While we're here we should go to Laos...

I'm actually posting something from the day it happened!! First here are some pictures of the place we're staying:

Eating area is from the balcony. Our bungalows are back behind the jungle greenery to the right.

View of the Mekong and Laos

View from the dining area

More views from the dining area

The people who run the B&B are so sweet. After we were done with breakfast, they brought out fresh fruit for us. They sliced the pineapple and then brought out lynchee fruit (background, think Muppet looking fruit) from their garden.

So as I said before, we’re staying at this place right on the Mekong River, which means that we can see Laos. So the logical thing to do is to go to Laos, right? Right! Well more on that in just a second, but first we started out the morning meeting with Kru Ti (Teacher Ti) about some of the environmental concerns of the Mekong. For those of you who don’t know (which would have been be before this whole Thailand thing got started), the Mekong starts in China, runs through Laos (in parts), boarders Laos and Burma, boarders Laos and Thailand, runs through Cambodia, and then finally goes through Vietnam before it deltas into the sea.  The big controversy is over hydroelectric power created by a series of dams.  There are already several dams, many in China, that effect water flow (and fishing) pretty drastically (from last night to this morning the river dropped 50cm, which for us Americans is just over a foot and a half).  There is a push to build 14 more because some countries want more power, okay just one country, but it would be a financial interest to the others to sell that power to China.  So even though there isn’t necessarily a need for more power it could be potentially lucrative to build them anyway. However, as with everything else, nothing comes at zero cost. It would disrupt fishing, water levels, and could drastically effect rice production (this one is just for Vietnam). Anyway, we met with Kru Ti to discuss the concerns that he has about the building of the dams and some of the things that are currently going on to develop compromises.  It was really interesting, he obviously has a bias perspective (he works for an environmentalist organization), but he was able to discuss the pros and cons of the dam building as well as alternatives that would help both the fishing and rice growing as well as the power/financial needs.

After meeting with Kru Ti, we went on a boat ride on the Mekong for a couple of hours, which was beautiful! The mountains here are the very beginning of the Himalayas (don’t get too excited, they were pretty small mountains), and the layers of them in the scenery were gorgeous.   It was fun to ride around for a while and see some people fishing and some temples too.  Our driver made sure to tell us that when we were in the Lao waters, which was fun too.

Our boat driver pushing off. (Then he went to the back to run the motor and steer)

Laos to the left and Thailand to the right

Laotian mountain and temples

Enjoying the boat ride

Laotian Temple, check out those stairs!

Bringing in the day's catch

These little guys were practicing their fishing and having some fun. They were so cute!

We’d hired a driver to take us up here from Chaingrai, so after we got back, he took us up to the Golden Triangle which is where Burma, Laos, and Thailand meet.  They all meet by water, but there is a look out on the Thai side where you can see all three countries at once, which was really beautiful. There was also a ruin of a temple up there, so that was really fun too walk around too.  At the foot of the lookout, there was this gigantic Buddha statue and several shops, so we stopped there too.  I had asked previously if we could go to Burma or Laos (just to step on shore, nothing fancy), and Cathy had said she didn’t think so, but when we got down to the Buddha, there is a company that will take you over to Laos (or at least a little island that is still considered as a part of Laos).  So we did. We took the boat, and our driver got us really close to Burma, but we couldn’t go ashore. So then he took us over to the Lao island. It was fun to say we’d been there. They gave us these little pieces of paper to staple into our passports (they can’t actually stamp it because it isn’t part of the mainland), and there were several shops. Clearly it’s there just for the tourists, but still fun. They did sell a few things that I haven’t seen in Thailand. Mostly alcohol with snakes and scorpions in it.  They had three big vats of whiskey, one had a HUGE cobra in it, one had several snakes, and the other scorpions. Eww. I’m not sure that even if I drank I would want that.

At the Golden Triangle (standing on Thail soil, Burma to the left and Laos to the right).

Steps up to the temple at the Golden Triangle

They actually gave us life jackets for the boat ride to Laos...they were a little big.

Yep that's a real snake in the whiskey...

Anyone from the Dore-clan remember these beauties that Grandma got? There were tons of these hats for sale!

Reflections so far...

We started out today with talking to a Hmong professor at Chang Mai University.  He was really interesting, talked about his research and push for an Ethnic Diversity Studies Program.  Because there is so much ethnic diversity in Thailand, it is interesting that this is the only program in the country. 

Adjong Cathy, Matt, Kari, Me, Dr. Mae Jo

We rode a bus to Chaingrai and then when up to Chaingkong. All throughout our trip we have seen pictures and shrine type signs of the king (sometimes his wife too).  They have been everywhere. It’s been really interesting. Every time I see one, I think about the extreme cost of it all and how much it will be when he dies and his son takes over.  For them, cost isn’t an issue and no one really thinks about it. Matt pointed out that it is a better investment than all the politicians who are in office for 2-6 years and all the commercials and signs that get put up for campaigning.  That is a good point. I remember living in Chicago and being amazed at how many signs at the airports and trains said “Mayor Dailey Welcomes you to the City of Chicago!” and now with Rom Emanuel, the signs have probably changed. For a city that is always in a budget deficit, that is a huge expense. Anyway I mention this because I wondered if I would see more in Bangkok because that is where he lives, but no they were all over Chang Mai too. And even on our bus ride today we saw them pretty frequently too. 

We’re up in a rural area for a few days, right on the Mekong River. This river is the boarder between Thailand and Laos, and I keep thinking about my client. From our bungalow (where we’re staying), we can look over the river and see Laos. It is such an incredible privilege to be here and to be learning so much about history, tradition, culture, faith, and families.  Being born in the United States and having heritage from Western Europe, I have incredible privilege that I didn’t ask for. I had no choice in that matter, just as no child has a say in what country they are born and what ethic background they are.  There are many times I take for granted things that others struggle to have. I have never had to leave my country because of war; in fact the only time my country was attacked directly, on U.S. soil, it shifted global politics, economics, warfare, etc. Generally the times that I have feared for my safety, it’s been because of something I’ve chosen to do. Sometimes it’s hard to know all the things I should be grateful for, when I don’t always know what I have and others do not (it’s the sentiment of “You never know what you have until it’s gone).  Traveling into many other countries has often taught me these lessons in very real ways.

Several months ago, I was in a seminar with several students and faculty. We were discussing various mental illness diagnoses that are in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR), which is the handbook for all mental health professionals. It lists all the different illnesses that can be diagnoses (and claimed on insurance). We were discussing that sometimes the diagnoses don’t always account for cultural differences and we are sometimes at the risk of diagnosing something that may actually be culturally appropriate rather than being an illness. The subject of PTSD (posttraumatic stress disorder) came up. One of the criteria for it is that you have experienced something traumatic that is above and beyond what others have experienced. A student from Vietnam spoke up and said that it wasn’t relevant for her country, because everyone has experience so much trauma that nobody would qualify.  So no matter the atrocities you have faced (murder of loved ones, torture, imprisonment, etc.) it doesn’t count and the diagnosis of PTSD is irrelevant because the whole population has it.  

I am thankful that I don’t know what that is like, and I pray that I never have to, but it certainly something to think about. It puts my concerns/worries/freak outs into perspective. Remembering that there is so much going on in the world that is so much more real than what I’m facing. Yet I also have to allow space to be kind to myself and allow myself to freak out about my concerns. We can’t really compare from person to person. It certainly isn’t a competition of who has experienced the most traumas or who handles their problems “best.” It doesn’t matter. It does matter that we help each other through in whatever way we know how. And while we don’t always agree how to help others (particularly on a grand/international/governmental scale), it is important that we continue doing the best we can and deciding that it does make a difference.

Now we're cooking!

This morning Matt and I went to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, which is a temple that is in the mountains just outside of Chang Mai that is famous for it’s beauty.  It was completely golden and has over 300 steps up to it.  It was very majestic and beautiful. It’s an interesting thing though, that seems, to me, to be somewhat paradoxical in the professed practice of Thai Buddhism and the buildings that are built to worship. Worship in Buddhism isn’t really like Christian worship (as in meeting weekly in a congregation for services), and while I’m hesitant to generalize, from what I’m learning, Buddhism concentrates on mindfulness and simplicity. A person should be aware of themselves and others. Which to me, and my Western perspective, I see all the golden temples and jade Buddhas and the glitz and sparkle of many of the other materials used seem to be out of place. It seems to be a paradox, but I’m not sure how to respectfully ask about this.  Hopefully I’ll figure out a way.

Steps leading up to the temple

Practicing my focus

Donation place for luck

We rode up to the temple in the back of a truck with three other individuals, two from Germany (but didn’t know each other) and a girl from South Africa. Two of the 3 were on extended travels that consisted of multiple countries and experiences. Matt and I talked over lunch about how many countries view travel as a rite of passage (of sorts) and that it’s almost expected that if you’re family is financially stable, that is something you do between graduating high (secondary) school and college (university).  The US doesn’t really do that, I think part of that is geographic (our country is much larger than others, which makes it harder).  I think part of it is cultural too (but that is a topic that I’ll engage with you in person rather than a large public forum.

After grabbing lunch, we met up with Kari and Cathy to get Thai massages (they went to get pedicures rather than go to the temple). Farhrung helped us find one that wasn't just massages (not a front for anything else, which most are here). Anyway, best $5 I’ve ever spent. Period. It was a full hour massage, for $5!  I think I was also allergic to something in there, because they kicked in into overdrive in there. They had little mattresses on the floor and gave you loose clothing to change into.  And then they went to work. They used every part of their body, pulling and kneading on mine.  It was very different than a Swedish massage that is typical in the U.S. It felt really good though, and it did a lot to help my back out (it’s been hurting a lot for several days).  They certainly get into it though, and my woman kept stifling giggles when I would wince if something was too hard. 

Then we went to cooking school. Yep, that’s right, folks. Get excited, I learned how to cook Thai food. It was really fun and quite the operation.  They took us to the market to point out each of the ingredients. Then they took us back to the school. It’s set up so you choose four dishes and after each one you sit and eat what you made. They had a FULL house that night with about 3 or 4 groups of about 10 each.  There were lots of helpers and they took you through step by step how to do everything. We even made curry paste.  

Our guide at the market

Before the cooking

Pad Thai demonstration. This girl was awesome, she kept telling us that in her kitchen we must smile. "Even if you cut your finger, you must always smile!" (Yes that is a direct quote)

Me and my pad Thai

Soup with coconut milk

Making spring roll filling

Spring Roll and Soup

Guy in my group making. They had us pick the meals and then with each dish split us up with what we wanted to make. I don't know who he is, just another student who had to do the majority of the work for the curry paste that we made.

Coconut milk (it's inside the cloth and we put it in water and then squeezed it a bunch. It went in with the curry.

Final product. It was so good! I now know how to make Thai food!

I'm allergic to Elephants

Staying here in Chang Mai is amazing! The hotel is very small and is in a sort of wide “U” shape. On the ground level, there is a little patio where breakfast is served. And the breakfast doesn’t end either. They just keep bringing more and more food out to you, it’s a little overwhelming, but it’s all really good. Fahrung makes these little doughnut type things that you can dip in sweetened condensed milk that are to die for!  So yummy.

Breakfast, Cathy, Kari and Fahrung.

Our Hotel. Amazing accommodations!

Fahrung arranged transportation for us up to the elephant riding place for the day, so Kari, Matt and I went up there (Cathy has done it several times before, so opted to stay at the hotel to do some work). On a side note, I learned that I’m allergic to elephants, at least that is what I’m going to claim because when I was there I couldn’t stop sneezing and couldn’t blow my nose enough.  I figure that is a pretty unique allergy that needs to be talked about at every doctor visit I ever go to in the future. The Elephant place was really cool, but I had really mixed feelings. I know that there is a lot of maltreatment for elephants, which I obviously think is wrong. And the ability to b able train an animal to perform tricks is really cool to show the intelligence of the animals, but it’s also sad because they have relatively little choice in the matter. I think about how we treat dogs, and how many people the focus is on how to train them, and they make them perform for their friends and whoever comes to visit. It’s pride for the dog and owner. And it’s an accomplishment that both can be happy about. But how is that different. Is it simply different because of the number of animals (there were several at a time performing tricks)? Is it different because elephants have been maltreated, poached, and their numbers are drastically reduced from what they used to be? Is it different because they’re animals that are usually caged in zoos or put into circus acts?  Is it different because it happens here and I’m aware of how much some people in the US are concerned with animals’ rights and that isn’t as much of a concern here? I’m not sure. I don’t know that anyone can answer these questions for anyone else, but they’re thoughts I’ve pondered about since. I often have the same reaction when thinking about or visiting zoos.  I’m not sure I would think about it quite so much if I were going on a group tour riding horses, and why is that the case?  Horses were wild once; is it just because I’m used to them being so domesticated? I guess I’ll keep thinking for a while.

Nonetheless, I was very impressed by the things they had trained the elephants to do. They played soccer, threw darts, painted pictures, the trainers demonstrated various ways to get on and off, etc.  The rides were really awesome too. We went for about an hour. Kari and I shared one (cheaper) and Matt had his own. You can tell that the riders/trainers cater to tourists all the time, they stopped at one point and took our cameras to get pictures of us on the elephants. Most of the riders and trainers are from the Karen tribes (pronounced Kah – rin, with the emphasis on the second syllable). Historically their people come from this area and over in Burma also.  They are most famous for their long neck rings that women wear. The truck that took us up to the elephants had several other stops on the way (that you could take if you wanted, see alligators (people put their heads in their mouths), snakes, feed baby tigers, etc.). One of the stops is at a Karen village to look at the people. It felt a little too exploitive for us, so we opted not to. The other stuff is pretty touristy, and we weren’t really interested in that either.  

Bathing before the show. I'm not sure Why they painted them with country flags.

Soccer!

Painting a picture.

Matt practicing his Thai greeting.

Kari and I on our elephant

We did decide to stop at an orchid farm, which was beautiful! So many different types of orchids. I enjoyed the colors a lot, and the way that they grow is really unique.  We also stopped at a shop to help our driver out (he gets a stamp for everybody he brings and then with so many stamps he gets something). They weren’t Thai, I think the sales people were Middle Eastern of some sort, but wow, were they good sales people! They were very rehearsed. It was a little hard to get out of there, but we managed it. Finally we stopped at a little coffee shop where I had the most amazing kiwi shake. It was kind of a mix between a shake and a slushy, and it was so tasty.  

Orchid farm

I was rather proud of myself for this picture

We went to a Monk chat after that. One of the temples has a place set aside for people to come and talk to Monks about Buddhism or anything really. We talked to ours about his process of deciding to be a Monk. Apparently there is no set time, so many come in to do their education (because it’s free), and that is what this guy wanted to do, he had about 3 years left. They have to follow all their rules the same, but they’re just there for a shorter amount of time.  He talked about the rules of living as a Monk and we asked about what consequences are there if they break a rule. He basically told us there were no consequences, but Karma would catch up to you.  He also told us for a healthy life we should meditate 5 or 10 minutes each morning and night. I kind of wish we could have had an older Monk who had been there longer, but this man was nice to talk to and was kind to answer all our questions. 

A Temple ruin by the Monk chat

Temple where we had the Monk chat.

What was supposed to be a boring day...

This was the day that I thought I’d have nothing to write about, and while nothing monumental happened, the day was filled with little gems all over the place!  We flew up to Chang Mai today, which is in the northern part of Thailand and more in the jungle area.  It is the second largest city of the country, and compared to Bangkok it is TINY. The morning was pretty relaxing, I got to catch up on journaling and rest a bit before packing up to go. 

We got to the airport a little early (okay a lot early), mainly because we had to check out at noon and our flight didn’t leave until 3:30, so we had some time to kill. We ate lunch at this little place that was quite good for being in an airport and I had the most amazing blueberry smoothie!  I loved it. And now it’s time for the TMI: I also love the airport for selling tampons! I started my period today, and while I knew this going into the trip, I totally forgot to bring any tampons.  I went to the 7-Eleven to find some supplies and I only could find pads. That means using pads for a whole 5-6 days. Eww. Gross. I’ve never done that, and I really didn’t want to do it now.  I thought that maybe the airport might have them (trying to cater to Westerners), so when I found a pharmacy, I jumped at the chance, and SUCCESS! Tampons! I’ve never been so excited to see hygienic supplies in my life.

Anyway we got to our flight and eventually got on and this is where the first story comes into play. We took off uneventfully and things were going well.  The captain had taken the fasten seatbelts sign off, and then about 10 minutes later he put it back on. We went along on our way with no turbulence and then all of a sudden the plane dropped MAJOR altitude. As the plane recovered the man sitting a few rows up and over from me had his Coke in his hand, the contents of which went flying out of his cup, hit the ceiling of the plane and went everywhere. At that point all I could do was laugh.  Since we were flying back safely, all I could do was laugh (and I did, a lot!). My next thought? “I’m really glad I wasn’t in the bathroom!”

The next funny moment came when we got a taxi from the airport. It was pretty uneventful until Matt told the cab driver it was okay for him to turn his music back on.  The music was pretty loud, but his bass. Wow. It was so loud and it vibrated the car. It was just like sitting in some 18-year-old boy’s car. He had two huge subwoofers and I think they were going full blast. It was so funny because it was just out of place. It was unexpected for a middle-aged Thai man to like his bass high.

When we go to the hotel, the manager, Fahrung, greeted us. She is so enthusiastic and smiley; she’s great.  She and this other little woman whisked our bags up a flight of stairs before we even knew what she was doing. After settling in we wanted to go to the Walking Market. Fahrung took us out to find a taxi, and before I knew it she’d grabbed my hand and ran out into traffic. It was really funny and of course traffic stopped for her, but it certainly took me by surprise. 

The market was great, we did some bartering and I was able to find some fun things. Dinner that night was great, we were able to have it out on the river. It’s a little cooler here and so much more manageable. This wouldn’t have worked too well in Bangkok.  There was also this old guy playing the guitar that was fun. He took us by surprise at how good he was.  Matt also took some time to show me some stuff of how to use my camera more effectively. It was a very peaceful night and it was very much needed after the craziness of Bangkok. 

Monks, Meals, and Markets

Disclaimer: For those of you who have seen my sister’s blog, my pictures are nothing like hers. I tried to pick ones that were in focus. Just pretend that they’re in focus. Thank you.

Today was an early morning. Cathy’s husband is from Thailand, so we’ve been meeting her in-laws (see previous post), and a distant relative (I think her sister-in-law’s nephew) was going into the Monkhood today.  Not permanently, just for about 2 weeks.  It’s a right of passage for young men to do this either when they are going to get married, make a big change/re-dedicate their lives, moving away for school, etc.  This particular man will be starting his MBA in England in the fall, and this was part of his reason.  Anyway, entering into the Monkhood is a very serious thing, and is begun with a ritual ceremony filled with celebration.  There is a part with the man thanking his parents for raising him, washing their feet, them washing him (along with grandparents and the monk leading the ceremony), changing into white clothing, walking around the temple 3 times with your family and friends, throwing coins wrapped in ribbons, then changing into the burnt orange garment (after vows are spoken), and then the family eats (which as you will see is an entirely different experience in itself).  It was really cool to be there and to watch, I’m going to have to start Googling stuff to figure out meanings and such. There are several rules that they must follow and the number of rules is shown by the color of their clothing, the darker orange means more rules. Two of them are 1) No touching or being touched by women and 2) only eating at 5am and Noon (he didn’t get to eat any of the food at the celebration afterwards, and actually wasn’t there except for a pass through to take pictures and say goodbye to his family). 

Washing his parents' feet.

Getting washed. This monk seemed to take joy and kept dumping more and more water on him. And it looked pretty cold.  

Walking around the temple

Throwing out the money

Family gifts for the monastery. No there isn't any significance in the gifts, they're always really practical. It's part of the celebration of having a son admitted into the Monkhood.

Making his vows

Side note: While the family walked around the temple, we walked over to the doors of the temple. And this is where we saw the cutest little boy. He was crouched down looking at this small caterpillar-ish bug. And all of a sudden he stood up and stomped on it.  And kept stomping on it. This furor of killing a bug seemed really ironic outside of a Buddhist temple.

A little less zen outside of the temple

The food after was quite the affair. I don’t think any of us anticipated this much food! Most of it was good, but not all, and we made sure to take pictures of everything.  A member of the Monk’s family insisted that this girl (probably in her mid to late 20s and her mom sit with us because the girl spoke English from attending the University of Michigan for her PhD in Engineering). They were great, even her mom spoke some English (I think more than she let on). She helped explain what everything was and how to eat it.  I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves: 

This is our table before we sat down. Notice the Sprite and Pepsi bottles.

We think we're almost done with the meal, so we thought we'd better get a picture. I think this was around the 4th or 5th course...

Our friends Tanawan and Kornsiri. They were great to sit with during the meal

Pre-appatizer? Puffed chips and peanuts (with chop sticks, which aren't supper common in Thailand).

Appatizer? Top right and clockwise: Thai hot dogs with ketchup, sliced ginger (pickled), pineapple, fake crab, Fermented eggs (direct translation: Horse urine eggs, also the ONLY think I didn't try), Center: pork/shrimp rapped in kanomgeep (flower of some sort). 

This was kind of like a coleslaw. Contents: mango, peanut, carrot, little crispy fish, pork sausage, lettuce, some sort of sauce.

Foreground: Duck, Background: Shark-fin soup (actually came out before the coleslaw stuff, and it was terrible!)

Shrimps, I even tried sucking the head (as I was directed, and I will never do that again)

Sea Bass, if fish always tasted like this, I could eat a ton of it. Apparently (and I've always suspected) fish tastes best when it's supper fresh and doesn't taste fishy (who knew :P). SO GOOD!

By this point you're probably thinking, we're done right? I'm mean that was 3 different types of protein. But you're wrong. Next came more soup (by this point we're on the 8th course). Those floating things are from a bamboo plant.  Couldn't actually get the name of it from anyone. 

Fruit that they brought especially for us.  The orange-ish things are salat, then grapes up in the top. the clear ones are longgong, apples and the red lynchee.

The obligatory fried rice with pork that has been dried and shredded on the top (surprisingly good).

Dessert which was sticky rice, sugar, dates and coypeck (yellow things that are supposed to give you a long life). When we were done and old man came up and started picking them out and eating them. It was really funny.

The newly admitted monk

After that Cathy’s brother-in-law took us to the weekend market (Chatuchank Market). It was crazy busy and really hot. We kept being warned about pick-pocketers and how it wasn’t safe, to be careful with our money, etc. We didn’t have any problems. We did get to see some crazy stuff though.  It was an extremely hot and humid day and it was really miserable to be out in the sun, and the parts that were covered were often just as bad because people were cooking food to sell so there was heat radiating from that too.  I’m not sure how they manage it.  I suppose if that’s all you’re used to.  We started wandering around the covered part, and ended up in the animal section. It started out with cute puppies, and then steadily when down hill. Thankfully it didn’t smell too badly, but booths after booths of caged animals got old really quickly. And we couldn’t find our way out.  They were selling everything: fish, dogs, bunnies, squirrels, rodents, etc. Some of the squires weren’t even caged, just leashed up. That was odd.  At one point we did find our way out, and decided that we needed to cool down; We found a place that was enclosed with air conditioning. It was a restaurant so we stopped to get drinks. I got mango juice, which is probably more detail than you care about, but it was really good mango juice. Mostly because it was cold, but it tasted really good also.  We shopped around for a while and bartered a bit. After only a few hours though, we were done. 

We took a Taxi over to another set of Cathy’s in-laws that wanted us to come for dinner. He seemed like a nice cab driver, and every once and a while you could hear him quietly singing along with the radio, which was fantastic!  He offered us water too, which seemed really nice at the time.  Later when we were at Cathy’s her in-laws were telling us about how lately there have been a lot of people being drugged with the drinks they buy and then being robbed. We probably would have been okay because the water was sealed, but none of us took any of it anyway.  But good to know for the future.

At that point, we’d just gotten out of the taxi, only been at the market for a few hours, and immediately prior to that had just finished eating a HUGE meal. Needless to say, no one was hungry.  They brought a few things out and I thought, “Okay, I can do this.” They made us sit down and totally tricked us! Hahaha. They just kept bringing out more and more food! It was so much!  It was all really good, but still, so full (even the morning after I'm still full)! They were really nice and kept teaching the Thai names for everything and it was really fun.  It also rained while we were there, and rained might be a bit of an understatement. It poured! For probably about a half hour, at that point it made sense why it was so muggy at the market. Words cannot describe how grateful I am that we didn’t get caught in that at the market. I think it would have given new meaning to the word miserable.