Our destination is in North West Thailand nestled in the foothills of the Himilayas. Upon arriving I had flashbacks to arriving at the airport last year in Puerto Vallarta. The scenery was similar.
 |
| Elle at the Chedi |
We arrived early and checked in to our fantastic hotel, The Chedi (highly recommend it!)
 |
| Girls on boat cruise |
We still had half a day so we decided to fill it with a 2 hour cruise on the Ping River. While not a highlight of the trip, it did give a good glimpse into Chiang Mai and the people who live along the river. It was surprising to find so many poor homes alongside the river and then to see the occasional “mansion.” I guess that is pretty typical worldwide.
 |
| Fisherman on banks of Ping |
Day number two was a full day in every way. The girls and I headed to breakfast and while we were eating, there was a man sitting at a table in front of us. I assumed he was from Thailand. He commented that Katie looked just like me. I made polite conversation and felt OK because I can already tell that what I read about the Thai’s love of children has already been proven to be true. In the course of the conversation, I told him that we have recently moved from WI. Then, from out of nowhere, the gentleman sitting at a table beside us comments, “WI, the coldest state in the US.” I turn and say, “really? I would have thought it would have been Minnesota.” We continue to discuss this and it leads to the fact that he works in Siberia. Hello! Siberia??? Do people willingly work in Siberia? Apparently they do - and according to this man, it is “booming!” He mines gold. After this interaction, the man from Thailand asks the man where exactly in Siberia he works. He states that he works in Kazikstan and within 25km of Russia’s border. The guy from Thailand throws out the names of some cities in the area. It turns out the guy studies geography. Then he says something in Russian to the guy who works in Siberia. They strike up a conversation in Russian! Of all things! It was a surreal moment to be overlooking the Ping River...in Thailand...having a conversation with a Thai gentleman...then having a conversation with a man working in Siberia...and then finding out in this utterly small world that 2 of the 3 of us from different parts of the world speak Russian of all things!!
So after this, and it’s only 9:00AM, we begin our unforgettable day discovering Chiang Mai. Keri had arranged our driver and itinerary with a guide named Sipohn. Sipohn was a very informative and gracious host throughout the day.
 |
| Wat Chedi Luang |
The first stop was Wat Chedi Luang an old temple in the “Old City.” Chiang Mai used to have a wall and moat all the way around the city, which was about 2sq km. Within the city walls there were/are over 300 temples! They are literally everywhere you look. Sipohn explained that to correct bad behavior, forgive “sin” and to help purify yourself, a high priest can tell you to build a temple, hence the enormous number of temples.
This temple is over 600 years old and is also a monastery. There are separate halls for meditation, chanting, etc.
We learned that in the entryway to the buildings there is a piece of wood on the floor at the threshold. You are supposed to step over this, and not on it, because the spirits live in it.
 |
| Wax sculpture of monk |
In the meditation room there is a wax statue of the monk who built the temple, along with 3 small vials, each containing some of his hair, fingernail clippings and teeth. Kinda eery. We also learned that upon cremation, if you have attained “purity” or “enlightenment” you ashes solidify to form a shape, such as a rock.
At this temple they also have “monk chat” in which you can sit at a table and talk candidly with a residing monk. It was very interesting. The monk we spoke with has been here for 3 years and is also studying school subjects to be able to work once he leaves the monastery. He wakes at 4AM and goes to chant for 1 -1 1/2 hours. They eat one time per day and it is based entirely on donations from the population.
 |
| Meeting a Buddhist monk |
Lots of stray dogs running around.
This served as a great warmup to our next stop, Wat Phra That Doi Suthep which is 5,500ft up on the mountain and was built in the 1300’s. It is said that the site was selected by an elephant that was turned loose with a Buddha relic strapped to its back. It climbed halfway up the mountain, then would climb no more. The temple was build at the spot where it halted. According Sipohn (who was a monk for 12 years), this temple is like Mecca to a Muslim, at least for those who live in northern Thailand. It is a long ascent up the windy mountain road and then a 290 step climb.
 |
| Burmese child |
Along the way we saw the most beautiful little girl who was dressed in traditional garb and was earning money by having her picture taken. We gave her 100 bhat ($3) and when she got it she kissed it repeatedly before putting it in her little purse. It was heartbreakingly beautiful.
 |
| Over looking valley |
Up on top there were lots of bells, a beautiful golden chedi, dancers and people who were truly there to worship.
The scenery looking down on to Chiang Mai was beautiful.
 |
| Buddhist statue |
We were able to enter several of the worship temples but quickly discovered that once you enter, you must move around the floor upon your knees. Also, a female may not sit directly adjacent to a male monk because they are allowed no direct physical contact with a female.
We also receive a white string bracelet with 9 strands symbolizing good luck, virtue, etc. Females receive this on their left arm from a non-monk and males receive it on their right hand from the monk.
 |
| Katie with one of the many bells |
The kids did great. They never got antsy, bored or were disrespectful... they calmly gazed around and generally were trying to take it all in and process all of this newness. I am certain it made an impact and hopefully one of understanding that the world is so much bigger than they ever dreamed.
From there we headed off for a well earned lunch. We went to an herb farm and had a buffet. It was fine, but even better because it started pouring as soon as we entered.
Afterwards, we headed to see the “longnecks.” A rather sad referral to an equally sad situation. The longneck tribe originates in Burma. These native Burmese have “escaped” and have become refugees in Thailand. The Thai government granted them this land as a “reservation” so to speak and they live here in grass huts as they supposedly would have done in Burma. There are actually 2 tribes mixed here. One are the “longnecks” and one are the “big holes” (exceedingly large holes in their earlobes). They earn their living off of selling their wares to tourists.
 |
| Katie with the elder longneck |
The second we saw our first “longneck” we were kind of shocked into silent awe. Seeing this on the Discovery Channel is one thing. Seeing it in person is quite another. We learned that the coil goes on girls as early as 5 years old. It is a continuous solid metal coil, so the “rings” that I thought were stacked atop one another is actually not the case. As the child/woman grows, the remove the current coil and replace it with a longer coil. This is the ONLY time that the coil is ever removed. We were told that if a woman has her coil removed for more than a few hours she will die because her spine alone cannot support the head any longer. For women who “sin”, their coils can be removed by her parents or husband and will be “shamed” to be seen without it.
We held one of these coils and it is HEAVY. Really heavy.
The pinnacle came when we met the “elder” grandmother. She of course had the “longest” neck and it was almost superficial. Even when I look back on this picture it seems fake. It looks like Katie has been superimposed on to a photo. After Katie sat next to her, Elle sat in the woman’s lap. Both Tiffany and I felt a strange surge of emotion at that exact moment. The event was just so surreal.
After leaving the longnecks, we went on to see a snake show. They had a small arena in which loose pythons and cobras were “handled” and teased by the “trainers.” A bit hokey, but the kids were in awe nonetheless. At the end all got to hold one of the large constrictors.
Sipohn took us back to the hotel and we all had just enough time to change before our Khantoke dinner.
 |
| Khantoke Dinner |
The Khantoke dinner was at the Old Chiangmai Cultural Center. We sat on the red carpet floor and ate a traditional khantoke dinner which is a tray served with several small bowls of traditional food. You are also served sticky rice which you roll into a ball with your hand and dip into one of the bowls of food/sauce. After dinner we were treated to several dances ranging from the fingernail dance to a sword dance. Afterwards we went into an outdoor arena where tribal dances were performed. Elle had been running a fever and was pretty warm at this point. She slept throughout most of the dances.
 |
| Traditional Thai dancers |
Day number 3 and Elle woke up with a fever still going strong, plus she had been complaining of a sore tummy for a few days. My bet was on an ear infection, although she showed no signs of one. We made the decision to set off for a doctor visit. After inquiring at the front desk, one of the staff members drove Elle and I to the ER. Not only did he drive us there, but he also stayed with us the entire time making sure that we got to where we needed to be and to interpret where necessary. We did not have to wait long before we saw the doctor. He said she had an ear infection in her left ear and also felt she had some type of intestinal infection. He prescribed an antibiotic, antihistamine and lactinex granules/hydration salts. The entire bill was less than US$25. The service by the Chedi was impeccable and most unexpected.
 |
| The fish doing their work |
By the time we arrived back to the hotel, Mike had just arrived. Katie had gone touring with the Ristroph’s and had also just returned. So we all went to lunch at The Whole Earth and had another wonderful Thai food spread. From there we got a real wild hair and decided to all go to the Fish Spa.
It was a riot! The men got in right away and were chuckling a little bit as they got used to it. The four girls on the other hand were giggling up a storm and it took them almost the entire 30 minutes to actually leave their feet in the water! It was a fun day and a very “different” experience.
Later that evening,I went to a Thai cooking class with Thai Orchid Cooking School and it turned out to be a private cooking class! It was run by a brother and sister out of their family home. Our first stop before we got there was at a local market. It is actually even more primitive than the wet markets in SG. We asked where most people did their daily shopping. She told us that there is a large supermarket called Tesco where locals buy clothing, paper goods, etc. But for all grocery items they use the local street markets.
 |
| Rice paddies |
 |
| In our official elephant training gear |
Day four and today was our first big adventure...the Patera Elephant Farm. We were picked up at 7:45AM and arrived at the farm in about 30 minutes. It was in the hills and the entire valley was filled with fields and fields of green rice paddies. We were suited up in our proper attire and then we met “our” elephants. Katie had “Lucky,” Mike and Elle shared "Boatong" and I had "Maing Mai." We started by learning how to check and see if the elephants were healthy which included feeding them a basket of bananas, corn and sugar cane, checking their poop and looking at their sleeping patterns on their skin. Feeding them was pretty cool. They have a huge smooth tongue and smooth mouth palette. They push each piece of food back into the back of their throat until they have enough there to swallow. They stare at you out of the corner of their eye.
After this, we brushed them and then bathed them in the river. Really quite surreal.From there we got on our elephants. The kids all went first and not a one of them gave a moments pause getting up on these huge animals. It really was quite amazing.
We sat on the elephants heads and kept our knees on top of their ears. No saddle, no harness, just riding on the bare skin and if necessary could hold a rope that was tied around the elephants stomach.
We walked for about 45 minutes and ended at a waterfall with a pretty deep swimming hole. We had lunch up in a tree platform that over looked the waterfall. Lunch was a spread of fried chicken legs and various forms of sticky rice and coconut. Very good. |
| Not any ole' water fight... |
 |
| Katie and Lucky |
After lunch we all had the option of swimming in the pool with the elephants. All of the kids ended up getting in. I was very nervous about this option...50 pound kids in the water with 2 ton elephants? That was an accident waiting to happen. Fortunately it did not seem that bad once we got there. The elephants move very slowly and the guides were in the water right there with them. By the end of the hour or so that we were there each girl was up on an elephant and had learned the command for the elephant to spray water with their trunk. They were having a water fight on elephants! It was a riot. It was also just unbelievably remarkable that they were doing this. Here are these huge animals that before had only been seen in person at a zoo, and we are all just weaving in and out of them as if they were common barn animals. Another surreal moment in this adventure.
We rode back to our starting camp (and by this point all 4 adults are groaning at having to sit atop these animals again - sore sore hip flexors!) and say good-bye to our elephants. It was a perfect ending to a perfect day!
Day five was a slower day entailing swimming & shopping for the girls and moms. Golf for the dads.
 |
| Katie and her hand painted umbrella |
We were on a mission today to find aluminum bowls, mango wood pieces, celadon pottery and umbrella painting.
 |
| Elle and her hand painted umbrella |
Sipohn picked us up and we set out for lunch at another khantuke restaurant. The food was pretty good, and luckily Sipohn helped us navigate through how to eat the various items the proper way. We have come to find that eating with your fingers is perfectly acceptable in Thailand. There was also a very cheezy old guy playing elevator songs in the corner...a little like Patar’s. It was not quite fitting to be eating a traditional Thai meal listening to a bad version of Frank Sinatra.
 |
| All geared up for zip lining! |
Day six and happy 12th Anniversary! We had an exciting day ahead of us with the Gibbon Flight Adventure. We were picked up at 9:30 and rode for just about an hour to our destination. We were fitted with our harnesses and then we were off to zip line! We had 2 great guides and once again, the kids did such a great job with being independent and controlling any fear they may have had. They each jumped right off and sailed through the forest. Even Elle, who was originally going to go with Mike, decided to do it by herself. They all really loved it.
 |
| Mike zip lining |
We had a nice lunch on the mountain creek of soup, green chicken curry and stir fried vegetables.
From there we set off for a hike up the waterfall. A pretty good stair climb and a far cry from the rigorous safety standards we are used to in the US! But everyone loved it at the top and again, the kids did great.
 |
| At the top of the waterfall |
We rounded out our last day with plans to visit the Sunday market and to eat in the area. The market was 90% crap and every once in awhile we found a shop that had something interesting. I bought my salad bowl & tray and the kids got a few little knick knacks.
Dinner was at House and we ordered just a whole bunch of dishes to share. All in all it was probably one of the best meals and ambiance combinations that we experienced in Thailand.
It was a perfect ending.
 |
| Riding to The Chedi in our tuk-tuk |
No comments:
Post a Comment