2 Month Anniversary

November 11th marked my 2 month anniversary of arrival in Chiang Mai (CM). Yes, I flew in on the 10 year anniversary of September 11th. This provided a point of reference for some reflection. I am definitely not on a vacation, as we work very hard at school and the work week is long. I would not trade it for anything at this point. I am lucky to have found a job here in Thailand that satisfies me as a career teacher.

So far I have:

Seen most of the attractions in the CM area, traveled to Lao for 10 days, motorbiked it to the "rooftop of Thailand," met some amazing people, met some not so great people. Moved twice, only lost my cool in public once (Biggest no- no in Thai culture, but if you have been reading my blog that was the week I experienced the "Wrath of Thailand." So hopefully it's forgivable). Managed to not die on the motorbike (just knocked on some wood). Found out that I have a congenital anomaly (birth defect) in 2 parts of my spine, experienced Loy Krathong, lost about 6 kilos
(approx 12 lbs) and I have no idea why- ride my motorbike everywhere and I eat, a lot. Learned about Buddhism. Reaffirmed that I do in fact believe in Karma. Gotten lost more than I care to admit, but found some cool places as a result. Started to pick up some Thai (nit noi), played in the river with elephants, and hung out with 3 full grown male tigers.

I am sure there are details I am missing, but not too shabby for 60 days.

Although I am very much a foreigner here I am becoming more comfortable with this, it helps to make some Thai friends, and find a few decent Farangs ;)

The most important thing happening is the development of my independence. There are days where I am lonely, and moments that I long for home or the people that I love and miss. These moments are fleeting compared to what I am gaining from this experience, and for that I am thankful.

Learning How to Take Care of Myself in a Foreign Land

Upon return from Lao I found myself in a pretty low place. So I had been here for about a month and a half, and thought I had made this great group of friends, was establishing a life and routine, and then it all kinda came crashing down. I think those nights I cried myself to sleep weren't just about the people I was with, but the fact that I live in SE Asia now and it isn't always easy. As those who are close to me know, I tend to repress, so when it finally comes out it's usually not just about the one thing. On the flip side of that this was a healthy thing, I needed to feel it so I can move forward.
When I first arrived, everyone I talked to told me this would happen: "It might be 2 or 3 months, but eventually it will hit you that you actually live here. You will totally freak out, then it will get past it and you will be okay. Everyone goes through it." OKay so I think this was mine. Or at least I hope that was it.
That first week back from break I just sort of kept to myself. Ate lunch in my room, or off campus, and was overall just pretty bummed out, homesick, and lonely. Don't feel sorry for me. This is what I signed up for and it was bound to happen. Chances are it won't be the last time, but at least the initial realization I am not on vacation, and I actually LIVE here has passed.
So what did I do? Skip my favorite holiday- Halloween, and run away to Doi Inthanon- the highest mountain in Thailand.

Somehow I knew this was what I needed, and it truly was. Once I got there I realized what it was I was searching for- to reconnect with Thailand. I was so caught up in the problems I was having with people around me I forgot why I am really here.

Thursday night I packed up my bags, didn't get a wink of sleep (it was just one of those nights I couldn't turn my mind of), and the next day directly from school took off for Chom Thong, and Doi Inthanon National Park. I had made arrangements to stay in a small hut near the park for 400 bht/ night (that's about 12 bux),In the end the owner considered me a friend and gave me a considerable discount. The directions had been translated in Thai from the owner (Nok) to my assistant, to me, so unfortunately when I arrived I could not find the place. I rode through Chom Thong a few times looking for the proper landmarks, and with no success pulled over off the main highway. This was all it took to remind me why I love Thailand so much. A family- literally 6 people came running out to me on my bike to help. None of them spoke much English but through some hand gestures and broken Thai I managed to tell them what I was looking for. Before I had the chance to offer up my mobile the woman had her phone out and was calling the resort. (I knew I couldn't because the owner didn't really speak English). They told me to go to "Tesco/ Lotus" which is like Safeway/ Costco, and wait. Soon a young man on a motorbike met me there and I followed him to the resort. This is the sort of "go out of your way for a complete stranger" culture that I love so much about Thai people. At this point I was instantly reminded why I am here, and came back to a happy place.
I arrived at the "Forest Lanna Resort" and they instantly showed me to my "hut" and took me straight to have dinner. I learned a little about the owner her name is "Nok" and we became fast friends. She instantly liked me once she found out I was a single woman who rode my bike 50 km alone from Chiang Mai. Funny how the first two women I met on my trip (the first at the house that gave me directions) asked the same thing- "You have a boyfriend?" Me- "No" "You have a girlfriend?" Me- "No" "You ride motorbike all by yourself" Me- "Kha" (Yes). "Okay- We friend." Always a positive to be commended for being an independent woman.
I retired to my hut, settled in a bit, caught up on some reading and had a good night's rest. Slept especially hard as I hadn't slept at all the night before.

The next morning I got up for breakfast and coffee at Lanna, then headed up the mountain to Doi Inthanon. 40 kms to reach about 7,000 ft above Sea Level. Admission to the park is 200 Bht for foreigners, but if you have a work permit in Thailand they charge you the Thai price. I paid 60 Bht. The ride was cold, and not really all that much fun. It's been a while since I have felt like I was in Oregon. In this case it was not nostalgic. I powered through and my bike and I made it to the top.
The two temples near the summit were built by the Thai Air Force, and are called the Napamaytanidol Chedi. These temples were built to honor the King and Queen in 1987 and 1992. The one to honor the queen offered an especially interesting history of Siddhartha and the first female monk. I am still learning about Buddhism and am in no way familiar with the role women have played in it's history so I found this particularly enlightening.
The mist cleared and came back off and on, but offered some glimpses of the valley bellow. It was beautiful. I wandered through and around the temples, botanical gardens, and walked by a Thai officer who yelled "Hello, I love you!" I just laughed and smiled. Pretty sure if I had responded he wouldn't have known what to say anyway ;) People were kind, and there weren't too many tourists so that was nice.
My bike was low on gas, so I chugged it up to the summit, took a pic, and headed back down. About half way back to Lanna I stopped in a small village to refuel and stumbled upon a particularly breathtaking waterfall. It was not easy to get to, but I ditched my stuff and made my way as close as possible along the slippery limestone.
The rest of the afternoon I made stops here and there exploring villages, the countryside, and a few waterfalls/ rapids.
That evening I went to the south end of Chom Thong and had a particularly memorable experience. I found my way to a temple visible from the road with a HUGE golden statue of "he who rest" on the side of the mountain. I have seen this same monument in other places but not to this scale. So I wound through the village and eventually made my way up. I met some Thai people and they invited me to participate in evening prayers with them. It was a really amazing experience and gave me a sense of peace that I can't really explain. Monks were chanting and singing in the background and the sun was setting.

Yep, this is why I came to Thailand.

Lao Lao- Same Same

For out October break I spent 9 days in Lao with 4 Canadian girls, 3 of which are teachers at NIS. You learn a lot about people when you travel with them. This group has much more experience traveling than I do, and are all very tight knit. It was apparent within the first few days that I was the outcast for various reasons.

We began our trip by flying into Luang Prabang from Chiang Mai. I instantly fell in love with LP. It is so calm and laid back. Immediately upon arrival we all felt a release of the stress of CM, and found ourselves at an amazing guest house right on the river.

The morning after we arrived we got up at 5 am to participate in the offerings to the monks that come around the city. You kneel down and offer each monk that comes around sticky rice. These offerings are for the people's ancestors. The locals all participate, and foreigners are invited to join as well.

That morning I just happened to wake up with food poisoning but I was determined not to miss this cultural experience so directly after I went home and spent the morning sleeping it off. By noon I was all good and met back up with the group.

We went to an Aussie bar to watch the New Zealand vs. Australia Rugby semi- final. It was crazy. I was along for the ride as an "All Blacks" fan (that's their team name), and there was lots of heckling going on. Pretty sure if the group I was with had been dudes they would have been punched out...

I found myself quite embarrassed by peoples obnoxious, belligerent behavior and went for a walk to see a temple and take a break. After the game we went to another bar and the rest of my group was so drunk they went home and passed out by 7 pm. Being in a conservative Buddhist country I just felt like I did not want to be associated with this type of behavior. I had made some other friends by then, so we went and had some dinner. Followed by drinks and a trip to the infamous after- hours disco tech and bowling alley. In Lao the bars have to close at 11:30 pm by law so this is the only place you can still go out. I negotiated a tuk tuk to take us down from 20,000 kip to 8,000 kip. After that I was known as the "negotiator" of the trip- especially with my new friends I made along the way. We had loads of fun and I returned home late.

The following day all but one of us went to the waterfall outside of town. It was absolutely beautiful. The water was clean and clear, but tinted a shade of light green from the limestone. While swimming there were these little shrimp that would nibble on your dead skin. I had a burn from the week before in CM from a motorbike and they went right for it- eeeeee it was the weirdest feeling.

After spending a wonderful day at the waterfall we returned back to town, and hung out at a great spot for dinner and hookah called Eutopia. If you ever find yourself in LP I highly recommend. While there I negotiated a decent price for a private van to take us over the mountain to Vang Vieng- still the group of us 5 girls. We had heard various horror stories from other tourists about it taking 8- 12 hours when it's supposed to 5-6. Crazy people, horrible experiences on the curvy mountain roads, etc. So we decided it best to pay a bit more and have a reliable source of transportation. All went smooth and the journey was approx 6 hours with a few stops on the way. (viewpoints, food, bathroom breaks). Def worth paying for.

After checking into the hostel we spent the evening out and about. It was lots of fun and we ran in to people that were on the same path as us and we had met in LP.

The next day we went to tubing.

OKay so here's the thing about Vang Vieng. It is not a very big town and it pretty much exists because of the tourism that comes from the tubing that takes place on the river. There are bars all along this river near town, so people rent inter-tubes, get wasted, and get into this very fast moving water. When you get near to the next bar they throw out a rope with a plastic bottle attached that basically hits you in the face and you have to scramble to pull yourself in and climb up without losing the inter-tube. This sounds ridiculous enough, but combine that with buckets of liquor, free shots at each bar, and people using car paint to stencil paint their bodies. In the last three months 20 people have died here.

In the recent past floods washed away all the structures and bars along the river. the town decided to rebuild- clearly because really that is what their economy is based on. Without the tourism there isn't much else. It is such a contradiction though. You are in a Buddhist, communist country and have this place that attracts the most obnoxious, rude, drunk backpackers around. The river was so beautiful but I am sure most people are too wasted to even care about their surroundings. I am fine with having experienced this once, but I will not ever be returning to Vang Vieng.

The next day- our last one in vang Vieng we rented mountain bikes and rode out of town to the caves and Blue Lagoon. It was truly mountain biking. Now how I am not a bike person to begin with. I like to hike, run, walk, but find bikes enjoyable. Why anyone would enjoy riding up hills and being on roads that are so bumpy it hurts your neck and head from all the impact is beyond me. I found it quite miserable, but will say the effort was worth the pay off in views of the countryside, caves, and the lagoon. That evening we headed back and I just kind of did my own thing, and went to bed early as my back was hurting from all the biking, climbing and hiking.

While out in the countryside we met an amazing man named "P" and he is a monk who has traveled all over the world. He lived in the Jungle in Thailand for many years and walked from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, and then to Chiang Rai. He now teaches English at a local village school with the Hmong people (It means Mountain People). He invited us to come to the school and play with the children.

We arrived at the school and after driving through the village it was clear these people live off the land, and don't have much else. They are happy and very hard working. It is hard to remember not to be judgmental as a westerner, and think "oh these poor people.." This is their way of life and it should be respected. Who are we to judge? Having the opportunity to teach these children and play with them was invaluable and something I will never forget. There truly are no words.

That day we made it back to Luang Prabang and this is when things started to get pretty tense between me and the rest of the group. I had overheard some unkind words, and really just felt like I was with the "Mean Girls." That first night back I couldn't even stomach eating my dinner and just went back to my room crying myself to sleep. The next night one of the girls got so belligerently drunk that she decided to confront me to tell me she didn't like me, and was going to punch me out. Making a huge scene in the bar. It was beyond mortifying. A guy who had joined our group even asked me- "Why are they so mean to you?" So I really don't think I was being over sensitive. Oh well. Live and Learn. There is a reason why people always talk about being careful with who you travel with.

So for the last day or so I did my own thing. Wandered around the city. Climbed to the temple at the highest point overlooking Luang Prabang, took a sunset cruise on the Mekong River. Then went to the night market to buy some street food for dinner (as I was on a tight budget by the end of the trip). As I was walking down the street a Lao man called out to me "You look so happy!" It reminded me that I was still enjoying this trip and making the best of it. I am a pretty independent person so maybe I am just meant to travel alone.

That last night I ran into a girl I had met at The Elephant Nature Park in CM, and her and a group of guys met up with me at Eutopia. We relaxed had a beer, and smoked hookah. It was delightful and left me feeling content with the end of my trip.

Next day it was back to CM. I came home, and slept. Then the next day rode my bike up the mountain to Doi Suthep which is a temple that is at the top of the mountain overlooking CM. It was a bit too touristy for me, but the view was worth it. I didn't want to just rest all day because I was tired from vacation and afraid I would sleep all day and make it even more difficult to get back into the routine of returning to school the next day.



Most people don't know that Lao is the most bombed country in the history of the world. I certainly didn't. There is still evidence today, and if you are interested in learning more I encourage you to do some research. Just goes to show how many things go on in the world we don't have a clue about.

Overall I am truly happy I had the opportunity to travel to Lao and would go back to Luang Prabang anytime. Fell in love with that city, the people, and their culture. I think there is much truth when people say it is the best of SE Asia. Just be careful who you travel with ;)