Chiang Mai to Chaing Khong

Please excuse my horrible spelling from my last post and any incoherence that may have been present. I was so tired when I wrote that my mind was barely working. And I don’t think I mentioned just how freakin’ hot it is here! Today I got a look at a thermometer and it said it was 94 in the shade. And it is so humid here. It’s like you are constantly sticky. And when you go into the temples your shoulders and knees have to be covered, so you can’t just wear little shorts and tank tops. And the heat really taxes your brain! So today we got up early to begin our journey from Chiang mai to Chaing Khong, which we made by bus. I had to get up just a little bit earlier so I could make it to Starbucks before we left. I know I’m terrible, but it was so good. The people in Starbucks were really friendly and they asked how long I was going to be in Chiang Mai, and when I told them I was leaving today to head up north to Laos, they wanted to know why so many people are going to Laos these days. I tried to tell them it was for the nature and the culture, and they looked at me like I was a little crazy. Then I told them it was cheap, and they were like, “ah, yes.” That they understand completely. I really do want to come back to Thailand and spend more time. This trip is like such a whirlwind, you barely get a feel for the place and then you’re off.
Today, along the way, we stopped at Wat Rong Khun, which is a modern temple built about 10 years ago. Well, they started building it 10 years ago and they are still working on it. It is amazing! It is all white and it totally different from any other temple anywhere. The artist who built it is named Chalermchai. Google that if you get a chance and check out some of his art. I don’t know if anything will come up, I haven’t tried it, but he is a very famous artist in Thailand, and his art seems very familiar to me, but I’m not why. Like if I’ve actually seen it before, like in books or something, or if it just reminds me of other art I’ve seen of a similar style. (It kind of reminds me of Alexander Grey’s work. Am I getting that name right? I dunno.) Anyway, his art is really intricate and almost psychedelic. And this temple he built is super cool. The outside is all white with like mosaic mirrors and on the inside are these huge crazy murals that he painted. So we checked out the temple, and a room with a bunch of replicas of his art work, and then while I was sitting outside having a frozen watermelon iced tea, the artist, who doesn’t actually live in this town anymore, came around the corner and sat down and started signing autographs and taking pictures with people. He was like Mr. Cool, with his hat and sunglasses on. But it was really cool and very lucky of us to have actually gotten to meet him. I didn’t get a photo though cause my batteries died in my camera. But that’s ok. I got a bunch of the temple, and the fish in the fish ponds. You can’t take photos inside the temple, which is really too bad, because the murals were super cool. The artist actually paid for all of the construction of the temple himself. Most other temples are funded by the people in the community, and then their names are put on the steps or somewhere on the temple. This artist didn’t want to have any names on his temple and wanted free reign to make it just how he wanted it so he paid for it all himself. The land was donated, though. And like I said they are still building, and I guess he comes and repaints the murals on the inside, every once in a while.
We had lunch at a little restaurant by the temple and I had chicken pad thai, and you squeeze a lime on it, and it was soooo good. And it cost like right around 1 dollar, for a big plate of food. Yum city. The food here is really fantastic! (and you know how picky I am!)
So now we are in Chaing Khong, and we are staying at a super basic guest house. There are only fans in the room. Right by the toilet there is a bucket of water and a big scoop and you have to use that to flush. And the shower is basically just a shower head in a corner of the tiled bathroom. But we are right on the river and it is pretty beautiful. The whole place is made out of teak wood and you can’t wear your shoes anywhere. They also have a pet monkey in a cage, but I haven’t decided how I feel about that yet. We’ve been here for maybe 30 mintues and I feel I’m already being eaten alive by mossies (mosquitos). Ugh. They say if you eat a lot of chillies and grarlic the mossies will leave you alone, but I don’t know. I love spicey food and the mossies still seem to love me. I hate using that deet, but I’m gonna have to break it out, for sure.
We are just here for one night, and then tomorrow we will cross the boarder into Laos. We are going to be cruising on a boat up the Mekong river for 2 days. But I think we spend the first night in Pakbeng, where there are no atms and no electricity. The city has a generator, but it gets shut off at 9pm I think. Then the next night we will arrive in Luang Prabang, which has atms and internet and all kinds of stuff. That is the place that I am really excited to go and we spend like 3 or 4 nights there. Then we will also visit Vietiane Lak Sao, before we cross over into Vietnam.