Bikes and Hikes

It's Saturday, the day we have all been looking forward to. Hiking! But how will we get there? It's about a 40 minute taxi ride.... motorbike! My first time driving a two-wheeled motorized anything.  The four of us were all in for hiking. Two of us were willing to learn how to ride a motorbike, Susan and I.  A couple friends brought us to the a motorbike rental shop.  I handed the man 250 baht and my passport in exchange for a 24 hour - 115 cc scooter/motorbike rental, with two helmets.  It was like being on the with my dad on the farm. Throw me behind the handle bars, don't be stupid.  I took two laps down and alley, then off I went through traffic.  I think the most awkward part of it all was make right turns...it's a long ways to the left lane. Object of this game: 1) stay on the right side of the road, which is of course the left. 2) stay on the bike.

We met two friends so they took Mel and Hannah, and Susan and I ran solo.  I trailed behind one of the two new friends we met - English teachers here in Thai.  Off I went into the streets, between cars, trucks, taxis, tuk tuks, and motorbikes.  I would say I was rather alert, making sure nobody pulled out in front of me..this happens often enough.  We drove a few kilometer and fueled up with 50 Baht, gave me an extra 1/4 tank or so.  We headed out of the city via highway.  The drive went from somewhat crazy and busy to quiet, winding roads.  The best moment was when I turned the corner and there was rice patties, fields and farmers, cows, flower, trees...so great.  The air felt amazing, the scenery was almost too distracting.  The drive was about 40 minutes on bike.  We traveled with 4 bikes in total. We all made it up the winding mountain roads with out problems.  To be completely honest, I may have smiled the entire ride. This was what I needed. I can't wait to do this again. So beautiful and peaceful! I wish I had pictures to share. If your curious enough you will have to suffer through this rough mini clip: test clip

We parked our bikes and set up for some hiking fun.  This was one of the most beautiful hikes I have been on. Trees, cliffs, bamboo, animal noises, and waterways.  Here have a look..

Hiking through the jungle!

Beautiful canopies.

  Stream paralleling the path.

Bamboo - this picture doesn't begin to show the extent of the bamboo.  The bamboo is amazing to me.  It can grow over three feet in one day, typically with a end height of around 100 feet.  Bamboo is commonly used here for building architecture, furniture, and eating.

Bamboo

Oh look, a giant waterfall.

Khun Korn Waterfall, Chiang Rai

Kuhn Korn Waterfall

This was some cold water.  But after a long hike, it was refreshing.  I stood at the base of the rushing water, getting sprayed by misting water, having water rush around my legs.  Susan said, Hey Holly look up!, and I did.  This was one of the weirdest feelings. I looked up towards the water shooting off of the cliff, I felt like I was going to get taken out by the water.  I guess I didn't take a picture of it, but the water rushed down to the right of the fall.  It was a stream of water that would curve around the rugged jungle terrain.  There were mini pools of water you could swim in.   I enjoyed floating on my back down the river.  It entertained me for a good 15 minutes, the water would push me down the river.

We trekked back to the bikes after some fun in the water. And off we went through the beautiful landscape, did I mention how amazing this is? I'm in love, and I know this adventure is only going to get better. My list of things I need to do in my free time is getting longer.

On the way back, we stopped for some food near a temple that I was dying to see.  I was fairly hungry at this point.  I ordered food at this local indoor food court.  To buy food I had to buy a card.  I put 40 baht on the card. Bought some food for 40 baht, then handed the employee the cards.  I ordered a soy sauce chicken with vegetables.  The lady reached into this class case, hacked off a chunk of this whole-cooked chicken that was hanging.  She places the meat on a cutting board and hammered it down with the blade of her cleaver til the meat was flat.  She then chopped the meat into small diced chicken pieces and placed the plain cooked chicken over about 1.5 cups of steamed rice. No sauces.  She garnished the plate with some peeled cucumber slices and topped the rice with fresh cilantro.  She then handed me a bowl of brothy soup.  The soup had some tiny pieces of carrots, a fleshy green fruit, and bits of fresh cilantro.  At this point I was willing to look past the fact that I was given the wrong food as well as all of my food safety education.  I ate the room-temperature chicken over my rice.  I went back for a dish of chili sauce to add to my dish.  The woman was struck oddly by this and said, "pet - pet - pet - spicy" (pet means spicy in Thai).  I said, pet and smiled at her. She laughed at me like I was a crazy farang, and walked away with her hand in the air.  

We walked about a 1/4 block to Wat Rong Khun, the White Temple. This was better than I had expected.  The wat was as beautiful as it was bizarre.  The construction of the temple was started in the late 90s and continues.  The temple is a representation of Heaven on Earth.  The white represents Buddha's purity and the tiny mirrors that detail the white plaster and sculpting represent Buddhas wisdom.  The wat displays a mix of traditional and modern themes, combining scenes from the life of Buddha with sci-fi and superhero images, including Keanu Reeves from The Matrix, and I am told pictures of the planes crashing into the twin towers (I didn't find this scene - so much going on).

This is the most modern temple I have seen. Care for a look? You will need to cover tour shoulders and knees. Remove your shoes after the hands of hell.

Wat Rong Kuhn, Chiang Rai, Thailand

 Side view of the wat.

 Hands of hell - as you cross the bridge to Nirvana

 

 Don't be scared, it gets better

Let's cross the bridge

  Bridge looking back from the temple. Fountain at the left.

 

 

 View of the temple grounds, some a work in progress.

 Make a donation for blessings and a good life.  After donating money you are given an ornamental charm.  You can write on the charm.  Thousands of charms are hung on structures throughout the temple.

  Buddhist Charms

 Love these trees and their golden blossoms. Oh and that sunset!

Orchids, growing off the side of a tree.  These remind me of someone. I think I need a picture.

In the evening we ventured out to Walking Street for some Saturday night dancing and night life.  Walking Street happens every Saturday and Sunday night in Chiang Rai.  There are at least 10 blocks of vendors down a street - I only made it half way down one side of the road.  There are vendors down the middle, and sides of the street.  Four sides of vendors all together.  Items vary from food stalls of: ice cream with jelly-fruit toppings, sticky-rice balls (garnish with nuts or honey), crispy- wafers with meats or sweet fillings, sausages, fish, seafood, nuts, rice cakes, chicken.  But mostly, the vending items included crafts from local artisans (ie hill tribes), clothing, sunglasses, paintings, jewelry, handmade toys, leather works, etc.  My advice, don't go there before 9 o'clock, there are more people that you can imagine making their way through as well. Also try going with the flow of people (see picture on L)  I don't know where everyone comes from. Chiang Rai seems pretty chill otherwise.  Midway through Walking Street there is a stage with a dancing ring adjacent to it.  There are mostly food vendors around the perimeter of the dancing area.  I had some fresh pineapple, you eat it with a stick and some big piece of grilled corn-on-the-cob. The total cost was 20 baht.  Lots of people, ages 16 and up join for some fun and thai dancing. 

Northern Thai Dancing - clip I  

Northern Thai Dancing - clip II

I was eager to join the fun. So Mel and I jumped in the dance circle. I will add that we were the only farang there.  There were Thia men and women dancing.  During the first song, this 65-70 years old tall Thai man (wearing a black and white striped shirt, black pants) was adamant about teaching me this slow three step dance.  He would watch me on and off.  If I failed, he would come stand right next to me and count the steps for me.  He was cute and the tallest Thai male I have met thus far.  The next song came up and a woman saw me as I was observing the dance, hand gestures, and foot movement.  She just smiled at me, then grabbed my wrist and had me walk through the dance with her.  She then followed me around as we circled the dancing area.  She was so sweet. She kept saying yes, good job. Good job.  As I danced I kept noticing people smiling at me. I am sure I looked ridiculous as I towered over nearly all of them.  Not to mention my lack of dancing skills. All of the music was sung by a male or female singer, with background instruments.  Some of the music was more mellow, while other music was more fast-paced.

Soon enough my favorite dance moment hit.  I looked over and there were two parallel lines of boys dancing, facing one another - doing their own thing.  I was watching their feet, hands, and side-to-side movement.  All I could do was smile.  These boys were so into their dancing.  They noticed me watching and practicing to the side and cued me into their lines. This was so much fun! They and I smiled the entire time. And believe it or not, it was a pretty good workout. Take a look for your self at this fun dance.

On an unrelated note, I have been having trouble sleeping, that night especially. So..I ended up staying up late and talked with Nick.  We talked well into the my morning.  ...loved it!

Chiang Rai Begins

We set our for Chiang Rai (pronounced chang rye) Wednesday afternoon. Our bus set out around 5:30 pm.  The journey was beautiful from the few glimpses I got.  I spent most of the trip with my head between my knees. It was about 2.5 hours of feeling nauseas. Would I do it again? Absolutely yes. Pictured, to the left is one of my favorite pictures. I love seeing these colorful blossoms. How would I describe Chiang Rai thus far? This is a place of friendly faces, fresh air, and more chill than any place I have been thus far, in Thai.

Once we arrive to our hostel, The North Hotel, we
unloaded our belongings and headed out to see parts of the city.  The hotel is great, with lots of character.  The floors are wooden, with imperfections. Each floor has an outlook.  Pictured to the right is a library-like study with books and night lighting.  It's peaceful, quiet, and quaint.  I am sharing a room with Mel, we have a queen bed, bathroom, mini refrigerator, mini patio, wifi (works only on my iPod).  The staff here is great.  We are in a great location, just a minute walk to the Night Bazaar. I believe it's about $8 a night. I know we can get cheaper rates, but this just worked well at the time, good location.

 Dining area of the Night Bazaar

 The night bazaar is so great - complete with a beautiful moon.  The night bazaar is centered around a rectangular dining area.  The center has hundreds of tables and chairs, anchored by a large open stage on one end.  The other three sides of the dining rectangle are vendors.

 Stage performance, Thai artists, singing and guitars

These venders sell a wide variety of inexpensive foods. Thai dishes: meat  with noodles or rice, vegetarian meals, gyros, pies with meats, fried rice varieties, stirfried meats and vegetables, fried potatoes, fried fish, grilled fish, soup in clay hot pots where you can cook or grill your meats, you can also find other great protein, such as bugs, tree nuts, etc. Care for a glimpse?

 These are the clay pots that you can order.  I described this in previous blog post, realized I should get a picture of it.  The top clay pot contains broth, where you cook your vegetables (carrots, leafy greens), rice noodles, egg, mushrooms, and meat of choice.  I have not tried one of these yet here in Chiang Rai, but they are good.  I like to add chili's to mine to give it a bit of a kick. Pictured below are the baskets of food items that you are able to cook in the broth.  You then eat the soup with a small-ladle-like spoon.

  mushroom shoots, leafy greens, egg, rice or glass noodles, carrots. Meat not pictured. Meat is typically seafood or chicken.

 Top row: Vegetable/noodle baskets, bottom row: prawn, squid, and chicken satay on the end.

 Leafy greens, mussels, shrimp, pork intestine (lower left)

 Typically the grilled fish that you see here in Thailand.  This is Pla Plao, a salted and grilled river fish. Quite popular.

 Shrimp

 Clams - I watch people eat this with a single chopstick.  They break the shell, spear the flesh, and indulge.

 

Oo - the little cream-filled kind

Nuts and fried foods. Your heart will hate you and love you.  Pictured: peanuts, red skin peanuts, fries, spring rolls, onion rings, fried shrimp, fried fish. If you are curious how these items taste, I have no idea.  They don't look appetizing.  I have only tried cashews  in my dishes and the red peanuts (both are great).

This is the place that I have ordered my meals in the market bazaar.  Open every evening.  This woman cooks to order.  She cooks everything in a large wok.  It's inexpensive, delicious, and has character.  She has a large menu board to choose from.

 Produce at the vendor where I got my meal. Pictured: rice noodles, PINK eggs, bean sprouts, mushrooms, peppers, snap peas.

                       Meal 1 at bazaar Wednesday

I chose spicy chicken with cashews and steamed rice, this cost less than a dollar. This meal included rice, which isn't typical.  Usually you pay 15-20 Baht for a side of rice. It was so good!  The eating environment to an onlooker may appear crowded, but I didn't feel that way.  Everyone was there to socialize; calm and casual night as we listened to live Thai music.  After eating we set out to look around the night bazaar.  The venders that encircled the dining area had unique and iteresting craft.  Much of the items were unique or handmade.  The vendors were all quite friendly and with reasonable prices.

Meal 2 at bazaar Friday Evening

Thursday, we set out to explore schools.  Susan and I visited a high school outside of town.  I mostly went to drop off my application but also to just feel the environment out and see more of Chiang Rai. The school was interested and welcoming.  The were looking for 6 new teachers, but I found myself less interested.  Not the age group I am interested in.  When we were was about to leave the school, I was told that taxi's come into that outside area of Chiang Rai, but you have to call a taxi to get back to the heart of Chiang Rai where I was staying.  So I took a taxi back, inexpensive.  This taxi was actually more like a car, I realized it had been a long time since I had been in a car.  The driver was nice.  I think his wife must have helped with the interior design of his car.  The stick had large fluffy green crocheted doilie yarn on it, and the wipers and cruise control too, had croched green yarn.  It was odd, but made me think of someone dear to me that shares a liking of large green doilies. Pictured to the right is me in the Northern Thai tuk tuk.  There is only one bench seat.  It cost 50 Baht to take to the school.  In the picture I am holding my skirt with one hand and the camera with the other. It was a windy ride. I was really hoping her wasn't looking in his rearview mirror.

 Tesabao 6 School - high school

 














  In the evening we had a bite to eat by the Clock Tower.  The tower is the center of a round-about.  It was inticate and beautiful with detail.  At dark, music and a kaleidescope of lights decorated the tower.  This was beautiful, and the best part was that I had no idea it existed, and stumbled upon it.

 

  

 The clock goes off three times every hour after 7 pm.  There is music and colorful lighting.

We dined with some fellow teachers that we have networked with.  Two from CA, and one from western WI.  They teach different age groups, college, highschool, and kindergarten students.  It was nice getting insight from them on jobs, locations, living situations, adventurings, etc.  Most of them are leaving Thailand soon.  I went in thinking they were all older than me, turns out I definately the oldest in our bunch.  We had mentioned that the four of us girls want to go hiking.  They were all interested. So tomorrow, Saturday, we have a hiking trip planned.  I am looking forward to it.  For supper I ordered, spicy cashew chicken with fresh vegetables.  Are you noticing a trend? I love the cashews, so good.  And frankly, everytime I order this, it tastes different.  There is always a different sauce served with them.

Friday night we all want to got the night bazaar for some cheap food as I talked about above. I had rice, vegetables (baby corn, carrots, pea pods, leafy greens, onions) and cashews (50 baht)..so good! The small white dish contains a pepper sauce that is commonly served with Thai and Cambodian meals.  The pepper powder next to it is a combination of spices - I believe it has paprika and red pepper flakes. I usually add this hot spice to my dish to add a little flair to my plates.   In the evening we settled down with some live local music.  Some of my friends went out later that night.  I decided to head home on a long walk.  Mom, I have felt safe here since arrival, the people again, are so friendly. No worries, no one would dare mess with me, I have a lot of things to do in the next year.

And the tops for my Friday night.. On the walk home I had a young guy checking me out as he to stolled down a low key side street in Chiang Rai.  ...I don't think he will forget me!

Yes, twin, this is one happy place. Just look at this guy! So great. No tourists around, just me & a GIANT BABY ELEPHANT. This elephant has personality.  He kept wrapping his trunk around me.

All in all, one great night.  I set back to work on my blog.  I was up pretty late! That last blog took some time, so worth it.

Also, don't forget your challenge for the last blog. You can even send me pictures! I love hearing from you all too. Thanks for the all the comments, I enjoy them.