Going Mobile and Some Chiang Mai Observations

I thought I ought to post something so as not to lose your interest. I’ve been delaying a post until I had some photos, but uh, I’ve had some technical difficulties (the type that can be categorized as user error), so I’ll be doing some photographic catch up and hope to have something visually appealing posted by tomorrow.

In the mean time I’m happy to report that I’m mobile. I took the plunge and rented a motorbike this weekend – fully automatic, 125cc, enough so that Lizzie and I can motor around together. I spent Saturday and Sunday become acclimated to traffic by following Lizzie through the town. Today I took my first solo jaunt to the “700 Year Stadium” and the 50 meter pool! Probably not exciting for you guys, but very exciting for me. Between feeling like a 16 year old who'd moved from learner's permit to the freedom of a real license and getting to swim in a 50 meter pool, I was a pretty happy camper.

I can now confirm with personal certainty that yes, 50 meters is more than 25 yards. In fact, it’s over twice 25 yards. I won’t bore you with all the details of my swim. Suffice it to say I managed to squeeze in a good workout in well under my normal number of laps while wondering on more than one occaision, "Are we there yet? Isn't the end of the pool around here somewhere?!". Lucky for me I wrapped up my swim just as 50 8-15 year old summer camp Thai boys joined me in the possibly the only cool place in Chiang Mai.

I can also report that it’s damned hot here. Hot enough that on the four lane divided road back to town, I experienced hot as I never have before. The only time in my life I can recall that kind of hot is on a windy night standing next to a raging bonfire. The phrase “hotter than hell” has new meaning for me.

And speaking of hot, I heard that Seattle had snow flurries a couple of days ago. In the spirit of celebrating diversity I thought I’d provide a completely subjective and somewhat arbitrary list of other ways that Seattle and Chiang Mai differ:

• The cockroaches here are huge. Did I mention that there are cockroaches? (Photo to come.) The good news is that they seem to congregate exclusively in the kitchen and are almost large enough to think of more as pets than as vermin.

• You often find that in lieu of paper, toilets are outfitted with sprayer hoses – the kind that you might find at the kitchen sink in Seattle homes. On the whole, it seems a more sanitary approach to personal hygiene, but I’m not sure about drip drying when the uninitiated risk soaking themselves entirely. You know how damned difficult it is to get those sprayers aimed appropriately and at the right pressure. (I’m sure the locals get a kick out of farang – foreigners' – misuse of the plumbing!)

• Straws come with every drink. I have asked Thai people why this is the case (more than one actually) and none of them can tell me why but they all confirm that straws are ubiquitous in Thailand.

• You also get a small plastic bag with absolutely everything you purchase. My most frequent purchase to date is water. Without fail I am handed a bottle of water and a straw in the plastic bag. However, in this case I believe I have cracked the code. In a place where almost everyone rides a motorbike, it makes sense to provide a sack so that what you’ve purchased can be hung on the hook that sits centered below the handle bars on the bike. It must be designed for this purpose.

• The scent of jasmine. What else is there to say? The scent of jasmine is amazing and it hits you when you least expect it: walking along the street or riding through town or on the hotter than hell divided road coming home from the pool. It’s almost impossible to avoid a feeling of relaxation when you smell the scent of jasmine.
  
  
• Massages - I haven’t yet experienced a Thai massage. I’m a little worried about that, but I did have an “oil” massage. I thought that it would be gentler than a traditional Thai massage and indeed it was. But in Chiang Mai, unlike in Seattle, everything is massaged. I mean everything (with the exception of your southern private parts and your armpits). That said, the masseuse was both talented and very respectful. The experience was akin a cathartic ritual or ceremony and in that context I did not feel uncomfortable or too exposed.

Got to head to bed, I've gotten accustomed to hitting the hay early so that I can enjoy the cooler part of the day - 5:30 am.

K