot of thought and prepration for the stigma of no longer being a backpacker. Sorry world...it might happen...oh no! My decision to use a backpack in the first plae was that I wanted to backpack around the world. The problem is that I have gathered some more stuff along the way and the weight starts to become a problem when on and off buses etc, although it has its advantages too. I have also being thinking of buying myself a guitar as I have been missing playing so much. Recently even bought a guitar music book....just need the guitar now! All signs of going crazy and missing some of the things that I enjoyed before I started travelling.

Whilst I procrastinate over the suitcase situation, stopped off at the excellent Kalare bazaar food area in the night bazaar area. Every type of food you could want. They use a coupon system, so you have to decide what you want by looking around first and find out how many coupons you need to buy. Then go to a booth to buy them and return to buy your food.

Thus 2^nd Oct – Not too exciting a day. Had promised a local bar and restaurant to provide some salsa music for them to play, so spent an age Compiling a CD. Had also made a local contact who runs salsa and ballroom lessons here, so made contact to see what the possibilities were. The outlook is bleak as the thai people aren’t committed to this kind of dance form, other than is Bangkok. As part of this research I ended up on a Yahoo Groups dance site for what events are happening in the Chiang Mai area. Definitely a bit bleak, and doesn’t look to be much prospect of future improvement.

The evening was spent with a lovely friend at the Cineplex cinema at Airport Plaza. Unfortunately chose the worst movie in existence to see. Called the ‘disaster movie’ . How true that was…it was a total disaster!

Fri 3^rd Oct – Had breakfast at the Leprechaun Irish pub on Loi Kroh. One of the best places for a good breakfast here. Had decided that it was time to move south for when my visa expires on 15^th October and cross into Malaysia for a while. So booked a train to Bangkok and subsequent travel to Ko Samui for Monday 6^th Oct.

Total random change of subject…..

Have you ever pondered on the microscopic world of an ant? You should do…Just think...these tiny little creatures, some no bigger than a couple of millimeters have brains and needs and can move at an amazing speed for their size. Watch an army of them scurrying around in random directions and see what happens when two of them come close to each other. They hover for a while…who knows what is going on their minds and then scurry off again in search of something else. This goes on every second of their lives so it seems. Do they sleep…don’t think so….do they read books, listen to music, go on holiday? Nope, just scurry around all day…until some giant of a finger comes hurtling out of nowhere…and…silence…end of an ant! Not sure what the moral is here, but I dislike ants and feel as guilty as possible for terminating an innocent life, but my bed has been crawling in them and cannot put up with that…sorry ants!!

A lovely afternoon spent talking with Kan then picked up an MP3 player from someone who I had promised to add some music onto as a favour. Turned out this was riddled with Viruses and porn and caused me no end of trouble!

Here’s another thing regarding the vicissitudes of life….when you promise to do a favour for someone…what happens when that favour turns out to be a total pain in the backside? I have on previous occasions offered to give people some music for their iPods and ended up with a virus on their iPod infecting my system, so causing me lots of pain and wasted time in sorting it out. Today was one of those occasions. And I started to wonder if doing this sort of favour is worth the effort. I always like to do things for people, but this particular exercise seems to end up causing me more trouble than it is worth, so part of me says not to do it anymore, and another part of me doesn’t want to ossify into a person who doesn’t do things for people because of always being put off by the potential risk. Such is life eh?

In the evening went off to the Guitar-man again as the music is always good there. Was interesting in many ways as there were a few people I got talking to. One couple. an American guy and a thai lady, are due to get married within the next few days, and it was lovely to see a couple genuinely happy and sorting out their plans together. For the guy it was his first time ever married…wonderful for someone in retirement to finally find a happy ending to his life’s story!

Everyone who lives here long-term has plenty to say about life here. And as a newcomer looking at possible options, it is always good to get as much info as possible.

After the music finished…off to the infamous ‘Hotshots’ discotheque, only a short walk away on Charoen prathet. Free to get in and a live band was in full flow singing some well known thai songs…must have been well know as everyone was joining in. It wasn’t what I expected of a disco…no dance floor! Nobody dances…just wiggles around and jump a bit. The main aim of the game here is for thai ladies to attach themselves as firmly as possible to a farang’s wallet and not let go until he promises to marriy them for life…or until they have removed as much cash from his bank-balance as possible, from which point he has served his purpose and it is time to get rid of him and move on to husband number 300 or so….not cynical am I? The music was good anyway, but I was tied as it had been a long day and so left early and went back to bed…A bit unusual for me…must be wearing down with the late nights!

Sat 4^th Oct – Didn’t get out of bed until nearly noon…proof from last night that I definitely am wearing down…Will be glad to take a break from this city. Breakfast at the Gatehouse inn, always enjoy it there due the great quality of the food. As it happens, I met an interesting guy from Glasgow living here. In the course of the next couple of hours we must have covered every subject possible to do with living in Thailand. In no particular order…here’s a few interesting insights into life in Thailand as we know it (some I will have already mentioned)…..

Most girls in the working part of this city come from an area of Thailand referred to as ‘Isaan’ or ‘North-East Thailand, comprising 19 provinces. There is a lot of poverty there and not much in the way of prospects for a happy future, so parents either send their girls to the city to work or they go because there isn’t any work locally. These girls are money-hungry and in general send money back to their families for support. Many cannot be trusted to tell anything near the truth about anything, and so prey on unsuspecting foreigners/farangs who are seen as the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow…a life of support and no more money worries. All sorts of lies will be issued to find out your worth…A story about one guy many years ago who had shown an interest in an isaan girl, who told her brother where he normally drank, who was desparate for money and came armed with a shotgun and threatened him to hand over all of his money. The irony was that the guy with the gun was a police man! Nice girl and nice family eh! Not sure that would happen now..who knows?

Most people here have to work 6 or even 7 days a week. They do not have an entitlement to any leave from work. If they need the money they work. They take time off, they don’t get paid. Many foreigners come here to find their perfect wife and land themselves with someone they never see, as she is always at work. Many of Them get up early in the morning to do their praying to Buddha ritual or give alms to the monks and then go to work. By 9pm they are tired and have to go to bed, so many couples don’t get to have a social life as their partner is asleep, unless they can afford for their partner to not work, and support them in entirety. The isaan girls who choose to be bar-girls of course have a different life…most start work at 8pm and go through until 2am or later and get money in whatever way they can…leave the rest to your imagination. Most ways are back to the earlier approach of leaching themselves to at least one guy’s wallet for the duration of the evening, until he has to leave to see a bank manager for an overdraught so he can sell his soul to another thai beauty the next night! For someone who marries a thai girl….never have a joint bank account…unless you really really trust her. Even if you do…never give her a credit card…disaster disaster…red alert!!

On a different note, the thai government love people to come and retire her. They do their best to make sure you have enough to live off and spend here…must have at least 800,000 Baht a year and a monthly income above a set level. Every year your 1 year retirement visa expires. And you have to prove to them again that you have enough funds for the next year. You are not allowed to work if on a retirement visa either. If you come here and want to build your won home, you cannot theoretically work on it ad that requires a work permit…even on your own home! So, you have to pay for everything to be done, and they don’t always understand what you are asking of them, and often give you something you don’t want…frustration abounds! Once you have built your home though, it does change and you can then do what you want with it…it is just tricky whilst it is being built. Another comment was made here…sounded like from bitter experience…to never have your property in your spouse’s name…something that is commonly recommended. Instead have it in a lawyers name….only joking here but I wonder who I would trust the most…wife/lawyer? A story was told about a guy who’s new wife insisted on the house they were having built being in her name, and further insisted on the best of fixtures and fittings. The husband being gullible and dewy-eyed by his thai lovely…duly complied. When the house was completed….she got rid of now red-eyed and seething husband (from empty bank-balance) and sold the house. Another nice girl. Don’t you just love a story with a happy ending? One thing that is paramount here amongst thai people in general, is that they cannot be seen to lose face amongst their family and friends. So they will do anything to come out of a situation smelling of roses. If they lose, then that entails many hours of wailing in front of Buddha to rid themselves of the terrible thing that has happened. Take some of what I say here with some degree of artistic licence. This is partly why the first thing any girl here will ask you when meeting you for the first time is…where are you from? … not because they want to know where you are from, but to calculate the exchange rate to your currency so that they know how to rip-you off in your own currency and potentially how rich they think you might be! They will freely tell you they are no good at mathematics, but can calculate 10 different currency conversions in their head in 2 microseconds!

Well, with a few interesting stories under my belt and a nice breakfast, I had to go and sort out this damned situation with what to do with a suitcase or keep my backpack. The trials and tribulations of life on the road! Ended up deciding to keep my backpack for a while longer. Not sure whether this is an image thing or a practicality issue? Will see. I have been ruthless (just tell me…what is the opposite of ruthless? Has anyone out there even been ruth..if your not being ruthless?), and got rid of so many things recently that I am now genuinely carrying more weight in IT related stuff…cables and chargers for my technology….and books, than clothes! I also have a nice guitar music book that seemed like a good idea at the time..but still have no guitar! Que? Must have been something someone put in my tea that day that stopped me thinking straight.

I am adding a disclaimer to anything I have said in the above text...I might have been in a state of dillusion or modified euphoria when I said some of the above comments. This message will self destruct in 5 seconds!

That’s it for now folks….

Chiang Mai...Life in the slow lane for a while

jeffbrad — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 08:24:00 GMT

Since my last post nothing much has been happening. It is good to be 'off the road' for a while to re-charge, as I can spend my days doing simple stuff and relax for a change. Some days I just read a book, the present one being A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle. An interesting book about dispelling the limiting factors that govern the human race's view on themselves...the so called 'Ego'. It isn't earth shattering in its message, but most messages rarely are...just common sense. The opening premise is that we attach labels to things from our first words in life such as your own name, and from that point onwards continue to be restricted by those labels in our depth of understanding of the world around us. To rid yourself of those restrictions brings a depth of understanding of who you are. May all sound a bit nebulous, but it is worth a read.

Also been making some nice contacts in the area to find out what life is really like here. Many opinionated people around as you would expect, especially from an expat community. Don't want to settle in amongst too many expats, as that would be like bringing England to Thailand, but with a better climate! There is a compromise here though.

Sunday was street market day as usual. The whole length of Rachedamnoen is closed off and becomes a wonderful strip of stalls referred to as a 'walking street'. Selling good quality merchandise, and plenty of side areas selling so much good food to try that you could burst at the seems! Amongst the stalls are musicians giving the place a beautiful atmosphere. I was taken by a truly beautiful girl singing traditional songs at one of the crossroads, accompanied by an excellent guitarist. Very captivating.

A great place to hang out on a sunday night is right in the middle of the market street at the Garden café. Live blues music from 8pm until near midnight depending on how they feel. Had a nice evening talking to a philosopher/journalist from the netherlands and a guy into the oil business plus a chat to the lead singer/guitarist of the band about picking up a second hand guitar while i'm here.

Simple things...I recently got a hankering for cheese and biscuits....don't ask why, just fancied some. What a struggle to find a shop selling cheese nearby. Eventually I gave up and got some cheese slices as the nearest thing I could find. Took the food back to my room to have before bedtime and left some on the side table. When I woke up, the room was crawling in the biggest nest of ants I had seen in ages...seems as though i'm not the only one with a hankering for cheese and biscuits!

Got some bad news this morning. Victoria who has only parted to go south a few days ago, has been bitten by a dog and had to go to hospital. A course of injections for the dog over the next month and a bloody and bruised wound for Victoria (only joking Victoria). Wanted to be there to give her a cuddle :-(

Found a good place for breakfast at the Gatehouse Inn by the Tha Pae moat. Not the cheapest but good.

Had enough of the ants and had to move rooms as they were making me nervous. Couldn’t sit anywhere and everything I moved revealed another army waiting to annoy me. At least the new room has beds off the floor rather than the futon style.

Whilst having a coffee and cake in a local café I picked up a magazine that had some interesting articles. One was about a bit of scaremongering going on in the south about the potential for Bangkok to flood following extreme rains. It was saying that some people are panic-buying non-perishable foods and wind-up torches in case they are cut off for weeks or months. Many people are also relocating up north…not necessarily a good idea as there is also warnings that things aren’t so good up here either, as Chiang Mai is on an earthquake fault line and also there is risk of flooding when China decides to open the floodgates when it fills its dam projects. All a load of rubbish according to other evidence, but there is always going to be some doom merchants who will predict the worse.

Another article was about the miracle herb Jiagulan (5-leaf ginseng, poor-man's ginseng, southern ginseng, miracle grass, fairy herb, gospel herb). From China. Referred to as the immortality herb and supposed to make its takers live to in excess of 100 years old. It doesn’t say how much you are supposed to take and what happens if it doesn’t work? Do you get your money back? Who will you claim against?....Food for thought! I would also have to ask whether I would want to be immortal? Will put some thought into an answer to that question…..42! (For non- ‘Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’ fans….the answer to the ultimate question is 42….But what is the ultimate question?....need the ultimate computer to work that one out).

I sometimes wonder what unusual things some people do with their spare time…Write silly articles for small inserts for newspapers that’s what.

Some useful information….did you know that the dot over the letter ‘i’ is called a tittle. Now that’s a sweet word isn’t it!

Did you know that an average of 12 babies per day are given to the wrong parents…how did they find that out and how long did it take….or did they just never admit it and let them carry on with the wrong child?

Alcohol makes a scorpion go mad and sting itself to death…lots of students out there with a weird sense of humour and thought it was worth seeing what happened! What happens if you give it red bull instead?

Had a Dental appointment late afternoon at the V-Smile clinic near to Tha Pae gate to get some fillings sorted out and check on the costs of some future dental work. A very good service but not as cheap as I expected it to be. I had a couple of fillings – more like repairs to chipped teeth, and that cost 1200 Baht for about an hour’s work. I might have a bridge made to fill in a gap and the average prices work out to about 17,500 Baht although she did say to expect to pay 20,000 when all finished. The big problem is that it would take a number of visits over a period of many weeks to complete and will not be spending that long here this time. Maybe if I come back another time I will have it done then. In contrast, If you have a plate made with teeth attached, then a plate with one tooth is about 3,500 Baht plus 300 Baht for each additional tooth. There are generally some extra hidden costs but they don’t amount to much. One final option available is a dental implant where the gap left by a missing tooth is filled with a stud fixed into the bone and a tooth fitted on top. They cost between 50,000 and 70,000 Baht per tooth and take an age to get done – upto 3 months! Mainly due to the effect on the gum settling down and repairing before the final tooth can be fitted. It is a serious outlay if you were to have many teeth done, but for some people it is the only way as you end up with perfect teeth.

Later in the day a nice meal at the Mayflower Restaurant on Loi Kroh road. It could be easily missed squashed in amongst the girlie bars, but great food. I was aiming down towards the river to visit a couple of music bars offering live music and jamming sessions. Luckily I took a random turning down one of the side roads to see what was there and came across a really nice cooking school/gallery/massage place and got talking to a lovely girl who was involved in all three. We got on so well she decided to come for a walk and we ended up at the Guitar Man restaurant where I had originally been aiming for. A super night’s entertainment where anyone can get up on stage and entertain…I joined in with one of the guitarists and did some singing plus dancing with the girls and some nice wine to set the atmosphere. Will probably be going back armed with a guitar to do some playing when I get one! It was a lovely night with a nice cool breeze, so went for a walk down across the river and found the Brasserie bar, where a band was still playing some bluegrass music at 1:30am. Stayed till they finished, and then walked my friend kan home to her place and chatted for a while before I set off back to my place.

Close to the guest house I saw a girl crying in the back of a tuk-tuk, so went over to see what the matter was. She was only a young girl, maybe in her 20’s and was lost. She had an idea what her place looked like but didn’t know what it was called or where it was. Also, she had split up from her friend who also wouldn’t have known where it was. From the description she gave I knew where it was as I had stayed there myself, so calmed her down and walked her back there. This is where a quirk of some people’s behavior causes question…When we got there, I wanted to see if her friend had returned. She hadn’t, but a guy they were travelling with was. He was completely out of his head and still drinking…this was 2:30am now! He was totally disinterested in the fact this other girl wasn’t back and would only get involved if she bought him another ‘good quality’ beer. There wasn’t much that could be done. In a town with many roads all looking the same and she didn’t even know where they had split up let alone where she was staying, you could walk the streets for hours and not find someone. The only way was to wait and see if she came back. Don’t know what eventually happened as she wanted to be left to wait, so left her to it.

Tue 23^rd Sep - A late start this morning but headed off for a massage, first since I’ve been here this time. Relaxed and rejuvenated……Had a nice Mexican meal at the Toro bar on Loi Kroh chatting to the owner about why nobody in Chiang Mai seems to do Salsa when some play the music but have no idea what Salsa dancing is. Seems like another opportunity there. I know of a girl who is running Salsa/ballroom classes here and will have to make contact to see where I can dance.

Met up with Kan again in the evening and went to the cinema to see the ABBA musical Mama Mia. A superb movie with some great actors such as Meryl Streep, Julie Walters and Piers Brosnan to name a few. For anyone who likes ABBA music, it is fantastic fun. We were the only two in the cinema! When we came to leave, the lights were off in the building complex and the attendants were waiting for us to leave to lock the place up! Outside a group of youths were practicing traditional Lanna style thai dancing. Kan was well versed in this so gave me a demonstration. It is a very graceful and attractive dance style. Off for a drink at Babylon…a collection of bars playing rock music in one, Reggae in another….I would have let my hair down but I haven’t got any so had a good boogie instead!

A standard nightly thought crosses my mind when I’m walking around this area - In this case back to my guest house at nearly 1am….There are so many middle aged and upwards guys with pretty thai girls on their arms and in a daydream thinking that they have made it and it will all be rosy and they have found the girl of their dreams. All most of the girls want is their wallet and will freely tell them so when they are asked. It is an easy trap to get into, as this place is a money bucket and cash can vanish quicker than a thai girl that’s been told you have no money! But every night there are countless guys going through the same well rehearsed play, saying the same well rehearsed chat-up lines and getting the same well-rehearsed responses….where are you from, how long have you been here, when are you leaving, are you married, you want massage, will you buy me a drink, etc etc It is shallow, but for the guys who are involved they are happy…. maybe…because reality then strikes! When it is over and the bars close and you then realize that your wallet is much lighter than when you started the evening, and your heart is emptier than when you started the evening….what then? Do it all again tomorrow? And the night after that?
Now you may wonder what any of this is leading towards? Well, I don’t want to be like any of the other middle aged guys (I’m 48 now), with the same heartbreak night after night. Sometimes I succumb a little and have some fun with the girls and a few drinks whilst playing pool, but at the end of the day, It is all very shallow and I leave before it goes too far. They end up disappointed of course as they have lost another paying customer who is feeding money into their cash-tills…but there are plenty of others to take over. To meet someone genuine in a town like this isn’t easy. You would never be certain whether they were only in it for the money as with a fair percentage of the women when confronted with a westerner…we must all have an aura of dollar signs radiating from us! The genuine ones are a treasure and hard to find I guess. I have been lucky to have spent the last day or so with a lovely local lady who has sound principles and a good heart. Why is it that I never feel that I am with the right person in the right place at the right time? Seems a common flaw that stems from the break-up of my marriage and subsequent relationship problems that always haunt me whenever I get too close to someone. It is easy to travel and keep moving on…so easy, that it is hard to stop moving on as there is always another place to go to. Some of the reading I am doing at the moment is aimed at trying to not provide answers to this sort of question, but help me find it out for myself, but not the hard way.

Time will tell I guess?

Wed 24^th Sep – My breakfasts are getting later by the day as I stay out until late every night. This morning’s breakfast started at 11:45am! Started listening to the ‘Let’s Speak Thai’ Tracks that I have downloaded onto my iPod whilst I was having my breakfast…A difficult language that will probably cause me quite a headache to learn but want to give it a go - especially important if I choose to live here.

After breakfast I got talking to a nice Glasgow lady, currently living in Thailand but heading to Australia to live. Was a very inspiring conversation so we re-convened to Starbucks to get into the cold as Eleanor needed to cool down, and carried on our conversation over a nice latté. Turned into a rater spooky event as she was a very tuned in lady with an insight into people that most of us don’t understand. Now, I am a bit of a sceptic when it comes down to this sort of topic, but I try to keep my mind open that there might be concepts that I just don’t understand. Recently on my return trip into Chiang Mai, I was discussing with Victoria a proposed way of life that I was piecing together here. Just rambled on and a potential plan emerged. As the conversation with Eleanor progressed, virtually a total stranger, she was piecing that same scenario together without any guide from me at all. Not going to say any more in case I sound like I’m going loopy.

Prickly Heat powder….Snake Brand…. Now that’s another story!! Well actually, it is another story. Eleanor popped into a pharmacist to buy a large canister of it as she suffers from heat rash, not uncommon in this type of climate. She had also bought a small tin of it and later gave it to me as a gift. Not sure I need it as I don’t suffer from prickly heat. The strangest gift I have ever received from someone though!

Barbeque in the evening with Kan and her daughters plus friends and other children. 140 Baht for as much as you can eat. Each table is provided with a sort of hotpot cooker consisting of a solid fuel heater with an aluminium heating tray on top which has a water well for cooking fish and a section for cooking meats. Choose your food from the buffet and cook as you go. A superb selection of fruit and a crazy variety of sweet stuff for desserts. Felt stuffed afterwards but satisfied. Kan sent the children off home and we walked back to town and finished up at the great ‘Roots’ Reggae bar. Some great dancing until late and good buzz with everyone up boogying as the music warmed up to its finale.

One thing I am now used to in Asia is the proliferation of children selling stuff at ridiculous times of the night, rather than being in bed. Kids probably as young as 5yrs of age selling threaded perfumed garlands for 5 or 10 Baht in the bars. Their mothers are possibly around but don’t see them. They are real characters and will play with you if you are ok with them. I do feel sad that they are in this predicament, but this is pandemic throughout and will not vanish unless something dramatic changes the situation.

Thu 25^th Sep - Yet another late start today, but felt great. On with my iPod and a good book in hand and hit the streets…first stop breakfast and then off to do some exploring and ‘watting’…that is visiting wats / temples. Been here for a long time now and still finding places I haven’t seen. It’s nice to get so many smiles when walking along as I must have a permanent grin on my face as I walk. Some great music to orchestrate the sights to. The rest of the day was a bit of a blur with doing a bit of writing and then a night out as usual. A funny thing happened on my way back to my guest house…was passing a bar on Loi Kroh road and stopped for a chat to a guy sitting at a table. A rather stroppy looking woman came up to me and pushed me in the chest with a vicious look on her face. I restrained her and just stood and looked at her…she backed off. Totally unprovoked…she was stoned out of her mind as I found out and happened to be the manageress! Apparently, she got like that often and probably mistook me for someone else. Not the best way to treat customers anyway. Some odd people around here. The guy I was talking to said that he had lived here for two years and didn’t understand it. One day they are great, the next they have gone weird and nasty. Probably due to a life of late nights, excessive drinking and being surrounded by strange foreigners all the time!

The highlight of my evening though, was being able to talk to my youngest daughter Katie in the UK on a video link. Hadn’t seen her for a while, so that was a treat. At 12 years old, she has turned into a young woman and a beautiful one at that…not biased of course!

Fri 26^th Sep – No idea what I did today other than reading and playing on my laptop, and a bit of socializing. Average day then….

Sat 27^th Sep – Was hoping that my replacement credit cards (the would arrive at the local post office today. They hadn’t, so have to be patient now until the beginning of next week as they close on Sundays. Cannot really go anywhere until I have my finances back in order. I am hoping that the ‘Poste Restante’ system works here. Should be ok I hope as they have been sent express secure recorded delivery.

One of the best gadgets I bought this year was a small laptop. Had resisted for a long time but it has proven to be a great assistance in many ways. Not just for writing blogs on, but for photograph processing, music etc. The only thing is that it is hard to resist just one more hour doing things…and then before you know it, time has disappeared into the great void! Wouldn’t be without it now though.

After visiting the post office to find my package hadn’t arrived, I went on a long walk around yet another part of town I hadn’t visited before. Part way along Charoen Pratet road is the superb Chedi hotel. A top end place with cool layout inside…Went for a walk around it and took loads pof photos. Will stay there one day when I feel rich! Further along the same road is Wat Chai Mong Kol, Which also happens to be the place where the River Ping cruises start from. A really attractive Wat worth a visit.

What better after a long steamy walk..it’s about 31 degrees Fahrenheit today…scorchio!...than a nice oil massage for a couple of hours. Managed to catch up for a nice conversation with a friend in the Philippines and the day has almost disappeared again.

Went to the Guitar Man bar again in the evening. Being Saturday night, it was more lively than normal and had a good line-up of performers. I have been meeting all sorts of people recently. One guy this evening had lived here for many years and doesn’t work anymore. Instead he gambles on-line throughout the day playing poker and uses his winnings to survive. Didn’t seem to have any money worries and just plays around with the girls of a night, most of whom are willing to strip a guy of every cent they have if they are willing enough to let them. The worse part of his situation, which I learnt from my friend and not him, was that he refuses to use a condom and many of the girls here have HIV. They may be lucky enough to be able to carry the disease without any external signs and survive it, whereas others could be dead within months. It struck me that some of these guys have no life and as such don’t care about what effect they have or what they do. Almost a self destruct mechanism and a bit sad really…come to Chiang Mai and drink and screw yourself to death!

Sun 28^th Sep – Street Market day again. It is getting worse…didn’t get out of bed until 11:30am this morning and had breakfast when most people are having lunch. Need to change this as it is messing up the day. Need to get out and start doing things as soon as I have my financial situation under control again. Went off for a walk again and visited an apartment complex on the southern side of the moat called the ‘Smith Residence’. Can get a furnished kitchen apartment there for 8,500 Baht a month plus utility costs (400 Baht for internet, plus per unit electricity costs). Will mark that one up for future reference. It is too hot to walk around today, being in the lower 30 degree region again. Time to get in the shade and cool off and catch up with some writing…..

That’s it for now folks….

Mae Hong Son back to Chiang Mai via a bit of a disaster!!

jeffbrad — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 10:00:00 GMT

Thu 11th Sep - We set off today on a three day trek organised through the Sunflower café in conjunction with Mae Hong Son (MHS) Travel. Our guide Jod/ aka George met us at the café after breakfast and we set off on the road north west. Jod proved to be a superb guide with excellent knowledge, and didn't stop talking to the point of information overload. Lucky to have made this choice. He has been a guide for so long now that he has a high profile position within the guide services system here. He was also instrumental in setting up a co-operative joined by all of the local guides. They contribute a monthly amount from which loans can be taken at very low interest rate. The funds also go towards helping the needs of the tribes people, all part of the support network for the remote communities who would otherwise be isolated from their homeland. The support is obviously in everyone's interest including the tourists who visit these communities. At the age of 24 he spent a year as a buddhist monk and is married with two sons aged 3 and 8. He has already decided and agreed with his wife that he will retire at 60 years of age into a life as a buddhist monk. It is interesting to understand the belief sytems that give a country its character. Many parents here will ask any prospective boy interested in their daughter if they have spent any time as a monk. The reason being that it gives them a grounding in selflessness and dedication to being trustworthy and honorable in how they treat their partners.

What I hadn't realised was the vast numbers of hilltribe groups spread throughout the border areas, mainly of burmese origin and in a form of self exile to escape the problems they suffered under the auspices of the burmese army. Around 22 ethnic groups exist with over 2 million people, predominantly Shan and Karenni. The Padaung /long-neck people we had recently visited is actually the burmese name for what are referred to as Karen in Thailand. The long neck or unfortunately named 'giraffe-neck' people are from the Kayah tribe and of the buddhist belief system, whereas the long-ear people are from the Kayo tribe and of catholic belief.

We had a great day with just the three of us and visited a few villages, predominantly Shan. Another village was occupied by the Pao (pronounced pa ow). Although the people look similar, some of the differences are in their housing style.

Early in the day way visited a lovely waterfall and the Pang-Tong summer palace but concentrated mainly on the conservation area. This included a guide around the orchid development and propagation area where local people are learning about how to establish threatened species back into their natural forest environments. Riding in the back of the pick-up truck we also saw the 'Barking' deer or Muntjack that are under conservation. A stop at a local school canteen to pick up some tasty snacks of deep fried sweet potato and noodle been parcels coered in coconut...yummm.

A few hours trek to visit a nice old Shan farm and stopped for tea. The last stop of the day was at Rhum Thai village, our home for the evening. The village is under a new wave of development with many families constructing large numbers of bamboo huts for tourists. The problem is that they are latching onto the hope of setting crazy prices for staying and making lots of money. The reality is that most won't agree to paying 500 Baht a night for a hut with external shared facilities. Jod is trying to persuade them that 200 Baht is a more reasonable rate but this is meeting with resistance. I think that they are getting greedy for their slice of the tourist pot!

We didn't actually stay in the village but in the government run huts opposite the lake. A beautiful location with wonderful view and our own tribe of ants to keep us company! This section was actually controlled by the army, responsible for monitoring the section of border with Myanmar, a short way along the track. The problem was that it is currently unsafe for us to go all the way to the border, so we were advised on the limits of where we were able to walk.

With a few hours of daylight left until dinnertime, we set off on a walk around the lake accompanied by the rather playful collie the soldiers kept as a pet, that I warmed to easily. The water was perfectly still and mirror-like and the forest lush with dense growth and occasional flowers. The dog tried to follow but got stuck on a dilapidated bridge we hd to cross, so I built it a little bridge for it to climb over. Must be soft!

Back at the huts after the walk and time for a swim from a rickety pontoon outside our hut. The lake was lovely and just what was needed after a long day. No electricity tonight, so dinner by candlelight. A nice spread of local vegetables and rice. No alcohol, only water then retire for the night to listen to the cicadas making their buzz-saw sound all night mixed with birds and other nocturnal sounds.

Fri 12th Sep - We had the option to return to MHS this morning if we wanted, or if the weather deteriorated. As it turned out, the weather was beautiful so we decided to carry on to another trek down south. First though, we went for a close up of the thai-burmese border from as close as we were allowed to go. This is were we learnt about the 'Private Armies'. The border is patrolled by Thai, Burmese and private armies. The privately patrolled sections can only be deduced to exist for illegal means...I must state that this is not only my belief! They are funded privately and that money, or a majority of it, can only come from the illegal passage of drugs and also illegal immigrants into Thailand...How else could they exist?....answers on a postcard!

Further south to the drop-off point for our trek and met two girls who were to join us, a 32 year old dutch girl and her 61 year old mother, currently residing in Portugal. Unfortunately, the mother wasn't too well, something that was to cause her trouble later. We were informed that the route involved maybe a five or six hour walk through jungle and water and stocked with water supplies, set off. The route soon descended into thick jungle and plodding through the water, we soon ended up a little worse for wears. The humidity was extreme and the bugs out in numbers. Bamboo forest inter-mingled with lovely swathes of flowers in amongst the vegetation made for a magic trek...then the rain started...and increased to deluge proportions with us walking uphill against the flow of the reddish-brown mud coming towards us. Soaking wet as if we had just stood fully clothed in a shower and looking rather bedraggled, we arrived at our homestay for the night. A Shan village of three houses with no electricity. Sliping and sliding uphill we must have looked a mess. Straight off with our drenched clothes which halved our weight and into slightly damp clothes from my bag, we sat inside the wooden hut by a fire to dry out whilst a meal was being prepared. The home was occupied by an old couple, Mima (50 wife) and Yami (60 something) and their two sons who were on a short visit from the next village where they work. As typical of hill folk, their mouths and teeth were red from the constant chewing of betalnut. This is a form of mild narcotic which is mixed with a paste and other additives to give it a less bitter flavour and chewed in the side of the cheek.

Dinner was a concoction of vegetables chicken and rice with bamboo shoots, washed down with water and rice whisky...yummee! After dinner out came the 3-stringed Sibut, a long-necked instrument made from a hollowed gourd covered in snakeskin and hardwood neck and steel strings (two tuned the same pitch and the third higher). I joined in for some great ethnic sounding rhythms around the fire with Yami and the boys, all amid a darkened atmosphere of smoke. Outside the door the constant chirping of birds and noises from the pigs and chickens...pure magic!

Mima and Yami have been around here for 30 years and seem to be one of themany people not wanted by either country. Being originally from Burma then leaving for thailand then pushed back into Burma and finally returning to Thailand they are probably too old to move again, so live their simple remote life mainly on their own. People like us don't come along that often. The last visit being a few months ago. We deliberately chose to come to a less visited area, whereas most tourists go to what I would call the hilltribe shopping malls!

Sat 13th Sep - After a restless night on a hard matted platform and a tough pillow made from rice and regular disturbances through the night from cow bells and forest noises, woke to the sight of thick cloud outside the door. The toilet was a short trek down the muddy bank and through the pigs and chickens, dodging the piles of slimy dung along the way...good start to the day! A shower if you wanted one was from water flowing through a pipe into a bucket from the hills. Wanted to stay dry so didn't bother. Said goodbye to our hosts and set off dry downhill. About half an hour into the walk and the rains started again. This time more troublesome as walking downhill through mud is slippery and a few accidents along the way. Soaked through to the skin again and many aerial obstacles to clear to cross gaps such as tightrope walking along trees and branches made for some great fun. We made it to our finishing point for the trek by noon and greeted by coincidence at a place we had recently stopped for lunch when we hired motorbikes. A welcome bowl of spicy noodles with meat and vegetables and then back to Mae Hong Son by pickup truck.

The pleasure in a warm shower and fresh clothes cannot be underestimated after the sort of trek we had been on!

I have picked up a small fungal skin infection caused by the constant exposure to humid conditions, so had to get some ointment from the pharmacy in town. Hopefully should only take a few days to clear.

A nice meal of green curry pasta washed down with wine at the crossroads was a nice evening treat before crashing out into a deep sleep. Zzzzz…….

Sun 14th Sep - Clothes returned washed and dry and then checked out of the excellent Jongkum Guest House. The girl who runs it Dao has been a lovely host and makes the best coffee in town. Breakfast at our favourite haunt, the Sunflower café. The manager of the Sunflower dropped us at the bus station which was a lovely gesture. We hadn't really decided where to go next as our visa finishes on 16th September, so have to cross the border into Myanmar for the day then back into Thailand for another month. That gives us a couple of days or so to get to Mae Sai, the most northern town in Thailand and on the Myanmar border. After looking at the options, decided to go to Pai, a few hours east of here. 80 Baht on the normal Bus leaving every hour on the half hour or minibus for 150 Baht on the hour. Chose the normal bus and left at 12:30.

The four hour trip to Pai was nice, through similar terrain we have been in recently. Fairly heavy rain made for slow going, with only one stop at Soppong on the way for lunch.

Pai is a small place and it didn't take long to find somewhere nice to stay adjacent to the river, at the Riverside Guest House for 300 Baht. It also doesn’t take long to walk around. I think we had completed a loop of the town in about half an hour. Plenty of bars and places to eat and a nice feel to it. One of the main objectives was to find out a plan to get to the border at Mae Sai to extend our visas. Turns out that we have to go back to Chiang Mai as there are no services running from here due to it being low season and not enough numbers. Spent the evening at a Mexican restaurant followed by cocktails at a bar on the main road which included talking to one of the local thai chefs ‘Tee’.

Mon 15th Sep - Would be nice to stop here for a day but haven't got the time. Have to cross the border into Myanmar tomorrow before it closes at 4pm, so need to get to Chiang Mai today and then catch an early bus to Mae Sai in the morning.

The buses leave often enough but fancied a minibus for a change, although it costs more at 150 Baht compared with 80 Baht for the ordinary bus. Departed exactly on time at 10am and not long into the journey the rains started. The route was very attractive with winding roads and many hairpin bends. It was a change to not be jostled around in an old bus that leaked! Arrived at the Arcade bus station in Chiang Mai at 1pm and headed straight for the ticket counter for Mae Sai. A bus would leave at 1:30pm (177 Baht) but a more luxury one would leave at 2pm costing 375 Baht. Didn't mind the extra cost as it would give us more time to have some lunch and break the journey seeing as we had just been on the minibus for 3 hours. Plenty of cafes around so had a nice lunch before boarding. Our bus, V402 was a real improvement from any others I had taken in Thailand...plush leather reclining seats with a foot rest, hostess service with water and cake, video (in thai). Don't want to get used to this as i prefer the more rugged public buses as they are more interesting...an occasional treat is good though.

Riverside Guest House for 200 Baht overlooking Myanmar across the fast flowing river

Full moon celebrations with fireworks and a bonfire on far hill

Tue 16th Sep - Disastrous start to the day. Had planned to cross into Myanmar early but couldn't find my credit cards when I was sorting out my luggage. Stripped everything out and no luck, so had to backtrack to think when I had last seen them. Had also an imperative need to renew my visa today so decided to make a fast trip across the border to Myanmar and back again.

Exiting Thailand is simple enough with passport control in front of the main arch on the main street. After leaving the Thailand immigration building, a pathway then leads across the bridge towards the Myanmar immigration post by a fancy blue archway marked 'Union of Myanmar'. A very friendly guy helped us through the options available. Whatever option is chosen costs 500 Baht of $10 ( cheaper to pay in US dollars). Option 1 is a 1 day single trip permit. Your passport is retained and you are issued with a temporary brown permit. Your photo is taken by a PC camera and they retain a copy of this as well as one being imprinted on the temporary permit. Option 2 is to have this extended free of charge for 2 weeks at the information office. Whatever you do, you are only allowed to visit the town of Tachilek, which is the first town on the Myanmar side, and two other towns of Mong La and Kengtung. One interesting thing I noticed as soon as I crossed the border was that Thailand drive on the Left, whereas Myanmar drive on the right. They cross over on the bridge between the two!

Didn’t spend long on Tachilek. As soon as you walk across the border, the beggars approach as well as sellers offering cigarettes, Viagra, and other tablets that I didn’t want to even think about. Drug smuggling is a serious offence in both countries and not something you even want to think about….stay well clear of anything in tablet form or even cigarette form. A flock of tour touts almost run at us offering the same tour around a couple of wats, long-neck tribe village and another local monument which turns out to be just around the corner!. Decided to go it alone and head for a short walk around the town with lunch in a café, followed by walking around the backstreet market stalls. On first impressions it is a bit more rough and ready than the Thailand side. It is a poorer country, so this is no surprise. As I was in a hurry to get back to Thailand to sort my card business out, I left Victoria to look around the town by herself, whilst I went back across the border on my own.

Re-entering Thailand is an interesting process. Firstly, you go into the foreigner door of the Myanmar immigration building and return your temporary brown permit, in exchange for your passport which has been stamped with the exit date. Then walk along the pathway to the Thailand immigration office. There are options here depending on what type of visa you require. For most foreigners, you are given a standard 30 days from date of entry as normal. You can enter Thailand three times in a 6 month period from the date of the first entry. That is 90 days per 6 months or 180 days per year if running continuously. This would mean a lot of hassle to do this every month. The better way is to get a tourist visa, which is 60 days when obtained at an embassy outside of Thailand. This can then be extended for a further month by crossing any of the borders with Thailand. Alternatively, if you sign up for a course, this will usually entitle you to a stay up to a year, depending on justification.

After entering Thailand again and now having a new visa until 15^th October, I went straight to the Police hut adjacent to the bridge to fill in Tourist complaint form for loss of credit cards. This was fun with the language barrier, but got it sorted slowly and then off to police station on the back of a police motorbike to fill the form and get my incident reference form. Was fun trying to communicate what had happened to them with hardly any English and them filling the forms in thai. What my insurance company would make of it would be interesting? They would need an interpreter to do anything with it!

Next step was to get on the internet to contact the card companies and cancel the credit cards and request a re-issue of replacement new ones. Unfortunately, they will only dispatch to my registered UK address, so will have to arrange for them to be couriered to Thailand when they arrive there within the next 7 to 10 days. With one stressful morning under my belt, it was time for a beer and sit down before deciding what to do next. That was easy and made a decision to get the next bus to Chiang Rai, leaving almost every half an hour with the last bus at 6:30pm

Took a really swanky bus that was going to Bangkok and only cost 60 Baht. Took about 1 hour including 3 police search stops for drugs. This is a regular feature of travel up in this area apparently as drugs are a major industry. On arrival in Chaing Rai Bus station, only took about 5 minutes walk to the Orchid Guest House by Wat Jet Yod. Brand new rooms with free internet and coffee for 350 Baht.

Showered and refreshed and off to the night bazaar, which I remembered from my visit in january. A real buzz to the place with two live music stages playing traditional music ans also small solo performers. The larger of the stage areas is surrounded by a choice of eateries, so treated myself to a nice hotpot and a wine cooler whilst listening to some nice thai solo guitarists.

A low stress end to a rather stressful day!

Wed 17^th Sep – When I last came to Chiang Rai in January, I visited an amazing temple at Wat Rong Khun about 15km south of Chiang Rai. At that time it was due to be under construction for at least another year, So I wanted to visit it again to see how it was developing. Many ways of getting there. Last time I hired a bicycle and nearly destroyed myself as the temperature was nearly 40 degrees. No way I was doing that again! A Sawngthaew costs about 300 Baht return, A moto about 160 Baht and the public bus about 40 Baht….Guess which one wins! The bus set off from the bus station about 5 minutes after we got there, so just enough time to pick up some nice bamboo sticky rice snacks. For 10 Baht you get these bamboo sticks filled with flavoured sticky rice. To eat, you peel the outside away and then pull out chunks of the inner food. Yummeee.

The Wat is stunning and has changed a lot since January. The most amazing aspect of it, apart from it being a fairytale ‘Silver palace’ also know as the ‘White temple’ and constructed in white with silver mirrored finishing touches, is the mural on the back wall of the temple. It relates in pictorial form world conflicts and world events such as the destruction of the New York Twin Towers, the struggle between the US and Osama Bin Laden and also many aspects of modern and future science fiction ideas.

The main behind its design – Chalermchai Kositpipat, Was born in Rong Khun but his parentsd moved out into the nearby town to find work when he was 10 years old. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in thai art, he followed his heart and dedicated his life to creating some amazing work. He even went to the UK and designed Wat Buddhapadipa, which was financed by the thai government in London. At 42 years of age he returned to build this marvel of artistry, funded mainly by himself so that nobody could claim any influence in its design or build. Upto the end of 2007 it had cost him 200 million baht! Its construction will probably never cease looking at what has been achieved so far and what is left to complete. The site is an icon for people from all over Thailand and is one of its most famous landmarks.

Opposite the White temple is an amazing contrasting building that looks like a hotel but in dazzling gold, complete with dragon finials and is just stunning against the clear blue sky. To the rear of the site are the construction workshops where some of the 3-dimensional objects are manufactured. It highlights the skill of the workers. Many are formed on the floor using wire frames and cement/plaster and then bonded together to make the final shape. Inlaid with mirror glass, and then final cementing before being installed within the temple complex.

As an aside, Chalermchai Kositpipat is also responsible for the design of the new clock tower in Chiang Rai. His work is quite identifiable once you have seen the white temple.

After a nice meal under the shaded arcade section, time to return to town, but this time waved down a shared Sawngthaew on route 1 that only cost 20 Baht each.

Back to the Night Bazaar in the evening and a nice meal while watching the live cultural entertainment on the main stage. It is quite funny in a way, as they all mime...so badly it is amusing. While walking back we decided to drop in to the funky Teepee Bar, run by a crazy thai guy Mister Tuu. A long haired heavy metal fan, he has owned the place for 16 years and has filled the place with lots of memorabilia from his travels. Loads of guitars although he doesn't play at all, he just likes people to drop by and play, so I obliged for a while. Bicycles hung from the ceiling, rock posters on the walls and a heavy metal atmosphere with skulls and skeletons hanging around and random stuff everywhere. Sitting on raised platforms with tables made from chicken cages, lends itself to great place to finish an evening. Got talking to some people on work placements here whilst we played games and shared an alcohol bucket. At the next table where a bunch of students wearing wigs and having fun.

Thu 18th Sep - Time to move on this morning, so had breakfast...oddly enough you get marmalade with your toast here, which they don't seem to offer anywhere else in Thailand...a small taste of being back in the uk...simple pleasures!

Things have been an emotional rollercoaster lately as Victoria and I will part company tomorrow. Something that has been a difficult thing to impose. I need some time on my own to relax and do some writing and personal stuff and she will go off and do some stuff on her own down south.

On the bus to Chiang Mai at 11:45 for 191 Baht taking 3 hours. As usual, hopped oo a hared Sawngthaew to Tha Pae gate….this is getting to be a familiar route now! Ended up staying at the Chiang Mai House guest House. 550Baht a night including a swimming pool. Very comfortable rooms although a bit more expensive than I would normally pay, but a treat for our last stop before Victoria departs.

In the evening I went to look at an apartment to rent for when I come back for a long stay, maybe early next year but not sure. For now I am just getting a feel for what the costs are and what you get for your money plus the areas of Chiang Mai I would be happy to live in.

Fri 19^th Sep – After Victoria headed off for the bus station, I had to sort somewhere comfortable to stay for a while. As luck had it, a guy pulled up alongside of me and gave me a business card for his place around the corner. As it turned out, that was lucky timing as the Boonmee Guest House turned out to be a great place. A 100 year old original thai teak house in the downtown area and run by Florence and her brother Sam, for 250 Baht a night and with free wi-fi. A lovely courtyard garden area and places to relax. Just what I needed.

A bit of catching up to do and then off to find a guitar shop, which didn’t take long and a bit of research to decide if I should buy one or not, then off to the dentist to book myself in for some work. Prices here are cheap and there are three dentists within easy walking distance that open seven days a week. Fillings, plates, teeth whitening, the works if you need it. Will check out what I will have done when I go on Monday afternoon.

That’s it for now folks…….

Chiang Mai to Mae Hong Son

jeffbrad — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 07:00:00 GMT

Tue 2nd Sep – After a bad start to the day with personal stuff getting in the way of enjoying life to its full (stuff happens doesn’t it), visited the flower market on the river ping road in the evening and had some street snacks. Around 60 Baht in total...spring rolls, pork skewers, minced bacon, fruit drink bag for 15 Baht. Off on walkabout afterwards til 2am playing pool at a couple of bars and talked to a local girl with contacts about apartment to rent for 3,500/mth. Also turns out that she can dance, so that’s nice to know.

Had one of those days when my head is full of stuff. At some silly hour couldn’t sleep so went for a Walk along the canal banks. As usual there were many street girls around at that time and got talking to one about life and stuff. A sweet girl...had to pay money to her mother and had no customers. Disappointed when I said I wasn’t going to be one either. Gave her a cuddle. So many on the streets and in the bars that after a while you feel sorry for them and talk to them about their problems and life issues as if they need someone to talk to.

Wed 3rd Sep – Got dropped at the stop for Chom Thong for 40 Baht. Yellow Sawngthaew departed within 5 minutes and took about an hour to get there. Cost 40 Baht. We were aiming for Doi Inthanon National Park and had read that we should be able to pick up a connection from here. The Sawngthaew dropped us near to the town square/wat. Walked around for a while talking to drivers of cabs, motorbikes and sawngthaews and came to the conclusion that we couldn't get up to doi Inthanon today. Mainly as it was late in the day and secondly, because it was too expensive for just the two of us. Normally, a full sawngthaew would carry 12 people paying 80 baht each, but they wanted to charge us 600 Baht! Not a chance, so looked around at the alternatives to stop here overnight. Could stop at the temple, or at the Smile Guest House, which is where we ended up for 300 Baht a night.

After settling in, off for a walk. First stop a taoist style temple on the main street. Walked off down a side street passing through a lovely quaint area of old wooden houses and friendly folk selling nice little commestibles. Had a few snacks of sticky rice parcels for 5 Baht and glutinous goo and crushed gumph parcels for 5 Baht...whatever it was? Plus cherry tomatoes in little bags for 1 Baht!

Further on into the remote outer village areas and the lovely open space of the paddy fields surmounted by the beautiful backdrop of the Doi Inthanon mountains. Looks like recent activity in fresh planting of rice stalks with a deep carpet of verdant green. Hitched a lift back to town on the back of a pick-up truck that looks to have been returning from working in the fields. Really friendly people who were happy to offer the lift.

Back in town and a visit to the main Wat. Very quiet with no tourists around and only a couple of buddhist monks around, one old guy in ochre robe and a lady in white...very unusual to see both sexes here. The lady was in 'walking meditation' where they concentrate their mind on their walking to dispel any thoughts from their head. Done to a very slow tortoise - paced step. In a corner of the temple complex is a massive Bodhi tree (for the non-buddhists...this was the tree under which Buddha aka prince Siddarta achieved enlightenment). All bodhi trees are supposed to have originated from cuttings taken from the original in Bodghaya in India. The age of this tree was evident from the many dozens of ornate props used to support its branches. Some carved, some painted and some decorated in gilt.

Later went to find something to eat. Not much choice at all, in fact no choice at all. A seven-eleven store opposite the wat and a streetfood stall outside of it. Turned out to serve up a really nice bowl of mixed meat and veg for 25 Baht washed down with some 711 additions. Not much but all that was on offer here.

Thu 4th Sep - Up and out for 9am'ish after a strange omlette and coffee at the Smile Guest House. I had been told to aim for the open area outside of the Wat to pick up a yellow Sawngthaew up the mountain to the park. Of course things are never that simple. One place sends you somewhere else and that place sends you back again. Got fed up and had a nice coffee from a van whilst deciding. Typical of Thailand, everywhere you are, you talk to lovely people who are happy to play and have fun. The girl who ran the coffee van was no exception. Whilst trying to barter with drivers the best price had been 300 Baht each to get upto the National Park HQ and we would have to sort ourselves out from there. Luck struck and after a short while a thai girl approached who spoke great english, saying she had been pointed towards us from down the road as she also wanted to go. After about 10 minutes of us talking with the drivers, two thai guys (hotel boys from Bangkok) arrived, so we now had five of us. That changed the situation dramatically and we negotiated a full day's tour for 250 Baht each, and managed to set off at around 10am. What we had learnt in this morning's process is that the sawngthaew have different contracts. Some that go to Mae Chaem go past the park HQ, but are not allowed to stop and let off passengers, but must carry straight through the park. Others are allowed to stop. All are yellow! You can try to reason as much as you like with them...but you are going past the HQ....so why can't you stop? Nobody explains to you and just laughs. Out of dozens of people, only one could explain it to us.

Doi Inthanon is Thailand's highest mountain although it is only 2595m high. The park headquarters are 31km from Chom Thong up a fairly steep climb.

Our first stop was well inside the park at the Wachirathan water falls. To get there triggered off a bit of discussion...the thai people only pay 40 Baht to enter the park....foreigners pay 400 Baht! That's quite a mark-up isn't it? I have to say that I do expect a bit of a difference in local and farang prices, but not that much, so was a little annoyed.

Anyway, the waterfalls were nice and the day a real beauty, so soon got on with it, and forgot about the rip-off. It was only 200 Baht a year or so ago though. Prices have gone up a lot in Thailand. Around the waterfalls are a lovely trail through a nice shaded forest out of the strong heat of the day.

Next stop was the Doi Inthanon peak. A lovely climb to the top on a smooth road and then out for a walk. The highest point in Thailand is marked by a wooden signboard and pretty flower display, ideal for everyone who queues up for their photo. Close-by was a lovely nature trail through a beautiful wooden pathed trail. Sphagnum moss and lichens growing over everything...vines and creepers inter-mingling with the trees and many varieties of ferns. Flitting from one resting spot to another where many wonderful colouful birds...sun birds, wood peckers...tranquility and beauty in a magic setting.

Onwards to the 'Great Holy Relic Pagoda' which stands atop another prominent peak. Actually two angular modern pagodas, one that looks completely new and not accessible due to the work in progress. One that we climbed up to was superb. Modern inside with murals painted around the ceiling and stone carvings on the wall. The outside was surrounded with excellent stone carvings too and the whole thing set amidst pretty gardens.

After breaking for some lunch, onwards to another waterfall even prettier than the first. I think it was called Siriphum, but not sure. Anyway, the bridged gardens at the entrance were very fairytale like and full of wonderful atmospheric planting schemes, making for superb photography. The climb upto the waterfall was magical. The lighting was perfect today and the dappled shade amongst the waterfall laced dells was cool and magic. Ferns of numerous varieties unfurling their new fronds with clusters of spores underneath, make good subjects as do the many tiny orchids growing wild in amongst mosses hanging from banches. Just what you come to this park for.

Final stop on our way out of the park was to check out the accommodation options in case we wanted to stay overnight. Tents if they would have let us hire one, which they wouldn't at this time of year, were 275 Baht (sleeping bag and blankets extra), and bungalows 1000 Baht per night. Decided not to stay, and head back to town with the others.

Back in town for about 4pm'ish and sat thinking about our options...stay in the temple overnight and move tomorrow, or move on. Decided to move on towards Mae Sariang, as Chom Thong didn't capture our interest for another night's stay. Found out where to catch the bus, although the information that a red bus left at 5pm was wrong as we had already missed it. Next bus would have actually been 9pm, so weren't going to wait for that. Instead, we got on a blue local bus opposite the police station that seem to leave every half hour to Hod. Sat in a great air-conditioned little café talking to the owner whilst waiting for the bus, which only cost 20 Baht for the hour journey.

In Hod the bus to Mae Sariang wouldn't arrive here until 9pm tonight and arrive get to Mae Sariang at 1pm in the morning. No way were we doing that, so stopped over night in a hotel. Not many here to choose from, so didn't take long to sort out.

A nice street meal in the evening with a couple of beers on route 108. This town is a quiet place in the evenings and seems a good base to do the local parks from, but will still move on from here tomorrow. An odd guy approached us on the way back to the hotel after our meal, doing some odd motions with his hands and body...we obviously attracted either the local psycho or just a guy who throught foreigners like weeirdos!

Fri 5th Sep - Breakfast at 7am so that we could get the 8am bus to Mae Sariang. Well that was the theory. Went to the place where we had been told to get the bus. One person said 8am and others said 9am, so we arrived at 7:40am and sat there waiting. Sawngthaew drivers were going that way and wanted 90 Baht, but preferred to wait for the bus. 8am came and went and no red bus. At 8:30 the only westerner we had seen here appeared and said we could get the bus here, but better to go to the bus station about 100m away. First we had been told there was a bus station hidden away, so walked there. The real bus wasn't going to arrive until around 9am and would stop where we had been waiting if there was space left! A guy appeared who told us the price (75 Baht), and was nice and helpful. At 9:15 the 8am bus arrived. Actually, the bus left Chiang Mai at 5am and arrives randomly. As it turned out, the bus was almost full and we were shoe-horned into the remaining two seats at the back corner of the bus, which left 10 minutes later and didn't stop where we had been waiting earlier, so good job we moved! Shortly after getting on the bus I had cut my head on a ceiling fan and the conductor ran off and appeared with some tiger balm, the thai cure-all and smoothed some onto my head, which made me leap into the air as it stung even more than the cut itself.

The road to Mae Sariang is almost a continous climb, through beautiful forested areas and distant cloud topped mountains. Part way up and it started raining. The bus started leaking rain down my neck and if I moved, the rain came in another direction instead. Then I noticed the seats were crawling with ants, so wasn't too pleased and stood up instead. Now, thai buses are meant for short people, so over the next hour got attacked by the roof bars. By the end of the journey I was ready to get off, complete with a few newly acquired headscars.

Mae Sariang is a really nice place and from the bus station only a short walk to many accommodation options. After checking out a handful of places we ended up at the Riverside Guest House for 350 Baht a night. Loads of bars and restaurants nearby, so straight out for a late lunch on the bank of the river Salawin watching water buffalo swimming lazily along.

Another pleasant walk later on after a siesta in what must be the noisiest guesthouse in town! Might have to move on somewhere else tomorrow?

Later in the evening there was a birthday party downstairs. Turned out to be the owner. A few of the family were a bit merry with drink and so a few slurred songs erupted. A fairly low key party that finished at 11 o'clock when they went home.

Sat 6th Sep - Had to resort to earplugs last night due to road noise, and eventually managed to get a fair night's sleep. After breakfast hired bikes from the North west guest house across the road for 50 Baht a day. No need for a map of this area as it is simple enough to navigate without. Plenty of nice villages within easy access. The first heading north was an OTOP Karen village (One Tambon One Project). Traditional wooden stilt houses but fairly quiet. It's saturday and maybe they're off elsewhere. A gentle cycle around the peaceful outlying areas, with palm trees poking their heads above the low-lying rice paddy fields, laced with the brown waters of the irrigation streams. Not too hot today, so nice to saunter along at a lazy pace. At one point we stopped to watch a herd of goats and cows meander past, wood and brass bells chiming away as they lollop along. The young shepherds were real local kids with wide brimmed hats, wellington boots and real cheeky demeanour.

Stopped off at an outdoor keep fit area overlooking a wonderful view of the paddy fields. A bit neglected these days but would have been beautiful in its heyday.

After lunch at a rustic shack-like restaurant by the riverbank, we carried on eastwards towards a gold sitting buddha on a distant hill. No idea what it is called but it was hard work getting there. Must be getting unfit I guess? On nearing the place we could hear beat music getting louder. The surprise was that they had the largest speaker stacks I had seen for a while. Suitable for a decent rock concert! One of the old monks made conversation with us as we were recovering from the journey. Wasn't clear what was going on but looked like it was a meeting or focal point for the youth of the area. Maybe they want buddhism to be more funky and with it?

At the top of the site was the gold sitting buddha we had seen from afar. A small pagoda was perfectly located to sit under and admire the view across the valley. Returned the bikes back to town and felt wiped out, so relaxed the rest of the afternoon. Started throwing it down later but had to go out to eat. Felt like some treats, so stopped at a couple of street sellers. Thailand, especially in northern provinces have some great rice based deserts. Dozens of varieties available using combinations of sticky rice, tapioca or similar for 5 Baht a piece wrapped in banana leaves. Yummy washed down with some wine. The restaurant we eat at was more like someone's home, like many here...surrounded by their hobbies and general domestic stuff. Makes you feel part of the family.

Sun 7th Sep - Had decided to head north to Mae Hong Son today. Buses leave at 10:30 and noon plus later times, so that gave a nice casual start to the day. Good breakfast at our favourite hangout at Sawaddee retaurant and a brief chat with an american guy who has been travelling for 8yrs in search of somewhere to live..I feel like that! Then off to the bus station. The bus heading towards Chiang Mai arrived and left at 10:30 and our's soon followed, departing at 11am. Whilst waiting we watched a guy who had set up stall making little perspex encased momentos. His home made portable workbench was perfect for his needs and it was interesting to see him in action, something he looks to have been doing for decades. Fortunately, the bus wasn't too full and managed to get a good seat eventually. It seems odd when the seats on a bus are randomly positioned with no set legroom...some long, some short, some so short almost nobody can fit in. 106 Baht for the 4 hour or so journey (about 140km). After a really heavy and prolonged downpour last night, the sky is really clear and fresh today, perfect for the journey. Next time I come on this journey, I reckon it will be in a car or on a motorbike as there are many places that would be perfect for a stop along the way.

The bus stopped at Khun Yuam for lunch. A nice place which is a possible stop for a few days trekking, but that might be for the future. Had a great meal for 20 Baht. Got to the new bus station in Mae Hong Son at around 3pm. A couple of kilometres south of the town centre, so not far to walk although there were enough motorbikes waiting for transport.

We had an idea from the guidebook and conversations that we wanted to head for the lake on the eastern side of the centre. Didn’t take long to find something as plenty to choose from although all a bit worn. The Johnkhum Guest House at 300 Baht a night in a wendy style house was a nice change from the other places around and part of it Overlooks the lake. Settled in and then walkabout followed by dinner at Sunflower café, which had live music playing.

Mon 8^th Sep – The lake where we are staying is in a prime position in the town with a wonderful setting. To one side is the Wat Chong Klang temple and monastery which is quite attractive from afar but doesn’t bear much close inspection as it is a little worse for age. It does have a nice little museum inside which shows some relics brought in from Burma in 1857.

In town there are a few nice cafes and restaurants which are a bit quiet at this time of year, so you don’t have any problem getting a seat or fast service.

Tue 9th Sep - Wanted to do some exploring today without paying for an organized tour. Picked up an automatic motorbike for 180 Baht from PA motors, opposite the lake. They provided a simple map of the area which turned out to be a bit unreliable, so a bit of interpretation required. Wanted to visit one of the long neck Karen villages away from the main tourist circuit, so aimed for one near the Burmese mountains. The Karen Longneck village was a fairly long ride from the main route 108 north/south road, but part way over there was a sign to follow for the village. The dodgy part of the journey started when the road fizzled out and became a dirt track. For Victoria’s first time riding a motorbike in a long time, she did very well. A tough start to learn on. The dirt road became riddled with muddy pools and deep tracks of mud to get stuck in. The fun carried on when we reached a fast flowing river and had to ride through it. At one stage we didn’t think it was worth the risk as many bikes that passed where trail bikes or 4-wheel drive vehicles, but decided to give it a go and it was actually easier than it looked, and washed some of the mud off the bike.

The entrance to the Baan Mai Naisoi ‘Temporary Shelter Area’ longneck village was also the location of the beginning of a locals only Burma border crossing, a further 10km along a narrow dirt track. A little bamboo hut had a couple of guys with a register for anyone wanting to pass. The village I think was part of a group of refugee villages around the area, and this particular one was called section 4.

The village we visited was actually two adjacent villages, occupied by the Kayah Ka longneck Buddhist people and the Kayah Ko catholic people. Both groups seem to be part of the Padaung group of people, but not sure what the relationship is? When I visit one of these villages there is always that ethical question...they get an education for themselves and their children....but were they enticed here originally for commercial reasons? They no longer have to work like they did in Burma and the women sit around and talk...the men are off elsewhere. Some women do go into town. In this particular location, the village is shared being a sort of refugee camp with long neck and long ears. Many women wear ornate necklaces made from foreign coins and keys… a symbol of the west. One old woman came out and sat on her verandah. She was very typical with red mouth...derived from the constant chewing of betel nut/paste in leaf. She offered us some, but we declined as I have tried it before and it doesn’t appeal.

Carried on Into the school which was set out into organized classrooms labeled standard 1 to 6. Everyday between 9am to 11am they learn languages english, burmese, kareni as well as mathematics and start from 6yrs old. To one side of the school was what I guess to be a burial ground, with tall poles carrying houses on top. A bit overgrown so didn’t look to have been any recent additions!

I felt more uncomfortable walking around this place more than most previous visits as, to me it was a glorified shop. The people don’t have a normal life anymore. The merchandise they all sell is the same and made elsewhere, although they will say it is made by themselves. It certainly isn’t. There may be some needlecrafts mixed in with the mass produced stuff they try to sell. You do feel sorry as very few people will buy anything and as it is low season, they must be frustrated by sitting around all day and not selling anything. They do have the time to talk with us and are all very friendly. What they did show us was a document produced from some research about the effects on their necks with the brass rings. Many stories abound about this. The document seemed fairly detailed and was adamant that the effects of the coils was not detrimental to their health should they later decide to remove them. In fact, many do choose to do so and there was one girl with them removed. Her neck was maybe half as long again as a normal neck and tapered to match the shape of her previously worn rings. She was suffering no ill effects. If fact the evidence shows that the ribcage, being like a hinge from the main sternum, will eventually return to normal after a number of years. When the rings are in place, the ribs are pushed down to upto a 45 degree angle, as shown on x-rays that were in the report.

After leaving the village and a more confident return journey along the dodgy access road, we stopped for lunch at a nice rustic village hut in Baan na sa. Visiting the toilet in that place was an experience wort remembering. Pays to hold your nose, but you can’t help but warm to their simple lifestyle….nothing posh here! One of the walls though was covered in the boxing from a widescreen television!

Next stop Fish cave. This was a beautiful place and not what we expected. Yes, A bit touristy at the entrance with souvenir stalls and eateries, but once in to the main park…pretty bridges set amongst forest and streams, with elephant creeper hung between the trees. A lovely old moss-covered water-wheel adjacent to the fast flowing river and masses of fish in the pond in front of the small cave which gives the site its name, although the cave itself is fairly small with a couple of nice statues and a shrine. Only two other foreigners around so enjoyed the peace and quiet to ourselves.

Wed 10^th Sep – Had to return the bikes at 11am so wanted to make use of them this morning. Above Mae Hong Son is Wat Doi Kong Mu temple. A great vantage point and from where to view the surrounding area. To the west of the center is the Airport with its landing strip that must have one of the prettiest approaches around, nestled in amongst a gorgeous valley. It would also be worth going up there late in the evening to have coffee and watch the sunset. The main complex is the best for the view of the area although there is a higher place where there is a temple and a tall slender standing Buddha.

After returning the motorbikes, did some checking around on options for some trekking in the area and settled on using Jod from the Sun flower café. Many options but he was good in working out our requirements and could speak good English, Will be setting off tomorrow morning on either a two or three day trek with one or two homestays depending on how things go as we progress.

At around noon announcements began over the public tannoy. Had no idea what they meant until the Guest House owner told us they were spraying the area against mosquitos and we had to vacate at around 1pm for 5 minutes or so. This is where lack of language can be a problem!

As if on queue, the sky let loose and it poured. We had to eat so went off to the Crossroads restaurant for a meal…the rains increased to deluge proportions and the thunder and lightening set in too. Coincident with this, the guys doing the mosquito spraying were doing their rounds of the restaurants and streets spraying into drains and plants. The restaurant filled with smoke and had to run to escape. The timing was critical as shortly afterwards the rain got even heavier. Considering what they were spraying, all they had on was a flimsy surgical mask. Obviously, their health didn’t seem to be too much of an issue! IT does make you wonder the effectiveness of this type of campaign. Not sure it has much effect at all, but at least they are trying.

Chaing Mai 2

jeffbrad — Mon, 1 Sep 2008 09:04:00 GMT

Sat 30th Aug - Moved to the Micasa guest house for a change, and it turned out to be a good decision. Free wifi, good breakfast and nice staff. In the afternoon went to the Wat Mahawan Temple on Tha Pae road. So many in the area and all different.

Sun 31st Aug – My Arm was feeling much better today. Hired a tuk-tuk for the day for 800 Baht. On the way out in the country we stopped for a ohoto shoot…nice one..but the main point was I had asked our driver the cost of buying a tuktuk….all part of research for the future…a snip at around 200,000 Baht (about 3,500 GBP). Now that’s worth thinking about!

First stop was a small village but couldn’t work out the name. Wandered around for an hour or so watching the kids play and into the farm fields to see them planting Choko, a type of gourd also called ‘Chayote’, where almost everything can be eaten…fruit, stems, root, leaves, so very useful in poorer communities.

Next. went to Queen Sirikit Botanical gardens on Mae Rim road (Route 107) 40 Baht entry plus 30 Baht for shuttle bus. Opened in 1994 it covers quite a large area most of which involves walking a fair way up steep slopes, well it would if you were upto it. I wasn’t pushing it at the moment so we got the shuttle bus service for 30 Baht. The Orchid house was a bit depleted of colour at present, but must be nice when more flowers are in bloom. A main large glasshouse and some smaller ones are dedicated to a Rainforest environment and bromeliads, insectivorous plants, and other groups of plants. For the time we were there must have only seen a handful of other foreigners…peaceful!

Next on the trail today was the Baan Tong Luang ethnic village...white Karen, Mong, Palong and long neck Padaung. A fairly steep but worthwhile 500 Baht entry fee. The village has been set up in an eco-friendly way, and isn’t too touristy, all though its very existence is really as a result of tourism. The tribal groups are separated from each other as they operate as proper communities with their own schools. With no common language between them, they don’t associate with each other.

The first group was the White Karen - So called because they wear white headscarfs. A friendly elderly man showed us his house and was proud of the mousetraps they used, so eagerly gave us a demonstration on his finger. He was a laugh as he kept chuckling at everything. He was 70 years old. An elderly lady outside was supposed to be 80 years old and wasn’t sure whether that was his wife or mother? You never know in these parts!

The next group were the ‘Palong people’ who are sometimes called the ‘Long ears’ , although there are different groups relating to this name, some stretch their earlobes to create large openings. Here, the women wear tubes through their ears and decorative traditional dress, complete with metal waistband. One lady was busy threshing beans from dried pods whilst an older woman was crushing grains of rice in a traditional wooden cantilever crusher, similar to what I had seen in Sapa in Vietnam. She had been chewing tobacco and betel leaves that give them their characteristic red teeth and mouth. Looks garish, but they like it.

The most famous of the group is the Padaungs, or ‘Long Necks’. The girls start to wear brass neck rings and leg rings from 5yrs old and the average Weighs in at 5kg for the teenagers! Some increase this as they get older. One of the girls said that they say they die if they remove the rings. I had previously heard that it wasn't true as the rings suppress their collar bond and do not stretch the neck, which remains as strong as normal, so not sure what to believe now? We were left to meander around at our leisure and had plenty of time talking to them and watching their children playing. The husbands are fairly low profile and were off doing chores or cooking the dinner. One of the girls was studying English, but not sure what her future would be as none of them have left the village since their arrival, and they don’t plan to leave.

Back to town and later out for meal and pool. Heavy rain again…

Mon 1st Sep – Getting nearer to moving on form Chiang Mai now. Present Visa runs out on 16^th September, and the present thought is to aim north and cross in to Myanmar at Mai Sae. A 10 day visa is available at the border for $10 and that should give us enough time to see something and aim southwards to cross back into Thailand for another month. All will evolve…

Chiang Mai

jeffbrad — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 09:00:00 GMT

This isn't my normal presentation for a blog but all will become clear as it hasn't been a normal time...

Time seems to have slowed down a bit and enjoying it. Been on the move too much but knew that would be the case whilst going through Japan and China.

Last night was even worse with my shoulder and hardly slept, couldn’t get comfortable and it got to the stage when I was in so much pain that it drove me to tears L and had to do something about it. So this morning went to the incredible Chiang Mai Ram hospital, which is just outside of the old city on the north western side. Everyone knows where it is.

Information desk at the entry was immediately helpful and pointed me to the main Information and check-in desk area. Within a matter of a couple of minutes my details were on the system and pointed towards the orthopedic section to see a doctor. Blood pressure taken…slightly worrying as I used to be 142/90’ish and their reading was 176/94, so not good but explainable by the stress of the pain I was in. Fortunately, this was re-taken later and had dropped to 150/92 so that was a relief and would drop even lower after the treatment. Ended up requiring x-rays and that showed quite clearly what the problem was. The joint between my shoulder and the arm socket has calcification in the tissue which affects the nervous system in that area. My shoulder is swollen behind the trouble spot and it all presses together to cause extreme pain. The short term treatment is to get rid of the swelling with a cortisone injection in the muscle tissue supplemented by pain killers and analgesics and rest of my arm. In three days time or so, if it hasn’t improved then I need to go back for another injection, this time directly into the calcified tissue area. The doctor didn’t want to do it this time as it would have hurt too much. If that doesn’t work then it would require keyhole surgery to remove the affected tissue. Will have to judge this as I go along. What was amazing was the superb efficiency of this hospital. Immaculate and elegant staff, first class service. The whole lot..consultation, x-rays, plenty of medical supplies and a sling, cost 2,200 Baht. I have an ID card for any subsequent visits within Thailand and also can collect my x-rays for shipping to the uk at anytime or have them posted.

My friend Victoria has been great throughout the past few days, couldn’t have had better support. Victoria is off on a 3-day meditation and Buddhism learning course so I will have a few days of rest and relaxation on my own to see how I recover with the medication.

Later in the evening went out for a walkabout and a meal. There are so many places to eat and drink here that you could go somewhere different every night for at least a year! It is a place I feel so relaxed in. Even though I shouldn’t have done it I played pool for a bit in one of the bars. I think the pain-killers work and the exercise should hopefully work at helping sort the problem. Will see in the morning when the tablets have work off!

What I am also enjoying whilst I have a breather is catching up with friends. It is surprisingly difficult at times to do all of those things you mean to do and never get around to. Luckily I have many wonderful friends who are all dear to me, and need this catch-up period. The fact that I have decided to spend a long time in Thailand means that I am in no hurry to run around and see stuff now…it’s not going anywhere, so there will be plenty of time. More important to re-charge!

Thought the pain in my shoulder would have subsided after a couple of days, but it didn’t and if anything got worse. I had to go back to hospital and this time have an injection straight into the tissue in my shoulder. With that and plenty of painkillers and anti-inflammatory tablets, I expected something would start to improve soon. After a few more days not much change though. All I can do is take it easy and see what happens.

On Friday (29^th Aug), I felt like getting out so we went up to Doi Suthep high on the hill above the city. The tuk-tuk up there normally costs 50 Baht each way, but at this time of year there aren’t as many people going, so we had to pay a bit more. It is a superb temple and a grand view of the surrounding valley. The climb to get there is a terrific winding road which is superb on a motorbike. When I was here in January I hired a bike and no sooner as I had, the heavens opened and threw its contents on me and then turned freezing cold. I still set off up the hill but had to abandon three quarters of the way up as I was wet and cold. Today however, the weather was superb and with a lovely blue sky. There was an option to get a cable-car from the tuk-tuk drop-off point to the top which we took for 20 Baht, but it really doesn’t save you much as the stairs aren’t that bad. The view from the balcony area is excellent and there is a clear view of the airport too. Spent an hour and a half looking around which was enough. The main gold stupa is currently undergoing some work and is covered in scaffolding but it doesn’t detract from its stunning quality.

Back down into town later and the sky opened again. It seems a common feature of this place at the moment. Not worth making any fixed plans when the weather is unstable.

Will do a more detailed update soon when I know what is going on with my shoulder...Bye for now.