i was a wreck when i left japan. it's embarrassing to admit it, but i reached my threshold of tolerance and i completely lost it. christina had to pour me into a taxi and take me to the train station and then to the airport. when i finally arrived in bangkok, hired my taxi to take me to the guesthouse, and saw my friend jenny waiting for me wearing that sweet blue dress and a smile, i cried and cried. i feel like japan was an abusive boyfriend that i tolerated and worked with despite the underlying knowledge that it would never suit me. i have never fought so hard to keep my head up but now that i'm gone, i somehow miss it. now that i'm in thailand, i find myself excited when i hear japanese or see that familiar writing. thailand
bangkok
this city is teeming with life, like a continuous street fair. the thais have food vendors lining the streets, and in every open space there is a gold framed photo of his majesty the king (or his wife). there are street vendors on every corner and rickshaws have been replaced by little tripod motorcycles called tuk tuks which buzz through the streets of bangkok, leaving a trail of black smoke behind them. thai massages, lady boys, outdoor markets and hipped out tourists compose the streets of the city and it is charming. when you walk by, the thai people greet you with a toothy smile and a nod. they are very friendly- often offering advice about sites and holidays (though it's sometimes a scam)- which is such a nice change. i was fortunate to visit bangkok on a buddhist holiday, so i was able to see the ceremony at the golden mount and at the wats (buddhist temples) around town- witnessing the monks in their bring orange robes chanting and praying beneath enormous golden buddhas, the lines of people carrying lotus blossoms folded upward to release the fragrance, and the buckets of goods that people donate to the monks. thai temples are lavishly decorated with bright gold and jeweled figures. i was struck by the similarity to thai artwork and hindu artwork- it seems that the history of these two cultures are tied together, which i didn't know before. after seeing the grand palace and all its splendor, monika, jenny and i went to sky bar for drinks. we overlooked the Chao Phraya river and drank martinis amid the sparkling lights of bangkok. when we left the hotel in search of lady boys in the red light district, i was struck by the poverty that is mixed right in with the wealth of the city. on the same street as bangkok's most posh bar are homeless sleeping on the streets next to stray dogs.
chiang mai
we were all excited to leave bangkok for a smaller and hopefully less chaotic city, so we headed to the trade city of chiang mai in northern thailand via slow sleeper train. it was an adventure: our toilets opened up to the tracks and the steward wanted to drink with us, but it was really exciting and comfortable for the most part. since our arrival, we have explored many more wats and temples, though the ones in chiang mai have exposed brick and broken down statues, which make them seem more authentic and traditional. yesterday, we took a car to Doi Suthep national park, which contains one of thailand's most famous wats: wat doi suthep. we climbed 306 stairs, the handrails of which were two giant serpants fanning down from the temple. right inside the temple, 6 young girls were performing a traditional siamese dance, accompanied by children playing bright, whiny thai instruments. we covered ourselves and went into the wat. at one point, a monk threw water on us with a cluster of reeds and prayed over the people in his presence. you aren't supposed to stand higher than a monk or the statue of the buddha, which makes entering and exiting temples quite interesting: you see thais shuffle and scoot along the floor with lowered eyes and hands placed together in prayer.
after the temple and checking out the local shops (and the elephant chained up behind the shops) we left the temple compound and wandered into the national park, which was completely deserted. we found a footpath and decided to do some outdoor trekking through the jungle. we climbed banon trees, videod a marching assembly of ants and met russians in the forest who gave us hats they had made from banana leaves. as we continued, we found a waterfall and sat beside it just listening to the sound of the water pounding the rocks. i finally felt tranquil and happy. i looked around at the jungle around me, listened to the birds caw and watched my friends, equally moved and speechless. our journey finished with a bamboo forest and another set of waterfalls which were too cold to swim in.
that evening we went shopping through the streets of chiang mai for its legendary sunday night bazaar. i have never seen such a huge outdoor market, selling everything from thai silver to rip off threadless t shirts. even though everything shut down at 11, it still wasn't enough time for me to see everything they had to sell and showcase.
thaton
tomorrow morning, we are leaving chiang mai for a remote town in the golden triangle: the area where thailand, laos and burma touch. apparently you can explore some of the smaller villages which are off the beaten path. our plan is to spend a few days there and then hop on the Ping river to float to the city of chiang rai where we will get a bus to cross the border into laos. from there its time for the gibbons experience!
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