Thailand -- world of adventure

Sawadee Ka: with a slight bow with hands in prayer position. Hello (and good-bye) in Thai. I kept my hands very low on my body to show that I was subservient. If the hands are at the mouth, you are a teacher, if at the nose, you are a mother, if prayer hands are at the forehead you are a monk or spiritual person. My feeling is tourists are low on the scale.

I had one bizarre moment on the airplane going from the Narita Airport in Japan to Bangkok, Thailand. Everyone was sleeping and my stomach was not being a happy camper so I got up to go to the bathroom but fainted before I got there. Amazingly, no one noticed so I couldn’t have been out very long. The plane was dark, most people were sleeping. Once I purged everything from my stomach I seemed to be fine. Must have been something I ate on the plane, or else the 10 hour flight from Seattle to Japan plus the two hour layover, took its toll on me. We still had another 7 hours to Bangkok.

Thailand has a king, and his birthday is on Monday, and the color for Monday is yellow, so you see yellow flags and people wearing yellow shirts, especially on Monday’s. This king is in his 80’s and not in the best of health, so when he dies the color of the flags will change, as will the emblem on the flags. Each monarch creates their own emblem. Traditionally it’s been a male hierarchy, but the Crown Prince is felt to be incapable of ruling so the people are trying to get the law changed so his very capable sister can pass to the throne. I’ll watch the news closely to see what happens there. We learned a ton of history, and it was very well presented. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but then I was a history major in college, so duh!

For our first day in Bangkok we went to the Royal Grand Palace. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Palace,_Bangkok The kings’ sister died on January 7th at the age of 85 so the country was in mourning. The palace was packed with people coming to pay their respects to her. We didn’t stay long but did see the giant reclining Buddha at Wat (Temple) Pho Ko Ratanakosin within the Palace complex. A HUGE Buddha. No way to get a picture of the entire Buddha, just parts of him. I loved his feet! We also saw the Emerald Buddha at Wat Phra Kaew and the Golden Chedi which is a huge pagoda at the Royal Grand Palace. The entire Palace grounds are beautiful…not with flowers but with murals and smaller highly decorated burial houses. I could have spent the entire day there, but it was so crowded! Fortunately one guy in our group was VERY tall so we didn’t get separated…our tour guide was very short, and even with her umbrella we still couldn’t see her.


The second day we went to a floating market that was outside of Bangkok. That was disappointing because it was strictly for the tourists; it wasn’t the real floating market in Bangkok. I wanted to see the real one, so I guess I’ll have to go back some time on my own. We did go on a ride in a long-boat on the market canal which was interesting. Not very safe…but very interesting, and good to know that I survived. We also saw how they make sea salt. The sea water is allowed to fill in a diked plot and then the water evaporates leaving the salt. It’s dug up by hand, and some of the workers were barefoot! It’s cleaned and bagged for sale. All hand work, no automation.
Much of Thailand is all hand work. It keeps people employed but it is hard, manual work. When you buy sea salt remember how much labor went into producing it for you.

Next stop was Nakorn Pathom to the Phra Pathom Chedi, the tallest pagoda in the world. I believe I’m correct in saying that the pagodas in Thailand were all built to hold religious relics. Many have an ash or two of The Buddha, and many hold the ashes of past kings. They are all impressive and very beautiful. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phra_Pathom_Chedi

We discovered right away that crossing a street in Bangkok, population 10 million, was a huge risk but somehow we survived! The traffic is terrible, and the pollution can be frightful. Fortunately our 4 days there were nice; warm but not unbearable. We also tried a lot of local fruits that you don't see in the U.S. One smells so bad that it’s banned from the hotels. I tried it, I didn’t notice the smell but it’s not a taste that I would hanker for.
We did see some traditional dancing at a khon performance. I thought the art form was fantastic and mesmerizing. We also saw dancing by the hill people that was also very nice, but I loved the khon performance. The dancers have long fingers and can bend them back in an elegant fashion. Sometimes they add long metal fingernails that make the hands even more elegant. We were close enough to see their faces and they were very adept at putting expression of fear, watchfulness, etc. into their eyes. No words, all done with dance. It held my attention. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dance_of_Thailand.

The third day in Bangkok we drove to Bang Pa In to see the truly magnificent summer palace of the King. The grounds are spotless. No leaf blowers or power machinery, all the grounds are swept clean with large natural fiber brooms. How wonderful to not be beset by noise. My personal opinion is that all leaf-blowers should be banned, they are no faster than using a rake, but they’re very annoying to the ears. Ok, off my soap box, sorry. After the very relaxing time at the summer palace we drove on to Ayutthaya which is the former capital of Thailand. This was the one thing I really wanted to see and it was not disappointing. At Wat Mahattat there is a Buddha head that has a tree growing around it. It is quite fascinating. There were wonderful Frangipani trees is bloom. We took a boat back to Bangkok down the Chao Phraya River and had a nice lunch on the boat. We passed a lot of beautiful temples. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayutthaya_historical_park .

On our last day in Bangkok we traveled to the River Kwai Bridge near the town of Kanchanaburi. I walked across the bridge and back. About 10 minutes later a train went over the bridge!!! I had no idea it was still in use, what would I have done if I’d been on the bridge when the train was coming!? It’s treacherous walking, so running would be out of the question. We also rode on a train for about 20 minutes and I believe it was the actual train that carried prisoners. It was certainly old, and the windows were all down in order to get some air; the train was packed. I had to stand in the aisle but that was good because I could see out windows on both sides of the train. The view was awesome looking down into the river on one side, and a steep wall on the other side. We went to the museum which told the story of the building of the bridge, and to the cemeteries. I couldn’t deal with the allied cemetery, I started crying and left. It’s beautifully tended. The Indonesians lost 100,000 people building the bridge, and the allies only lost 9,000. It’s very nice that the Thai people keep the museum and the cemeteries in good condition. I have no idea if we contribute money to this museum, but we should. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanchanaburi The movie was not exactly factual, but it made the bridge and the history famous.

The lady that I travelled with knew a general in the Thai military because he’d been a foreign exchange student in her high school and they’d been friends. She got in touch with him and he invited us to dinner on our last night in Bangkok. He brought his lovely wife and delightful daughter, too. It was a very nice evening. It was nice to have local food, it was excellent. On the whole we had much better food when we were left on our own to eat than we did at the “included” meals provided with the tour. I think this is typical of tours (this was my second tour in a foreign land).

We flew to Chiang Rai and stayed at an island resort that was fantastic. http://www.dusit.com/hotels/thailand/chiang_rai/dusit_island_resort/index.html. The best digs I’ve ever stayed in! And the food was excellent, but not Thai food. It was also within walking distance to the town so we walked it a couple of times. We toured the Doi Tung Development Project which the Princess Mother (King’s mother) started to help the hill tribes earn money. The hill tribes are refugees from China, Burma (now Myanmar), Laos, etc., and they used to grow Opium. Since it’s now banned they needed a new way to make a living. They now make beautiful handicrafts. I bought two woven pillow covers for my “new” couch (should I ever get one!) They also had mulberry paper but it’s harder to bring home and pottery but I have plenty of that. We also went through the Princess Mother’s Doi Tung Royal Villa in the hills and it was pure joy to behold. She lived most of her life in Switzerland and moved back to Thailand in her 80’s. http://www.chiangmai-chiangrai.com/doi_tung-switzerland_in_thailand.html She designed the house using a Swiss architecture and the inside is incredibly beautiful. The walls and ceilings are one of a kind. She also loved flowers and there is a huge garden, Mai Fa Luang Garden. It definitely rivals Buschart Gardens in Canada. I wanted to stay there, too. It is hard to leave all the beautiful architecture and well-maintained landscaping. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiang_Rai_Province.

On the way back to the hotel the five of us in the van stopped at a pharmacy because one of the guys was feeling poorly. Now one wouldn’t think that a pharmacy would be of interest, one would be wrong. One of the ladies in the van was a huge shopaholic, when we said we were stopping at a pharmacy she said, “Oh, great, you can find wonderful things there.” We had to laugh. There were no shelves, just boxes and boxes of things but the owner knew what was in every box. It was amazing. You couldn’t walk around, just all boxes. It was fascinating and I’m glad she encouraged us to go in.

You see a lot of people wearing surgical masks, both in Japan and in Thailand. I assume because of pollution, but it would sure be nice if people here, who’re sick and out in public (like at the library) would wear a surgical mask. I bought some, and the next time I fly, I’m wearing one. I’ve been very sick since coming home and I know it was caused by the bad air on the airplanes. I was fine the entire time in Thailand, only sick after flying home.

Next was a long boat ride on the Mae Kok to a Karen hill tribe to ride the elephants. What a treat that was. We had an hour on the elephant and went through their village, through the forest, past rice paddies and through the river on our way back. I loved every minute of it. The lady I traveled with didn’t want to go so I rode with the husband of the shopaholic. He was fussing with his camera and said, “My camera is flashing for some reason,” I said, “Great, I’ll tell people I rode the elephant with a flasher.” The river is very dirty, I’m glad the elephant didn’t decide to suck up some water and spray me! You would not want to capsize in the long-boat, and yet we saw people panning for gold and gathering rocks to shore up the banks. I loved my elephant but she was too big to fit in my luggage to bring her home. Each elephant has a handler, and the job of handler is for life. An elephant lives to be 70-80 years old and they will only accept one handler, so when you choose that career it’s yours for life.

In Chiang Rai we visited the Wat Phra Kaew. It was the original home of the emerald Buddha that is now in Bangkok in a Wat with the same name. (By the way, there are several spellings for each of the Wat’s mentioned, I just picked one and stuck with it.) This Wat has a lot of turtles because they are purchased at the market and released in the pond at the Wat for good fortune. We toured the town’s central market and it was an amazing place with a myriad of smells and sounds. We went through one in Chaing Mai, too, also huge and amazing. A person could spend a long time shopping around in the market but alas when you’re on a tour you don’t have time. I definitely need to return. I’m sitting here munching dried mango that I got there, very good.

We rode on a rickshaw in Chiang Rai…I wouldn’t do that again. Not a highlight of my trip. It’s strictly a way to get some tourist money and my rickshaw driver was quite rude. I would have much rather walked to town and met the group at the market, but I didn’t know it would be so repugnant to me. We took the bus to Mae Sai which is the northern most point in Thailand on the Myanmar border. I climbed A LOT of steps to see into Myanmar. Thailand and Myanmar drive on opposite sides of the road, so in the middle of the bridge to Myanmar you change to the opposite side of the road. Interesting. It was heavily patrolled, so I settled for a look at Myanmar from the temple on the hill. We visited the Opium museum which was interesting and there were a lot of pictures of the Long-neck people (they put metal coils around their necks as youngsters and add more as they get older, an African custom, too.) Medically it’s not that the coils stretch their necks, but the weight of the coils shrinks the spine so the neck appears longer. I don’t know if this causes back problems later in life or not. There was an excursion to their hill tribe but I didn’t go (Our guide took this picture). If they had a skill, a handicraft that I could appreciate, then I might have gone, but it just feels like it’s a freak show when you’re going to just look at what they’ve done to their body. It’s like seeing a tattooed person…he’s just a freak, and he’s done it to himself. Ok, now you know how I feel about tattoos! We took a long-boat to Laos on the Mae Kong River which starts in the Himalayans and ends in Saigon. I bought a pashmina and silk scarf there. They do cock fighting and there was one going on in a back alley. Boo. No one saw it but me, I just happened to notice it because I wasn’t shopping, but walking around.

We left Chiang Rai and took the bus to Chiang Mai through a national forest that has hot springs. We stopped at a new Wat Rong Khun designed and being built by the most well-known artist in Thailand, Chalermchai Kositpipat. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wat_Rong_Khun . This Wat is entirely white with glass inserts that make it sparkle and is most spectacular. As I was leaving to go back to the bus someone stopped me and pointed out the artist. He’s financing the Wat himself because he doesn’t want anyone to dictate to him, so it’s taking him a long time. The outside is done and two of the walls are painted with his murals on the inside. He has two more walls to paint. It’ll be incredible when it’s done. He has a gallery there with his regular artwork and it’s wonderful but I have a lot of artwork already so didn’t buy anything. If you’re in need of an idea for a gift for me, though, I’d certainly take one of his paintings! I would find a space for it in my house.


The government is very worried about AIDS so they started a chain eatery called Cabbages and Condoms. I bought two great post cards there, and a bag of Lays Nori seaweed potato chips. Very good but there’s no mention of them on the Lays website, I called and they’re not available in the US. Others who bought them also liked them. We passed rice paddies, went through an old-fashioned rice mill that still uses the ancient wooden machinery. (I'm sure they have modern plants, too, but the tourists enjoy the old views of how things were done.)

The next day was for handicraft shopping. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiang_Mai I bought a mug and lid of Celadon pottery (soft-green color, very beautiful). The mug has elephants carved around it. I’m enjoying it. I also bought a teak Monday Buddha. I’m a Monday birthday, too, so yellow is my color. Monday Buddha is “Peace.” Someone said I wouldn’t be able to get it out of Thailand but it was securely wrapped and the inspector didn’t open it so I got it out just fine. I also bought a hand-woven silk rug. I hadn’t intended to, but it was so beautiful and it looks wonderful in my bedroom. It’s 4’ X 2-1/2’ and has four images of the tree of life. The colors are magnificent (are you counting how many times I use positive adjectives?!)

Our guide rearranged our schedule so we could go to the annual flower festival. The parade was wonderful, and our guide took some excellent photos and gave each of us a CD of his shots. He got better pictures than I did; only trouble is, he loves the ladies and ALL his pictures are of the ladies! Thailand does have beautiful women. In the Buddhist culture all the boys become monks even if just for a week, in order to pave the way for their parents’ afterlife. Our guide didn’t do that, he didn’t want to be without women for even a week! He said his older brother did the paving for his parents. He was so funny. He has a small kiosk at the night market but he’s rarely there because he’s being a guide all the time. He says he’s CEO of his kiosk. I think he must be around 34. He was delightful. 90% of Thai’s are Buddhist, 1% Christian, the rest other things. The Buddhist culture is lovely, I thoroughly enjoyed it. They have a very peaceful demeanor; they are positive and very friendly.

We got lost in Chiang Mai several times but found our way home. It’s an adventure being in a strange city. Chiang Mai has tons of scooters which are far more efficient than cars, plus less pollution, but they make their own lanes, which was unnerving at first, but I got used to it. Not that I rode on a scooter! It’s the only mode of transportation that I didn’t ride on though! I asked our guide if the monks rode scooters. No, they don’t wear underwear and there’s a risk of a robe flying open and exposing them. Smile. One can be a monk for a short time, and then decide to go back to the non-monastic life, and then become a monk again if life outside gets too hard. Interesting.

We went to an elephant camp where they train the elephants. What a wonderful experience. An elephant put a hat on my head, then, with his trunk he tapped it down three times, then took it off again. He had a pretty good thump! There are only 200 wild elephants left in Thailand but they are allowed to roam free, they are not caught and turned into pets. This is good. The “pet” elephants put on a show for us. They played soccer, danced, played the harmonica, threw darts, and about 7 of them each painted a picture. I could only watch one as he was painting, but all were shown at the end and I was surprised to see that all the pictures were very different. I was hoping to get a picture of them all but it didn’t happen, too many tourists. It was wonderful to see them painting and they enjoyed the applause (ok, I don't know that they enjoyed the applause, but I choose to think that they did). After the elephants we visited a Hmong hill tribe, and went into one ladies house. Dirt floors, very rudimentary. She was an old lady, hunched over, dressed in velvet and it was a very hot day. She grows hemp, strips it, spins it into thread on a very old spinning wheel and uses the thread to make weavings. I don’t think all lived like she did, however, because I did see TV dishes on most of the homes. I figure her house was just for the tourists.

The next day was the super bowl so many of the men found a coffee shop with a TV and watched the game while the rest of us visited Wat’s in Chiang Mai’s old town. Wat Chedi Luang, which was built in the 13th century, used to be the tallest Wat in Thailand until an earthquake brought a huge chunk of it tumbling down. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wat_Chedi_Luang We went to Wat Prasingh with was founded in 1345 and has been kept in good condition. People buy personal dogs then decide they don’t want them anymore so they leave them at a temple for the monks to care for. This Wat had a lot of dogs and I walked on the grass, mistake, I was instantly bitten by fleas! In the afternoon we went to the Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wat_Phrathat_Doi_Suthep We rode a cable car to the top, but I walked down, it’s 290 stairs. It was a magical place, very beautiful and a great view of Chiang Mai. I happened upon a monk in a small room, he said, “Come in and I’ll give you a blessing.” About 6 of us went in and got a wonderful blessing and a white cord tied around our wrist. I still have mine on my wrist. You’re supposed to wear it until it falls off. A monk cannot touch a woman so he had an assistant tie the white cord on my arm. I had to be careful not to touch them, too, we met many and some wanted to chat. They were very cordial and interested in us.

The last day I took an excursion to the Doi Inthanon National Forest. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doi_Inthanon Believe it or not, this range is part of the Himalayans. I have a picture of the sign that says so. We took a hike through the woods (to warm up, it was 40 degrees) and the air was so clean and breathable. The birds were singing and happy. This is the start of the Mae Kong River, too, I believe. You might not want to repeat that incase I’m wrong. There were three wonderful waterfalls that we stopped to see on the way down, the last one was a series of waterfalls that were too beautiful to imagine or to get a descriptive picture of. I saw a gecko on a tree at one of the waterfalls. Also, on this mountain are two pagodas, one for the king and one for the queen. The view was awesome from this area. They were restoring the King’s pagoda so we only went into the queens pagoda. Queen Napamaytanido Chedi. Only 7 of us went on this excursion (out of 30 in our group). The rest went to a spa, or had a massage, or shopped…to me this excursion to the mountain was one of the highlights of the trip. I can get a massage in my home town! All of us who went agreed that it was a magical day. We stopped at a Hmong village that was small and much wealthier. There were no other tourists there which made it feel more realistic. I bought a scarf and really enjoyed walking around the small village. Saw a water buffalo in what will be the rice field when the rains come. He was very close by. I saw a cat sleeping on a tin roof and it was a very hot day….cat on a hot tin roof….get it. The Hmong’s are Catholic, I was surprised to see a Catholic Church in the village. They are not originally Thai, not sure where they emigrated from, Cambodia? We stopped for lunch at a Karen village that was also quite nice. This is where I saw a lot of small song birds, but couldn’t identify them.

For those of you who like birds here’s a web site with the birds in Thailand. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_birds_of_Thailand I saw a few but when you’re in a tour group, and you have no binoculars, and you have no clue what birds you might see, then it’s useless to look too hard at them. I just missed seeing two Green-tailed Sunbirds. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green-tailed_Sunbird. There was a group of professionals trying to get pictures of birds and they said the birds had just been on a Rhododendron, which is native to Thailand, as are hydrangeas. If I’d walked down there three minutes sooner I’d have seen them!

We flew back to Bangkok in the morning, spent the day packing and staying indoors because the pollution was horrible. We were on the 23rd floor and could hardly see a mile away. We got up at 3:00 a.m. to catch our plane to Tokyo, then on to Seattle; an arduous many hours to fly home and again, a long layover in Japan. It was an amazing trip, I loved Thailand and would love to go back on my own and do some birding. Well, I’ve managed to finish my dried mangos…guess I need to go back to buy more! It was a magical adventure. Sawadee Ka.