our second day in chiang mai was low key and included my first of many hour long thai massages at the healing arts association. it was 120 baht (four dollars). we also walked (and tuk-tuk'ed) about the city, checking out the many temples. beautiful stuff.
a tuk-tuk driver asked our nationality, and when we told him, he got a determined look in his eye, pumped his fist in the air, and said loudly "obama!!!". most people around the world know way more about what's going on in america than i will ever know about their country. this makes me humble and ashamed. i understand: america is watched by everyone because of the power we have, and the "assistance" (or "bullying", depending on how you look at it) our country gives worldwide. but it's amazing how much people follow the dog-and-pony show that is american politics. because let's face it, there is waaaay more drama pumped into an election than is needed. and i think that for the most part people in other countries (as well as a few americans) realize that. it was kinda cool to see an obama sticker on a car in bangkok, though. i am sure i don't need to tell you what everyone else in the world thinks about our current administration, so i won't go into it.
we met up with our new canadian friends to check out the chiang mai night safari. the night safari is basically a drive through zoo that you go to at night. you jump aboard a tram and it takes you through different animal habitats; some of the animals come right up next to you. like water buffalo. the more ferocious animals, such as the lions, tigers, and bears, have a sizable ditch between you and them. in between habitats, the tour guide would turn of the spotlights and we coasted through a cloud of blinking fireflies.
we opted for the tour in english, us not speaking thai and all, but i have to say, the guides' english was questionable. to the point that i think someone intentionally taught them the incorrect meanings for words, just to be an asshole. this conclusion was made after our guide called the zebras "sexy". then again, they seemed to anthropomorphize many of the animals, saying that they were lazy and liked to dance. but i have no idea why they would describe an animal as sexy, unless someone was having a laugh with them.
the whole thing ended, for some inexplicable reason, with a water/laser light show. it would have been a bitchin' venue for a laser zeppelin show, complete with jackals and camels.
we headed to the famous night market after we left the safari. the night market is a total dream for people who love to shop. it's even better for those who love to haggle. both of these things make me somewhat wary. though it's fun getting new stuff, i am not always jazzed at the process of looking for it (unless its music or books). and the thought of bargaining with people gives me a stomach ache. my companions, however, seem to thrive off of it, so it was interesting to watch them work. they tried coaching me on my haggling skills from the sidelines, but i'm pretty sure i ended up paying double what the people originally offered. i think overall, though, lisa scored the prize of the evening: a teak penis. it is supposed to give the bearer good luck. and....it's a penis.
our next day was one of the most action packed of the trip: a full day trek in the northern hills. we travelled from the city to the northern, more rural region. our first stop was an elephant camp, where we rode through the jungle on one of the most peaceful and graceful creatures i've ever come into contact with. we had bags of bananas and sugar cane, and our elephant (whose name was something in thai that slips my mind, though they called her "big mama", as she was the grandmother of the two baby elephants that were in attendance) would stop every once in a while to throw her trunk back and up to us to get a treat. when our elephant "driver" asked us where we were from, told him america. he asked where, and i told him california. he got very excited and said "yes! hotel california!!"(this happened many other times on the trip. apparently, 'hotel california' is a very popular song in thailand, and though i can't really stand it myself, i can't help but think it's popularity in turn made me popular among the thai people.)
after we left the elephant camp, we went on a sweet hike to the meo hill tribe, then to a waterfall deep in the jungle. after walking across several rickity-assed bamboo bridges, we made it to the karen hill tribe.
the karen are a group of people who fled from burma (known also as myanmar, but to most everyone in thailand it is 'burma', as myanmar is the name given to the country by the militia groups), away from the military extremest government. fleeing is a popular choice for a lot of the burmese people, but it is a dangerous one. the government has ruled the burmese people with guns, bombs, and forced labor for almost 20 years. burma's true leader and nobel peace price recipient, aung san suu kyi has been under house arrest on and off for many years now. she refuses to leave her country and her people until human rights are restored to burma.
my friend rie has been an activist for the liberation of burma for as long as i have know her, and a few days after my return, rie was having an awareness raising get together where she put herself under house arrest for 24 hours in dedication to aung san suu kyi and her upcoming birthday. we watched some devastating footage and documentaries about the many injustices in burma, not just in the past but that are going on right now. these acts, including forced labor, rape, ethnic cleansing, strict censorship, and murder, cannot continue. PLEASE go to the website for the U.S. Campaign for Burma and sign up; even if you cannot donate money, your awareness, and the spreading of this awareness, can help these people.
the karen people were quite peaceful and happy, though they did not have many things. i think just being able to live in their village without fear of getting run off, plus the fact they seemed to have plenty of food and betel nut, was enough for them. it was quite a humbling experience.
after we left the tribe, we were brought to a shack where we were given a delicious lunch, prepared by people in the area. dogs lounged under our feet and begged for our rather spicy scraps. with full bellies, we were taken to a river where we took off on bamboo rafts. after about 90 minutes on the river, we made it back to our van, and back down the curvy road to the city.
this day wore me the hell out, but it didn't stop me from freshening up and heading to the patio of our hotel for some tiger beers. i sat with the owners of the hotel and some of their friends who relocated to chiang mai from the u.k. they invited us to go to dinner with them, at a place we would have never set foot in had we not been taken there. it wasn't that it was scary looking, only that it was one of those places where you collect food at different booths to then cook yourself at the table. and it was confusing. luckily we were with locals and they showed us the ropes-it was quite possibly one of the most satisfying and delicious meals i've had to date. after dinner, we went to the tiny bar, the smallest bar in the world. owned by a hilarious and energetic thai man named B (bea? bee?), this bar looks like it was a leftover closet from the other bars in the strip. and though it was the smallest, it had more customers than any of the other bars. and those customers were *rowdy*. ok, maybe i had a big part to do with that rowdiness, but B was egging me on. this is where we found out that a lot of people in chiang mai don't give a shit about being in the "lonely planet" guide; in fact they would rather not be. we witnessed this the next night in another bar called "the wall" (as in "pink floyd's..."). we also learned that we were in chiang mai's famous "pink light district". after having about 5 "one more drink"s, we headed back to the room, where apparently i proceeded to dance to loud steely dan. in my underwear. (gotta love the dan!)
ok, i know these posts are slow in coming; i apologize if you have been waiting with bated breath for the whole story. but i promised, if you ask nicely and provide wine, i will come over and tell you in person...
up next: back to bangkok!
until then: pictures!
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