Upon returning from Burma, Chiang Mai felt like home more than ever. I found myself with more confidence as well. I would walk into a shop before and be intimidated, but post Burma I felt like I could handle anything. Nothing toughens you up like a trip of that sort, especially alone. I have never experienced culture shock in Thailand, but the last few days in Burma I was starting to feel it.
I've noticed lately that I have to pinch myself at times as a reminder I live here. It's not so much taking it for granted, rather than feeling so adjusted that a water buffalo holding up traffic in the middle of the road is no biggie. Leaving the city helps as a reminder.
This past weekend I road tripped to Chiang Dao with my lovely friend Sara. Friday afternoon we hopped on our motorbikes and made the little-over-an-hour trip through the mountains, and along a river. When the air blowing off the cool river would hit me, it made me feel like I was back home- In Oregon.
The weekend was spent at the base of Thailand's third largest mountain, Doi Chiang Dao. Our bamboo hut was cozy but nicely furnished. The food was amazing. Saturday was spent lounging by the pool. Sara reading a book called "Falang," and I chose "Ladyboys" from the shelf of used books to exchange. We also explored Chiang Dao Cave and Sara purchased a sweet pair of flops for only 30 Baht! It was pretty much eat, read, relax. Repeat. Worrying doesn't change the outcome, but sometimes you need to escape your environment to rest your mind.
After a very chaotic few weeks at school this was a successful attempt to just clear our heads. I will not go into details, as it is my professional integrity at stake, but there was an incident in our class that resulted in an accusation from a parent and the most stressful day of my career thus far. This along with many other stressors and behavior issues had really just pushed me over the edge mentally and emotionally. I know this sounds a tad dramatic, but in reality I am not exaggerating. If anything I am under reporting the magnitude of those weeks.
The good news is that through all this I had the support of my friends and colleagues here in Thailand. Their help made all the difference in the world.
No matter where you live in the world you are bound to run into hard times. Through all the chaos and drama that Thailand has brought into my life I am thankful for two things. The first is that through it all I have remained true to myself. Not only to who I am, but to the person I want to be. It feels good to know this, and that karma truly does exist. The latter is that I have built friendships and relationships with people here that are true and genuine.
After a wonderful birthday weekend- including 5 birthday meals! I have so much to look forward to. Including, but not limited to, a much anticipated visitor. We can't control many things in our lives, but we can control how we chose to deal with them. Most importantly, if we are very lucky, we can chose wonderful people to surround ourselves with.
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