Chaing Mai

It was hard to sleep. At like 1am I finally took a tylanol pm and slept until about 6am. Then it was up and at em. Our train got into Chaing Mai about 7am and we had a really good breakfast at this healthy style cafe. Then we went to our hotel for a much needed shower. Then Anne and I ditched the rest of the group and went walking around the old city. Of course we started out going the wrong direction and ended up wandering all over. We saw a few temples and then hopped in a tuk tuk, which took us to a few more. Then we went to this food court in a mall, but nothing was in English except for a Mexican food place, so we did that, and it was surprisingly good. (OK, nothing can even compare to the Mexican food in California, but it was way better than say, the Mexican food in Europe or London!) After lunch we did a half day bike tour, which was really cool. We had a local guide and it was just the two of us. We sort of rode out of town and along the river. We stopped at yet another Temple, but this one was really cool and we were there all alone which really makes for a totally different experience, instead of being somewhere with about 100 other tourists, like in Bangkok. The columns in this temple were all inlaid with mother of pearl and it was just stunning. It must have taken ages to make. And all the walls had these huge murals on them, which were also really really cool. After the Temple we rode some more, until we got to this nice shady area with little paths and little houses. Turns out we were in the oldest leaper colony in Asia. It was created in 1908 by John Mclellhen, or McCain or something like that. (Ok, no I'm sure it wasn't John McCain, lol). Anyway, he was a Christian missionary and built a place for the lepers to come and then a hospital and eventually this big huge complex for them. Back then they didn't know much about leprosy and they thought people got it because of something bad they did in a past life, and often people were shunned and sent away by their families. (I think this still happens in some places, actually). When I was in Panama in June I read this book called The Samurai's Garden, and it was sort of about Leprosy but in Japan, so it was kind of interesting to actually see a place like this in real life. I mean it is nothing I would have ever sought out on my own, but it was still interesting. They have a work shop there where people who's disease has been cured can work and use their talents. We visited it and saw a guy carving these amazing wood carvings, and women making little boxes and stuff to sell. Then of course we went to their gift shop, but you felt good spending your money there, because you saw what it was supporting, and because it's really hard for the people there to earn a living. Many of them have been abandoned by their families, and some even when they are better, stay because they are disfigured, or because they have no where else to go. After than we rode out through some rice paddies, and then to a crematorium. (yes, it was sort of a morbid bike tour, I guess). In Thailand, when someone dies, they keep the body in the home or temple for 3 days at least. (more if you are rich or really important.) Each of those nights, monks come to do a ceremony and people from the community come and visit and the family feeds all the people. Then they take the body to the village crematorium, where the body is burned. They leave the body there for 3 days, and then after 3 days, the family comes to collect the bones an put them in a stupa thing near the temple or near the crematorium. They don't sweep up the ashes, until someone else dies and they have to use the brick crematorium thingy again. They don't sweep up the ashes, because they think that would be like inviting or suggesting that someone else is going to die. So when we saw the crematorium, we also saw a bunch of ashes there, that were I guess from a dead person. A little freaky. Also, I heard someone ask about who would be the king's successor and the Thai person was like, "oh, we never talk about that, because that would be like admitting or entertaining the notion that the king might die soon." On our way back from our bike ride we stopped for something to eat and drink, banana bread, rice crackers and pineapple. It was nice. When we got back to the hotel, we had just enough time to change and then it was off to this temple on the top of a mountain. We got there just in time for the monk's 6pm service, where they did some chanting and stuff. Then we got to watch the sunset over this spectacular view of Chaing Mai. We came back and headed straight for the night market. Had some food, did some shopping, and now I'm sitting here, completely exhausted! So I'm off to bed soon!
I really like this city. It is so much less hectic than Bangkok. There was some great shopping to be had in the market, but I'm trying really hard not to buy anything (much) and I was just too tired to deal with it all. But I would love to come back to Thailand someday with an empty suitcase, just to shop.
Tomorrow we are headed up to the Lao boarder. We don't cross it yet, but we are staying somewhere close to it. And in Lao, I don't think they even have many ATM's, let alone wireless. So you might not hear from me until I get to Hanoi. My plan is to take notes on my lappy, and then maybe I'll just have to post a bunch all at once, when I get wifi access again.
(PS. the stupid American's are driving me insane. I try to go where ever they aren't. I'm so glad that only Anne an I are continuing on to Hong Kong, and that at least our guide, Yo is really good.)