VIEWS IN AND AROUND CHIANG MAI

SEE WHAT I MEAN ABOUT THE SMOG/SMOKE/HAZE

PARTS OF THE WALL AROUND THE OLD CITY

I was fortunate enough to wander into a big temple complex while there was a ceremony happening. It was the intake of a new batch of apprentice Buddhist monks. It was very crowded, with only a few foreigners there. These kids had just had their heads shaved and were being given their saffron robes in front of their very proud families. I felt somewhat privileged to stumble onto it, but it was nearly finished and I could only grab a couple of photos, which do not do it justice, but here they are.

I did notice that a few of the kids were pretty darn hefty. They'll have a hard time renouncing earthly temptations, particularly the ones that taste good. But, a couple of years in the monastery getting up and scrubbing the floors at 3 am then wandering the streets begging for food, all the while contemplating the challenges imposed by Lord Buddah, and the pounds will just melt away. No offence, but rather you than me, cookie boy.

THAILAND IS A LAND OF CONTRASTS......and mixed messages.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

....................NOT TO MENTION MANGLED ENGLISH

HERE ARE A FEW SHOTS OF VARIOUS TEMPLES WITHIN THE PRECINCTS OF THE OLD CITY WALLS.

I'm only guessing, but the oldest might be 6 or 700 years old, and some of the newer ones are in a lot better shape than I've seen elsewhere. And check out this rain forest giant. Maybe one day people will come here just to see the trees.

But wait, there's more. This morning I headed out in another direction. Being early Sunday morning, there was not much traffic and it was somewhat cooler. I walked through Party Central, wall to wall bars and eventually the night markets. Sometimes things do look better when its dark, so I might have to try again tonight. That's if I can walk tonight. My right knee (the one I just had surgery on) is blown up like a balloon, which is a bit of a worry, so I might have to ease up on being a pedestrian. Walking around the streets in Asia is pretty tricky at the best of times. You really do have to watch where you put your feet. On the footpath, and I use the term very loosely, you are at constant risk of breaking an ankle or worse, treading in something you'll never forget. Its actually safer to walk on the road, at least the traffic will go around you. I hope.

OK, here's a few more quite spectacular temples, and a few other things.

YES, I KNOW THAT FEELING!

I THINK ITS CALLED WORK!!!

YEAH, OK, NO IDEA EITHER.

HONDA 50CC, WITH CARBON FIBRE EXHAUST, INVERTED FORKS, BELLS, WHISTLES. ITS FULLY FARKLED.



THAT'S MORE OF THE OLD CITY WALL.

Tomorrow morning we begin with a group briefing, then get started on what some of us came here for. I mean bike riding. We start with a 225 km day which will take us into Doi Inthanon National Park, home of the highest peak in Thailand, then our first overnight stop at Khun Yuam. I've never heard of them either, lucky I brought a map.

ARRIVAL IN CHIANG MAI

Bloody Hell! I wouldn't want to go through that again. I don't mean spending hours in a plane trussed up like a chicken getting to Chiang Mai, I mean trying to log on to the hotel wifi. The laptop went into meltdown when I switched it on, and 2 hours later I'm not sure how I got this far, certainly not the usual way, so this is a pure fluke. Future posts may be problematical, so bear that in mind over the next couple of weeks.  And today is Saturday 29, not Friday 28, so the clock on the laptop is a day out of whack. Anyhow, I got into town last night at about 9 pm local. Considering I did not sleep particularly well the night before departure, then got up at 4 am to get going, I had been up for a lazy 23 hours before I could crawl back into the sack and I was fairly knackered. (Understatement of the week, I felt like threepence worth of cat crap).

A few quick observations:

• You can get Guinness in Thailand, well at least in the airport in Bangkok, so apologies for my earlier doubts.
• The Suvanabumi airport terminal in Bangkok is freaking huge, even though I have been in it previously.  Its true size was only revealed after I had to walk about 2km (really) from one end and almost but not quite to the other end to change planes. It's supposed to be the second biggest in the world, but I'm wary of such claims, they are often vaguely defined until you read the fine print. But it's gigantic, no doubt about that---and it's busy. What a bunfight, I thought. It will be a bloody miracle if my luggage and I get to Chiang Mai at the same time, and there is anyone from Big Bike Tours there to collect me. Clearly, miracles happen. Apologies once again for my doubts.

• In Bangkok airport I had a bit of time to kill, so headed for the eatery. All the usual suspects were there, and for about $10, I could have bought a heart attack in a box. For about $3, I went local with a green chicken curry and rice. It was like a belt in the face with a wet doormat. And it really was green. Bright green. A strange and possibly unnatural green, with stuff floating in it. As I warily circled it, I detected its pungency from about three feet away. OK, let's not die wondering! The sour bite of lemongrass, the sweet tang of coconut and the volcanic heat of the chillies soon had me perspiring just under the eyes and gasping slightly for air. The little floating green things which looked like peas but were bigger and crunchier had me intrigued, but it was just superb. And this in an airport! I had to put out the flames with an icy cold Singha, naturally. Yippee, this is going to be a culinary treat, I can tell.

• The mozzies ambushed me. The baggage collection area in Chiang Mai was swarming with the little sods, and all my repellent and other chemical warfare agents were in my luggage. Round one to the mozzies, on points.

•  The sky is very hazy up here, and visibility severely restricted, so I suspect the scenic panoramas may be compromised. Bit of a shame, hopefully it might clear up. I have been told its because right now the farmers are burning off whats left of the rice crops. How do you set fire to a rice paddy? Never mind.

• The hotel I'm in might have been three star about 30 years ago, ok but tatty and down at heel. At breakfast this morning, it was no trouble playing Spot the Aussie. Shorts, thongs, singlet, beergut, tatts. And that's just the women. We just ooze class, don't we? No trouble playing Spot the Paedophile either. Or the Germans. Or possibly both. Got the picture?

I was picked up at the airport by the two owners of Big Bike Tours (BBT). Kay is German, a  former road racer, and Nirin is a local who looked fast just standing still, kind of twitchy and walked with a limp. Both looked like sports bike riders, and I think this ain't going to be a slow ride.

Anyhow, I'm off for a walk around the town, and hopefully I'll have some pictures to post before we saddle up and head out on Monday.

I'M BAAAAAACK !!

Well hello once again readers. And a Happy St Patrick's Day it is to all of you and yours, to be sure, to be sure and a begosh and a begorrah. Break out the Jamieson's. Well oiled beef hooked, and so on and so forth. What's new with you? Was that "Same old same old" that I just heard? Surely not. If I was to ask myself the same question, or if you were to ask it of me, the answer that would be given would be "Just about every goddam thing you can think of". All the stuff that you use when you fill in forms anyway, except name and date of birth. I'm not going to bang on about it, its now in the past, I survived, and the rest of my life has already started. But I will say this. At times of crisis, you find out who your real friends are. And to all those of you who helped me and cared about me over the last year, I cannot thank you enough. If you don't know what the hell I'm talking about, forget it, and just keep on reading. Normal service has been resumed.

I thought I better have a practice run on the blog, because two years have passed since I completed my adventure in the US and Canada, and technology waits for nobody, especially us dinosaurs. Of course the Blogger Dashboard has changed again. Of course I have to learn a whole pile of new tricks. And having only recently become comfortable with the word Google, now I have to get on top of the word Dongle. Sounds like something you could get arrested for. How long before we all get a computer chip embedded in the cerebral cortex, and I can do a post on the web just by thinking about it? Can't be too far away by now, surely. Probably just after I kick the bucket. And by the way, I hope that is many long years away.

Aah yes, I'm feeling better already. Right, let the next adventure commence. "Once more into the mysterious East dear friends," he said with Shakespearian authority. Actually one Eastern mystery I would really like cleared up before I get on a plane again is what the hell happened to Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, and I know I'm not alone on that one. In less than 2 weeks, your truly will be flying to Chiang Mai over that same stretch, albeit with Qantas. You know, Qantas, the world's safest airline. The one that does everything properly. The one that is about to sack 5,000 workers. The one that wants to get its maintenance done by the people who fix Malaysian Airlines planes. The one that thinks getting on Air Crash Investigation is free publicity. The one that loses billions of dollars a year, because unpatriotic Aussies who should be on board are flying Wog-Air just because its cheaper and are stopping over in some desert crap hole where you can't get a beer and where they stop to pray every 30 minutes. Praying to go and live somewhere else, I reckon. I seem to have lost my train of thought.

Ah yes, Thailand. Well, I've been to the Travel Doctor already. They send a taxi to get me when I want to travel these days. Have you heard Mike Green is travelling again! Great, I can finally put in an order for that new Mercedes! I think I must have had just about every vaccination you can get, except for maybe Ebola. This time it was just a top up -  a bit of typhoid, a dash of swine flu. Oooh, you'll like this one, its just come in- it's the new Dengue Fever custom special, and it's really turning heads in Malawi this year. 360 degrees, mostly. But seriously, its back on the anti-malarials again. No doubt the mozzies are already massing in their billions in Asia's fetid jungles and swamps - and the millions of old car tyres littering peoples yards- in eager anticipation of their next feast. As soon as one of their all time favourite dishes arrives in town, they'll go absolutely bunta, like they always do. Well this time I'm packing red label Bushman, you little bastards, so bring it on!

Righto, see you (and the mozzies) when I get there on the 28th. I wonder if I'll be able to get a Guinness in Thailand? Didn't think so. Bloody Protestants.