Long way to go

I really like Chiang Mai, it’s such an enchanting city. I’ve been staying in the old part of it, which is surrounded by a wall and a moat. What I find most interesting though is the proliferation of wats, or temples. There are so many just within walking distance; I spent several hours yesterday exploring them, until they all started to blend together.

Full set of wat photos is here.

Today I visited a monastery that contained several tunnels from the 14th century. It was very peaceful to walk around, and meditate underground.

Since I’ve been in Chiang Mai I’ve gotten to try a few new things, too. I saw a Muy Thai (Thai boxing) match, ate durian (it had the texture of a custard apple, but tasted more savory), and had the dead skin on my feet eaten by a bunch of fish. It happened at a stall at the night market, and had to have been one of the strangest things I’ve ever felt.

I’m still kind of reeling over how easy Thailand is, so friendly and navigable. Once I got to the north part of the country it got a lot cheaper, too. Oh, while I was still on the island I went spelunking with Eric and Camille. It really felt like we were in the guts of the island. At one point we all turned off our headlamps and it was the darkest dark I’ve ever darked. Eyes closed, eyes open, same same.

And now for some exciting news (as if everything else has been boring?): I was asked to join a film crew that’s making a documentary on Thailand. The director’s wife had been doing some of the camera work, but she got really sick and had to go back to Australia. We’re going more north tomorrow with a driver and an interpreter to film a hill tribe, and then to Chiang Rai, along with some other stuff. The opportunity literally came up an hour ago, and I didn’t have to think about it long before saying yes. Why not? I did some filming when I was in Ghana some years ago, and this sounds like kind of a neat, different way to see this country.

After that I’ll be heading out (on my own) to cross the Friendship Bridge from Chiang Khong over into Laos, and then taking a two-day slow boat trip down the Mekong to Luang Prabang. Yeah!