The road to Luangprabang

Chiang Mai:
My first day of exploring Chiang Mai started in the guest house pool as I tried to stay cool reading my guidebook and avoiding a (intoxicated?) man from Liverpool's attempts to initiate a conversation. I thought he was drunk because he kept asking me where I was from and didn't seem satisfied with the US or Seattle as a response so then he began asking me where my parents are from, Washington State and the US still wasn't enough. "no no no, I mean before that where is your family from?"

It clicked. "Oh, are you asking why I am brown?"
"yes"
"I am Native American"
blank stare
"American Indian"
"Indian?! Are you a proper Indian?"
I have no idea what this guys definition of a proper Indian is, and almost asked him to enlighten me, but instead decided that I would just store this into the memory bank of concepts of race, ethnicity and authenticity experiences on this trip and get out of there.

I was trying to make sense of a map of Chiang Mai, stopping at Wats in no particular order when I noticed several people that looked like they were on the way to a procession of some sort, and headed in the same direction. Everyone waiting for the procession was in front of the three kings statues, dancing groups, bands, people with large elaborate flower decorations/offerings. There were a couple other tourists drawn to this crowd, but I was surprised that it was only 5 or so. When the procession began I moved a little ways up the street to take a photo and the group that I took a photo of waved me over and handed me a decorated top of a young banana tree and I was part of the procession! Several people behind me in the procession poured flower water on me, which smelled sweet and cooled me off. The procession entered the Wat Luang (for some reason I am drawing a blank on the name, maybe because I have been to so many temples now) and I was in complete awe of the old chedi we walked towards and past. This was really the way to see it! Past the chedi there were people waiting with a big water hose to spray us down, so I got a taste of songkrat, the water festival that took place the three days before I arrived in thailand. Then the group I had been walking with wanted me to try this food and that food, the dance groups and musicians in the procession performed,and then there was a special blessing that my friend Lome encouraged me to take part in. He introduced me to sever other people waiting for the blessing, one was a woman who told me she has a son that studies in America. We spoke for a little while and after findng out I was staying at a guesthouse here she asked if I would like to stay in her home... I felt honored, and thinking back to the Liverpool guy this sounded even better. We stood with our cups of flower water during the talking/prayer and then went up to pour water on the two buddha figures and join a single file line that was going on their knees in front of a row of seated monks, pouring water on their hands that the monks then flicked over you, and then a row of elders that did almost the same, but would touch your shoulder and talk a little to those going through. After the blessing I went with Supasini and we decided that since I wanted to make it to Wat U Mong for the lakeside discussion with a monk that she would drop me off there and I could call her the next day (already paid for guesthouse and such) to come to her house.

I went to the lakeside discussion by a monk from England, it seemed every person who came was expecting a different thing of the experience. Some thought it was a meditation class, others had questions about getting married, a little bit of everything. I walked back into the city from here (this Wat is kind of out of town in a wooded area) and stopped in to a market along the way for some passionfruit juice and dried strawberries. I went to the sunday walking market/night market and it was wonderful, I especially enjoyed seeing the arts and crafts people had done... and having great fruit smoothies and phad thai for less than a dollar each.

The next day Supasini and her son and daughter came to pick me up and took me on a day of sightseeing, it was great to go to Wats and have someone to explain the significance of what people were doing and joining in, and to go out to eat with people that knew the best foods to order -expanding my horizons past phad thai :)
That evening when we went to their home, I realized that without this experience I wouldn't have seen a thai home with the beautifully carved furniture and doors, or the meditation room and area with family pictures, I adored my intricately carved wooden bunk beds.

After my first night in my cute bed we had a delicious breakfast and Bob and Poupee (Supa's son and daughter) translated the bizzare news on tv. They took me to Wat Ched Yad, where Bob did his monkhood for a total of 10 days. We also stopped by the museum before they dropped me off for the first day of the short meditation retreat offered by Wat Suan dok. Must give a shout out for Pun Pun, the restaraunt behind the monk-chat office. Good food and good people doing good things. I just had a smoothie, but I hear the food is great from some trusted sources. The retreat began with an intro to buddhism and overall was much less intensive than other longer and more strict retreats around. The retreat took place at a center outside of town and was lessons in meditation mixed in with some yoga, alms giving, and quiet. I liked the quiet. What was very uncomfortable to me was learning about the "bowing down to the triple gems", and then being asked to do so.

The next day strangely became what I will remember as my day in Thai beauty school, where I learned first hand what Ruth told me in Bangkok: Beauty is everything here. Supasini was concerned about my sloppy backpacker look (I wonder if she thinks I dress and look like this at home?) The full story is too funny to write here, maybe too awkward too. I'll tell you when I get home :) I can also tell you about my last night at Supasini's house, with Supa and Poupee and whatever forces there are there that open cupboards and close them right before your very eyes. I am not really a person who has many haunted house experiences. I really am still speechless on the subject.

The last morning there I helped prepare breakfast for a monk, nun, and their travel companions from Northeastern thailand, this was a great time and hearing the chanting that I had heard done only by monks with the addittional sweet voice of a nun was beautiful. I took a bus up to Chiang rei that same day, and from chiang rei rode in the back of a truck up to a bungallow guesthouse owned and run by an akha community. I spent two nights up there, I just needed to be out of the city. This was a great escape and hiking around there with the other guests to see the waterfalls. After the memory of my friend in Ecuador pointing out the face in the falls outside of Otavalo came to mind there was a remarkable face, clear as day, in these falls (must post picture). In the evening I heard some guitar playing when walking around with a guy from australia and when we found the source we were welcomed up the the house of a smiling woman that was playing music and singing out of a hymnal. I sang along, reading the words of Amazing Grace in Akha.

Going to have to end there for the moment, the computer I am on is having serious issues and I have to get back to my guesthouse before they lock-up. I am currently in Pakse, Laos and really loving traveling through Laos. I am making my way to Cambodia and can't wait to tell you about:

Bicycling through the ruins at Sukothai
Feeling like the only tourist in Kamphaeng phet and bicycling through ruins there
Going to Lopburi and having monkeys trying to get in my hotel windows
Going to the National Park outside of Pak Chong
Swimming in the waterfall from the movie the beach (with the whole place to myself!)
Camping alone at the park (not counting tigers, elephants, gibbons, deer, etc)
How camping all by myself turned into camping with 400 monks and new friends from Ayuthaya...
Giving alms (food) to 200 monks the next morning
Being given a grad tour of Ayuthaya by my friends,
Heading up to Laos
Hitchhiking (the road to luangprabang), oh the adventures go on and on...

and even more recently:
Knocking a wannabe thief and his motorcyle over while he attempted to grab my wallet
Having my fisherman trousers fall halfway down in front of a tuk tuk driver (on laundray aka no underwear day)
and donating blood in a "third world country"

Time for bed!