I'm Drawing a Blank

February 4^th, 2012

After a night in Vientiane, I was ready to move on to my next city, Vang Vieng. I heard this city has a bad reputation for drawing backpackers into a whirlwind of party rocking, lazy living, alcohol drowning, Hepatitis A infecting cesspool of wild adventures and dangers. And it’s hard for visitors to leave. On top of all that, it is completely dripped dry of Lao culture. Usually when traveling to another country, I want to take in as much of the culture as possible. I want to learn the language, indulge in the food, get to know the locals and history, and, of course, visit all the tourist sites. So upon hearing about this city, I knew I didn’t want to be here long. But I wanted to see what the hype was all about. I had no idea I what I was getting myself into.

Vang Vieng. It is a small town acknowledged for its beautiful limestone cliffs and captivating twisting rivers. Well, Vang Vieng used to be known more for its landscape. But now it has been overrun by backpackers and tourists, who come here for tubing along the river, cheap whiskey buckets and shots, and popular TV sitcom marathons. Sounds strange for a city in a distant and exotic country in Asia, right? The country exudes lethargy, particularly in Vang Vieng. This lack of activity can be seen during most of the day since you don’t see too many people walking around or partaking in any form of physical or mental activity. If you do see any signs of life in the daytime, it is usually people resting at a restaurant watching several episodes of Friends or Family Guy or rehydrating themselves, in attempts to nurse the hangover from the night before. It is at night or by the river when people come alive.

Laos is known for having some of the worst bus and road systems out there. If they tell you it will only take two hours, it most definitely will not. My bus ride was a long five hour drive on unpaved and rubble-layered streets. I was exhausted since my hostel closed early for the night so I attempted to sleep on the bus ride up. Not the best idea though. I think by the end of the ride we had a couple of victims already. Passengers were drenched in sweat from the lack of AC or the immovable windows, bruised from windowpane repetitively knocking into their heads, or felt so nauseous that the bus had to take several pit stops probably in fear that they would actually have to wipe down the stained and filthy bus. No one really had a good time getting to Vang Vieng. We all looked atrocious by the end of it all. But I’m sure everyone perhaps felt consoled by the prospect of whiskey buckets and relaxing down the river.

When finally arriving at Vang Vieng, I was already off to a bad start. My skull already developed some good bruises and my pants were soaked in sweat. Oddly enough, the wet spots were situated in the crotchal regions. I walked around the small town for a bit, finding the best and most discreet ways to cover my wet crotch. The town was very true to its reputation: a glut of backpackers, the Friends episodes showing at every restaurant, and an overall lack of noise or activity produced by the town. But when moving away from the inner part of town, you can see the reason why some people consider Laos their favorite country to visit. The landscape was quite impressive; the cliffs and rivers were true to form. Even this one town has so much to visually offer. After some exploration, I found Sarah. We then got to our adorable little bungalow near the river. Later, we found our way to a hammock bar and had my first try of Tiger whiskey in a bucket.

Whiskey Bucket. Drinking from a bucket. Sound excessive. Well, it isn’t the biggest of all buckets but it’s enough to help you get to a happy place, or whatever place you choose. It is actually quite practical and delicious for how shoddy it sounds. When you order a whiskey bucket, you will usually get your choice of whiskey, a mixer, and Red Bull. Tiger whiskey is the cheap and most popular whiskey they have in Laos. And they give you a good amount of the liquor too. It’s not a shot or two; it’s the whole bottle. These buckets are very popular since it is easy to share, easy to carry around on its handle, and sadly, easy to drug. Keep an eye on your bucket at all times.

February 5^th-6^th, 2012

It all started off so mild. A serene day of climbing cliffs in the wilderness led to a swirly haze of florescent colors, rave music, and booze.

Rock climbing. For the last couple of years, I have wanted to go rock climbing. Not the colorful rock type of climbing (though I hear that is still fun to do), but the real, non-manipulated rocks of nature kind of climb. It is kind of exciting scaling nature as it can be an unpredictable and hazardous act. It was always really difficult to get my friends and me to go. While trying to coordinate work schedules was a strain, we also had to consider the distance and finances that were involved in a climb. So when I found out that Vang Vieng was supposed to have some of the best and cheapest rock climbing, I was ecstatic. Not only am I going to go rock climbing but it will be on these gorgeous, earth tone painted rocks and cliffs in Laos.

I went through a company called Green Discovery who set me up with a half day course and climb. The ride over was fun as I met a great group of English teachers from an international school in Vientiane. They were enjoying their week-long vacation, traveling around to some of Laos’ more popular cities. Some of them were veteran rock climbers so it was nice to know that we all had some experts in our midst. I was excited to start climbing. I used to rock climb a bit when I was younger and I really enjoyed it. Before heading to the cliffs, the company set us up with some climbing gear. The shoes were interesting. They were tiny and contorted my toes into an uncomfortable position as I attempted to fit my feet into the shoes. I guess I don’t remember my feet hurting this much when I was younger. But no pain, no gain.

We arrived at the climb site after kayaking across a small river and learning to tie our figure eight knots. We were ready to go, ready to mount these bouldering cliffs. We were given many different climb sites all ranging from levels 5-8. I started with the lower leveled climb and then quickly worked my way up. I was successful with each climb except the last one, the top level climb. At this point, one of my feet was almost too sore to the touch. So with my throbbing foot and my weakened stamina, I did not finish my last climb. I’m definitely not in shape. Nevertheless, I was proud. I haven’t involved myself in physical activity since I hurt my back almost five months ago.

I did it!...at least most of the climbs.

The Infamous Tubing Experience. After renting a tube for the day, we were all stuffed into a small truck, eagerly awaiting our river adventure. We were driven a couple miles out of the main town to the Nam Song River. Then we were dropped off at the start of it all, the river bars. It was truly a surreal experience. As I crossed over the bridge to get to the first bar, I felt as if I were watching one of those drug stimulated movies. Imagine the film Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas but set in nature and with a more cheerier and bright aura. And I was completely sober of any substance when watching it all.

The tame section of the river

Bright yellow, pink, green, and purple bouncing blobs of people stood out from both sides of the river. Everyone was brightly fashioned and jumping and dancing all over the river bar stages. Many people can be seen leisurely tubing down the river with a bucket in their lap and their hands flailing to the music. Locals and the bar staff were throwing out ropes for passing tubers to pull them into their bars. Wooden bars, platforms, and tables lined the winding river for miles. But even with the distance, those colorful blobs bobbing up and down were just too distinct to not notice. You can also see people jumping from elevated stands or off a trapeze into the shallow river. We dropped off our tubes and entered the first bar. There was a young Australian girl who greeted us at the bar, tied a bracelet to our wrists, and handed us a shot of some type of whiskey. Then, we cheered (Dam Jook!) and then…

The next two days was a blur. To maintain whatever professionalism I still have left in this blog, I have chosen to limit the details in my writing. This also may be due to my loss of memory. I blame the bumpy bus ride—well at least partly. And here it goes:

• Shared a Tiger whiskey bucket or two.

• Learned and performed the notorious river dance on the bar stage—flash mob style.

• Drank whiskey soaked with a collection of pickled cobras, scorpions, and tarantulas.

• Got a spray paint tattoo—stars I think.

• Jumped off a rope swing several times in a row. It was addicting.

• Slid down a questionably stable and regulated water slide.

• Had to leave my sandals behind—once you start going down the river, there is no going back.

• Got rope burn from the locals who reeled me into the bars.

• Got covered in spray paint from my head, shoulders, knees, and toes, knees and toes—and then my clothes.

• Received free whiskey shots at every river bar—with every free shot you take, you get a bracelet to commemorate.

• Got a very provocative and misleading drawing of a bucket on my neck…with a permanent marker. Took a couple days to get off. I feared going back to school with this drawing still intact on my skin.

• Was offered crystal meth. I kindly rejected their offer and then was excited that I was offered such a hardcore drug for the first time.

• Stole the cans of spray paint and sprayed everyone that crossed my path.

• Drank a bucket with part whiskey, part urine-infested river water, and part GHB (just a guess).

• Used the rope swing constantly until I realized that my grip was starting to weaken.

• Learned about happy shakes. They are only 100,000 kips. Sounds expensive but it’s really only $13.

• Took care of someone who got date raped drugged.

• Spray painted everything and everyone everywhere.

• Saw a lot of travelers get pretty badly hurt on the river—drunkenness, rope swings, and high elevated stages above the river, not a good mix.

• Watched many people relieve themselves in the river, which probably ended up in our buckets later.

• Participated in fire limbo until I saw one girl nearly burn off her hair. I have back problems anyways. I shouldn’t be bending that way.

• Learned how to dance with fire from a local Lao fire dancer.

• Had to kayak upstream at night since it ran out of gas in the middle of the river. Finally, got to see some stars.

• Walked around without shoes for a couple of days. It was painful but I was hoping to develop the villager’s feet at some point on my trip.

• Ate delicious cheeseburgers almost twice a day during my visit.

• Used the river as my shower during my entire stay.

• Stole the tubes, which were stolen from us later.

• And so much more…

Here are some pictures my friend Andy took from the river:

My original idea was to spend one day in Vang Vieng and then head up to Luang Prabang for a couple days. Then I planned to head back to Vientiane to retrieve my passport and new visa and make my way back home. But just like so many others, I was stuck in Vang Vieng. During my stay, my excuses included: ‘Luang Prabang is too far’, ‘I heard the bus ride to Luang Prabang is terrible’, ‘I’m too tired’, ‘I haven’t watched Friends in a while’, ‘I still have a tube to use’, ‘I don’t want to waste a day riding on a bus’, ‘I want another cheeseburger’, ‘I’ve already made friends here’, ‘lethargy is too contagious’. I couldn’t seem to get out.

Warning. If you ever make your way up to Vang Vieng, be responsible and safe. Many travelers get injured and even die during this river experience. Although fun, alcohol and rocky waters aren’t always the best combination. They say that 220 people a year die on this river. Some have drowned, some have gotten lost at night, some have jumped off a rope swing and fallen into the shallow areas of the river, and some have just overdosed on alcohol (since it is so accessible and you can get most of it for free). Just last week, four people died on the river. Additionally, there is a great chance of getting drugged. With buckets and uncontrolled behavior and consciences, drugs can be dropped into your drinks. Watch your buckets, watch your shot glasses, and monitor your substance intake especially when performing acrobatic tricks on the river. It can be really scary.

On a less frightening note, another caution to be aware of is irregular bowel movements. Fortunately, I was able to avoid this unpleasant encounter. But it happens. Perhaps it is all the river water people ingest, whether it gets spilled into their buckets or is directly sprayed into their mouths as they are playing in the river. Many people come back from Laos with some type of stomach bug, Hepatitis A, or an illness that requires a trip to the hospital.

February 7^th-8^th, 2012

Bye Bye VV!

 

I finally left Vang Vieng. The bus ride back to Vientiane was even livelier than the last. Bumpy and uncomfortable as usual with the frequent stops for those who suddenly became sick. This time an additional stop was made at the hospital for a traveler who seemed to be overdosing on a drug. Maybe it was just the bumpy ride, I hope.

After arriving in town, I found the same cheap hostel I stayed in almost a week ago. This time I am coming home earlier to ensure that I make curfew. I placed my bags down and lied in bed for a bit, pondering the events from the last couple of days. I was in this troubled place as if Vang Vieng took away a part of my soul. Maybe it did. I felt regret. I didn’t visit any of the other cities in Laos. I spent most of my time in the one city that didn’t display a single ounce of Lao culture. Despite my desires to learn about Laos, I still don’t know anything about the country after a week of visiting. I know I’m just being a bit hard on myself but it’s not every day that I get to visit a country.

After some rest and reflection, the next morning I retrieved my brand new visa. Oh yes, I have my non-immigrant B visa. After months of already working and just two weeks left in school, I am finally legally allowed to work in Thailand. Was it worth it getting the visa? Well, I’m still not sure but I was able to go to Laos because of it. And it also gives me more time in the country to ponder my decision of staying or just travel around during my summer break.

By the way, I came back to Bangkok dirtier than ever. The clothes that I stuffed into my backpack were dirt crusted and spray painted and completely soaked in river water. I wasn’t much cleaner than my belongings as I only showered once the entire time I was in Laos. And boy does it feel good.

Want to see more pictures from my trip to Laos? Visit  https://plus.google.com/photos/103535186598541974109/albums/5719934722485582449?authkey=CLu84IXejr8S

The Forgotten

February 2^nd, 2012

I am getting kicked out of Thailand tomorrow. But it wasn’t because I did something naughty this time. My visa’s expires tomorrow and I need to make sure I cross the Thai borders before I get in trouble. So I need a new visa; I need one that doesn’t require me to take a plane flight back to Bangkok and one that allows me to stay in the country longer than 30 days. I attempted to get my non-immigrant B visa in Cambodia but was bitterly denied because I lacked the necessary documents to apply. Sadly, I left Cambodia empty handed and nearly empty pocketed. I was peeved at my school’s inability to organize and prepare their teachers (or just me) for their visa runs. No apologies. No compensation. Nothing. On top of that, I came back to school early because I was required to teach that Friday. But of course, no one told me that we didn’t have school that day after I rushed back to Bangkok. I could’ve spent more time in Cambodia. 

This time I decided to travel to Laos. I heard it is supposed to have a more tolerant Thai embassy. Upon hearing that many foreign teachers have successfully gotten their visas from Laos, I was more confident I would be able to get my visa this time. However, I actually don’t know anything about Laos. It seems to be a mysterious and overlooked country as it is rarely mentioned in history books, popular travel destination ads, and current events. All I know about Laos is it is a country north of the Thai borders and a country heavily bombed during the Vietnam War. Nevertheless, I was excited to explore this unknown territory and get better acquainted with this forgotten country.

My school wants to extend my contract for another year. They seem to like me and they claim the kids like me. I don’t know why though. None of the staff members have ever seen me teach and I always get mad at the kids. Well, not always. It's just when they cheat; a rather familiar act for my students. But I guess I’ve made a good enough impression that they would want to keep me around for another year. It’s a lot to think over though. One whole year of living in Bangkok. One whole year of teaching in a system in which kids never fail. I don’t know if I take all of that for another year. On the other hand, one whole year of a full time job and good salary. One full year of actually knowing what I’m doing finally. One full year of getting to know the kids who are unexpectedly starting to grow on me. It’s hard to turn down a guaranteed job offer especially considering if I return home I won’t have a teaching job waiting for me. It is scary to choose doubt when you have certainty right in front of you.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t given much time for consideration. Less than a week before I had to leave for Laos, my boss handed me a one-year contract and told me that I had to sign it in order to get my non-immigrant B visa. I was really confused. Why do I have to sign a one year contract in order to work for one more month? I didn’t want to sign it. I still haven’t made up my mind about staying yet. But she told me that the one year contract was the only way I would be able to get the proper documents for a visa. Why couldn’t we have done this when I first started? Why can’t the contract just be a couple months? Why do I have to sign a full year contract that doesn’t even start until April of 2012? I had so many questions but not enough time.

So I have two options. I can get kicked out of the country in a couple of days, forfeit my TESOL certificate, salary, and job, and head back to the States months earlier than expected. Or I can sign the one year contract and figure out what I want to do afterwards. Without thinking it over enough, I spitefully signed the one year contract. Yes, I’m bound to this school for the next year. We’ll see. Maybe I’ll start liking the school a bit more over the next month or so. After signing the contract I should be able to get the right documents to bring to the Thai embassy in Laos. Finally, I can get this visa situation over with. This was definitely more complicated than it had to be.

During the week, I began to get really excited about my upcoming travels. Whenever I’m about to go on a trip over the weekend or during the week, I always tell my students. I really like telling my students about my travel experiences and will usually begin or conclude my classes with my adventures. The story from my trip to Ayutthaya was very exciting to tell my M2 kids since the Ayutthaya kingdom is the one I teach them about. As I discussed how troublesome it was trying to make my way around the kingdom, I would also playfully place blame on them by saying, “I went there for you guys so you can learn about Ayutthaya and look what happened! This is how much I like you guys!” I told some of my classes about my forthcoming trip to Laos. Some of them meekly asked, “You are leaving? For how long?” I was so touched to hear these concerning questions come out of their normally unresponsive mouths. That is until I realized that some of them had these malicious smirks on their faces as they assumed that their teacher being out of the country means they don’t have work. I did make a point to keep them rather occupied during my travels.

It was a couple hours before I was supposed to board a bus to Laos and I still don’t have my visa documents. This is Thailand. It figures since everything in Thailand is done last minute. After repetitively telling the staff that I had to leave the country by Thursday, I thought that would prompt them to run my teaching contract through the education system sooner. But they forgot to process my contract so they didn’t have my visa documents ready by the time I had to leave the country. I couldn’t believe it. I was upset. I signed a one year contract and don’t even know if I can get my visa. Now I had to wait for my contract to get all proper signatures before leaving town. It was already an hour past the time I was supposed to leave school. I was afraid I wasn’t going to make the last bus to Laos. I still had to go home, pack the rest of my bags, and make it over to the northern bus terminal, which can sometimes take almost two hours in rush hour. I was getting stressed out, knowing that I would not make the border in time if I didn’t make the last night bus.

After getting my contract signed, two hours of traveling, and five different modes of transportation, I reached the Mochit Bus Station. Finding my way around the station was intimidating. I’ve been to this station several times now but never realized how big it really was. Three floors completely packed with vendor booths all selling tickets to different locations across Thailand. They all look the same. White signs and booths with blue Thai inscriptions. Not too clear for an English speaker. After getting several employees to gesture me directions to the correct booth, I received my ticket to Nong Kai, the border city and point into Laos. I was astonished to hear that the ticket was only 300฿ ($9) since I heard that the ticket could range from 700-900฿ ($21-$30) for a seat on the sleeper bus. Uh oh! I have to expect a pretty low grade bus with that price I’m sure. With all the stress I’ve endured, I didn’t care about the bus quality at this point. I just wanted to get to Laos as soon as possible. And of course it worked out in the end. It always seems to work out in the most dramatic of ways. Last minute but nevertheless, I caught the last bus to the border.

February 3^rd, 2012

What have you ever heard about Laos? Where is Laos even located, right? Some of you might already know a lot about Laos but I don’t think there are too many people that do. I’ll even admit that all I really knew about the country was its geography and relationship to Thailand. That’s about it. Isn’t that terrible considering that I teach a subject called Southeast Asian History? I swear I am a good teacher. However I still have a lot to learn. This is a reason why I wanted to come to this country. I want to learn more about Laos.

Laos is considered the forgotten country among the Southeast Asian clan. Though heavily bombed during the neighboring wars of the 20^th century and commonly shunned for its Communist alliance, the country remains a natural beauty with pure nature reserves and lighthearted and carefree people. Laos is also sometimes considered a sleepy country. Its vibe is almost nonexistent as everything moves like the pages of a nearly vacant flip book. Laotians or Lao people are just as sleepy and laid back as their country’s reputation. The Laos enthusiasm is comparable to waking a child who doesn’t want to wake or a coma victim not yet ready to be revived. Well, the coma victim may be too extreme of a comparison but you get the point. Maybe it’s because Laos has been forgotten for such a long time and just recently been discovered as a popular tourist spot for backpackers and nature thrill seekers alike. And Lao people haven’t yet been brought up to speed. The only tainted and flamboyant part of this peaceful country is sadly the tourists. I’m not excluding myself unfortunately. During my time here I definitely played a part in disrupting the peace.

This time I chose not to tell my parents that I was traveling to Laos. Last time I told them about my travel plans to Cambodia, my parents thought I was going to be auctioned off into the human trafficking industry and/or die. So this time they are going to find out about my journey via blog posts. I really didn’t have time or any patience left for another Skype intervention. I’m tired as it is.

The bus to the border took a lot longer than expected. I took the night bus to Nong Kai, the border city to Laos. I was projected to be at the border by five in the morning. However, I didn’t arrive at my destination until ten in the morning. It was a dreadful bus ride or at least that’s what I am assuming. Once I found a spot on the bus and reclined my seat, I was fast asleep for almost 13 hours. Everything in between was foggy. I was too tired to move or really wake but I had some help along the way. With every stop we made, this beautiful Thai woman would gently wake me and chaperone me to the bathroom at each pit stop. I never asked for her help but she found it her duty to get me to the toilet each time. And I was too tired to resist her persistent guidance. It was strange having her hold me tightly by the upper arm dragging me across each pit stop. She never said a word to me. She just gave me an utterly concerned smile. I think she thought something was terribly wrong with me. I honestly don’t think I truly woke up during any of those breaks. I missed out on the pitch dark scenery of the disregarded regions of Eastern Thailand (the area of my supposed original residence and school site) but I made it to my destination safely.

The Trolls of the Lao Border. After a long voyage across the border, I reached Vientiane with my on-arrival visa. If ever making this same crossing, bring US dollars for your on-arrival visa. They gave me a bit of a hard time and tried charging me a lot more money when I attempted to use Thai baht. They then made me wait almost an hour at their office to try to exchange my money. I guess they prefer USD at the border. Nevertheless, I exchanged my Thai baht into Lao money, which is called kips. The exchange rate is about 8,000 kips to 1 USD. Although most Thai food and commodities are cheaper, buying in Laos wasn’t too badly priced. It is still cheaper than the States. For example, Lao coffee can cost about 16,000 kip ($2) and a meal can cost about 25,000 kips ($3).

The City of Sandalwood. Vientiane is the capital of Laos. It is a quiet and unruffled city alongside the prominent Mekong River, a river that runs through six different countries of Southeast Asia. Vientiane looks a bit like France at times. Some parts of town you can see Renaissance influenced structures with simply fashioned arches and columns and even lamps and street signs with a hint of romanticism. In other regions, you can see thatched roofs, wooden and eroded buildings. And then you see Asian people, or more specifically Lao people, reminding you that you are in an alluring country of the East. There isn’t too much to do in Vientiane as it has just a select few accommodations (or at least budget accommodations) in the main city center and even less attraction sites. Most people use Vientiane as a passing city, one in which you can rest for a day or so before moving on to bigger and greater things. Unfortunately, I felt this to be nearly true although I did have a rather positive and inspiring experience from my short visit in this city.

Visa Attempt #2. I took a taxi to the Thai embassy in Vientiane. When I arrived at the embassy, I was surprised to see that the embassy office comprised of a tent and a plastic table and chair. I was confused. I turned back to my taxi driver and asked if this was the embassy. He replied, “Oh yes, embassy…good. Don’t worry.” Oh wow, talk about budget cuts. And I thought California was bad. Is this really the embassy? I was still confused but I pulled out my paperwork anyways and gave it to one of the men sitting on the plastic furniture. After five minutes of scanning my documents and writing down some of my information, they handed back my documents and told me that I was done. That was it? It seemed strange but I’ll take it. Wow, that was definitely much easier than Cambodia. I was about to pay, ready with my 2,000฿ ($60) in hand. They then said 100฿ ($3). What? That can’t be right. The man pointed down the street and said, “Embassy, over there.” Oh, I got it. Those sneaks just tricked me into giving their buddies money. Although it wasn’t that much money, I could have easily done the paperwork on my own as I did in Cambodia. So I walked over to the embassy, applied for my non-immigrant B visa, and they accepted my application. Yes, finally!

After applying for my visa, I was driven back into town with another traveler. He was this older man from Russia that had ‘creep’ written all over him. I wouldn’t normally say this so liberally but his mannerisms were just not that acceptable, at least to my standards. I think he thought I was up for sale for the night as he continued to follow me into each hostel I scoped out. As he continued to give me suggestions on which places he favored, I gradually stopped being responsive and cheery. I was hostel shopping for a bit looking for the cheapest price. But it was difficult. Vientiane isn’t the best place to find cheap accommodations. But, then again, I have pretty cheap living standards. Bed bugs, stained bed sheets, and the orgy of travelers I would be sleeping with (hostel/dorm room style). Bring it on! All I wanted was a place to put my bags down for one night so I can explore the city and leave the next morning. My price range was about 40,000 kips to 80,000 kips ($5-10) a night. Most accommodations were $15-$40 a night.

As I was finding quotes for each hostel, the Russian man continued to follow me, claiming that he was interested in the same hostel. When I would ask the reception for their price and a description of their room, they would describe the basics: shared bathroom, five person shared room, and a key that may or may not work on the storage cabinet or door. Inconveniently, the Russian man would give in his input and tell me that it wasn’t good enough. I told him that I was okay with this and that he should find a place that accommodates his preferences. But he continued to follow me, suggesting places that cost $30 a night and trying to reassure me that $30 wasn’t that expensive. I get the feeling that he wouldn’t have paid for my share of the room if I were to join him. Uh, I feel nauseous even making that comment.

I finally found a dorm room for about 40,000 kips a night and I was really excited to put my bags down after almost a day of traveling. The Russian man was still tagging along and he continued to tell me that I should get a private room with a bathroom. I wonder why. I told him I was fine with this and he began to get slightly annoyed. He repeatedly stated, “I like my comforts way too much to stay at a place like this.” I was really annoyed and I wanted him off my back. I told him to find another place. He stormed off, possibly disappointed that his prospect didn’t want to share a private room. I was relieved when he left. Finally, he’s gone. I don’t have to deal with that creepy guy anymore.

After settling in, I was excited to take a shower. It’s been a couple days now since I’ve washed myself. So with the combination of humid weather, expended and sweat drenched clothes, and greasy, slicked back hair (I knew I should’ve bought some baby powder), I didn’t look or smell too appealing. I went down to the reception to ask for a towel when the Russian guy approached again. He rapidly and nervously stated, “My room number is 534 by the way. I can show you around and take you to coffee in the afternoon. Laos has good coffee. Do you know how long will you be here?” I turned down all his blatant approaches and at last, he left me alone.

Immediately after liberating myself from the Russian man, I met a nice English fellow named Andy. It was nice to be talking to someone who seemed to be about my age and someone who wasn’t trying to buy me for the night. I don’t even know how we started talking though. He was looking at travel destinations in Laos at the travel agency located in my hostel’s reception. I asked him a question about it and that was it. We talked nonstop for hours about everything and anything. It was strange; meeting a complete stranger and being able to have a comprehensive and uninterrupted conversation with him. Although I think I was initially trying to escape the disturbing Russian man, I ended up having such good time with Andy.

We decided to explore the city together. After my first taste of Lao cuisine and Lao beer, we blindly made our way around the city. Without the use of a map or even a destined point of interest, we frolicked around the city without a care in the world. Then, it started to pour. But it didn’t deter us. We continued to truck around even as our clothes became completely drenched and our feet entirely immersed into water.

Patuxai. I thought I was in France for a second. Aside from the uniquely Lao inspired surface design and painted murals, the structure is very similar to Paris’ Arch de Triomphe. This famous Laos attraction was definitely a site to see. It is a touch of French influence left behind from the former colonizing power. But it was mainly built as a memorial and remembrance for the Laotians who died in battle for their country. A long pathway of flower patches, charming street lamps, and a two-laned leads you to Patuxai. It might have been more classic appearing if the entire scenery wasn’t soaked and showered in rain. Andy and I had to take cover under this structure. And so did everyone else. The rain did not seem like it was going to stop so we took our time to explore the building.

Pha That Luang. Before coming to Laos, I did some research on what to see in Lao’s capital city. When I came across a picture of this temple, I was completely astonished. It was beautiful and unlike many temples I’ve seen in the past. And I’ve seen a lot of temples now. This temple is a famous landmark for Laotians. It is a place of worship for Lao Buddhists and is significant for the legend behind the making of its structure. So turns out Buddha’s ashes were brought to all parts of the Earth and placed inside 84,000 separate stupas. So as a spiritual connotation, this temple was given 84,000 separate points to portray the many pieces of Buddha. I immediately penciled it into my notebook as a must see. But when I got lost in the city, I didn’t believe I would actually discover it along my journey.

As the rainfall gradually ceased, Andy and I finally made our way out of a coffee shop we used as shelter. In the distance, we saw this bright golden light gleam across the deep blue and black of the mucky skies. I recognized it. I was so excited. It was Pha That Luang! Well, at the time I couldn’t remember the name or its significance at the time so I kept on exclaiming, “It’s that thing that I wanted to see with the big golden things and it’s very famous in Laos I think.” Sounding pretty intelligent, don’t I? I dragged Andy to the site, although I do believe he was a willing follower in my obsessive rampages for tourist attractions. The site was closed since it was so late.  But it was okay. I knew that I was coming back to all these sites on a much sunnier day.

We were very lost but still happily wandering around. It has been almost nine hours since we started traveling around the city. We were both tired and surprisingly my foot became scuffed and bloody from the combination of water, chaffed skin, and a whole lot of walking. After going in a couple circles, we finally got back to main part of town. We had some delicious food and then took off for Laos’ eminent night market along the Mekong River. It was hard to find though. And when we finally found it, the market consisted of three vendors. It was kind of a trivial night market. I was confused but maybe it was for the best. I really didn’t need to be spending money anyways. Food, pictures, and memories are the best souvenirs, right?

Vientiane is an early bird type of town as everything closes down by 11 pm. Unfortunately we didn’t realize that until after we got to a bar called Sticky Bar. Right when we ordered our drinks, they were closing up. Before I left the bar, I poured my whiskey drink in an empty water bottle to take home. Then I went back to my hostel. But when I arrived, the hostel was closed. The entire entryway to my hostel was completely gated off without an opening in sight. All my belongings are in that hostel; my contact lenses case, clean and dry clothes, and the prospects of a desperately needed shower. The streets were completely deserted and all other hostels were closed already. It’s not like I had enough money in my pockets to be able to afford another place anyways. I knocked on the gated door a few times and waited but there didn’t seem to be anyone there to help me. I didn’t know what to do. I did see a couple provocatively dressed women and men walking the streets. I mean I haven’t showered in a couple days and I resemble a taller and semi-girlish version of a disheveled Oliver Twist. There might be some takers out there.

Meet Me in Pai

January 18-22, 2012

A must-needed break. That is what this weekend is going to be all about. Relaxing. Sleeping. Elephant riding. Sounds pretty fantastic, right? It has been an exhausting week of exams and Sarah and I were going to try to make something out of the weekend. So we decided to head up to the small town of Pai in the most Northern region of Thailand.

I have always wanted to travel with Sarah. She is such a world traveler and wilderness woman. Some of her characteristics and adventures have inspired me to follow in her nomadic footsteps. She has traveled all over the world; reaching 28 countries and all but one continent with just a backpack and good spirits. She has also made several journeys across the United States making sure she had visited every state in the one country she calls home. When she isn’t globetrotting, she is living in a tent and guiding fellow trekkers into the deep wilderness of a vast national forest in Montana. I have been very intrigued by her and her exciting lifestyle. She has so many adventures and stories I can barely keep up listening. I’m a bit envious of her since I have always wanted to have the courage and stamina to be able to travel like she does. So I’m very excited to travel with Sarah and I can’t wait to be part of her adventures. I think I can really learn a lot from her.

The Sleeper Bus. The trip from Bangkok to Pai is supposed be a tiring one. It is about 12 hours away and requires a bus change once getting into the northern province of Thailand. So I was about to experience my very first night bus. It’s kind of a neat concept. Your bus leaves at night. You sleep somewhat comfortably as you are driven to your destination. You wake up and you arrive at your destination. Just like that! You essentially don’t have to waste an entire day since you have to sleep at some point. Though traveling the far distance using a plane would be significantly faster and more comfortable (for those who do better on flights), the low expense and the luxury of not having to go through the airport’s obstacle course of stringent security and baggage can make it worthwhile. 

Sarah and I found our way across town to the northern bus station. For about 500฿ ($15), we took a night bus to Chiang Mai first. This bus ride was supposed to take about ten hours. Oh man! It sounded terrible. But it would be nice to get the sleep. Right when we got onto the bus, a bus attendant handed us a pillow, blanket, and a bagged dinner, which consisted of a small water bottle and banana cake. During the beginning of the ride, I was completely hypnotized by this badly synchronized Thai-dubbed James Bond film.

I couldn’t stop watching. I think I am pretty tolerant when watching dubbed over television shows. My mom used to watch these Taiwanese-dubbed Korean soap operas for hours. My sister and I never understood why she would watch them. Not only were they overly dramatic (someone usually dying or crying or both), but the timing of the voices and the character’s mouths were severely uncoordinated. She would take the television for hours watching these shows while my sister and I pouted and whined for her to change the channel. So we came up with ways to make her experience less comfortable and less enjoyable. One of our malicious methods was coming up with our own English-dubbed dialogue and speaking over the Taiwanese-dubbed Korean soap opera. We would sit in front of the television, chose a character, and improvise their dialogue in a crude manner. We would speak loudly enough so my mom couldn’t hear her native language and we would maintain this bothering discourse until my mom would get mad. This tactic was a hit or miss but it is definitely a funny and cherished moment in my sister and my fluctuating relationship

I couldn’t even understand what was going on in the James Bond film but I stared at the screen for almost the entirety of the movie. Maybe it was because it made me miss watching movies. I don’t really have too much time to watch a full length movie when I’m teaching and traveling. I also don’t have any movies to watch as I promised my friends from my China tour I wouldn’t buy any of the pirated movies in Thailand. I shouldn’t have made that promise. They are everywhere and they are so cheap! But I have kept my word so far. We’ll see how long my word lasts.

We arrived at Chiang Mai’s bus station around five in the morning. I was so tired. My contact lenses were dried and attached to my inner eye lids. My mouth felt dry and stale and there was evidence of drool left on the corner of my lips. My neck had an uncomfortable kink in it from my awkward upright sleeping position. My legs were riddled with small welts from those wretched mosquitoes conveniently stuck on bus with us. Oh, the luxuries of riding a night bus. After groggily stumbling off the bus and into the station, Sarah found us a stairwell to sleep under while we waited for the bus station to open. With our backpacks as pillows and dust and bugs layering the floor, we slept for a couple hours as we waited for our bus to arrive.

This bus ride wasn’t the best. It was cold and for some reason every available seat I went to had its window jammed open. So there was no escaping the wrath of the freezing winds. Thailand has cold weather? Strange concept, right? Although most days in Bangkok the weather peaks over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, it is considered to be Thailand’s cool season and we were headed up north. Not only was Pai located very far up north, the small village was experiencing some of the coldest weather it’s had for a long time. And the only thing I brought from Bangkok was a thin pullover. Actually, that’s the only I brought to Thailand. I just assumed its Thailand. It never gets cold in Thailand. Oh, I was wrong. I started layering some of the clothes that I packed. Still cold. I was violently shivering the entire trip up to Pai. I used to laugh whenever I would see street vendors selling wool trench coats and down feathered jackets. Now I know why. At least my trip experience was made better when I caught a monk peeing on the back of the bus. I thought monks weren’t supposed to do stuff like that.

I ♥ Pai. This small mountain village is the perfect getaway for those who need a break from the fast lane—or for hard working teachers that need a break from treacherous, infuriating spawns of the corrupt Thai school system. I’m exaggerating. They aren’t that horrible. Some of them are starting to grow on me. Located in the most Northern mountainous part of Thailand, Pai is overwhelmed with waterfalls, jungles, elephants, rivers, and foreign and Thai hippies. Sounds amazing already. It is a rather cute and friendly town that concentrates around River Pai. While some people partake in outdoor activities such as trekking, kayaking, white water river rafting, and tubing, many people also relax and do nothing. We were planning to do it all and nothing at all at the same time. 

Right when we arrived, the town already exudes a sense of peace and ‘Hakuna mata’. It’s just one of those places you just have to breathe everything in to really have a better sense of the environment. Or maybe that is the unaccustomed smell of unpolluted air. A nice change of pace/smell. Almost immediately, your stiff shoulders relax and can feel the cool temperate air tingle every nerve on your skin. You are in a place like no other. Small bohemian shops line one of the main streets in town. Small Thai men with wicked dreadlocks walk around barefoot, smiling and waving to every person that walks by. Farangs (or foreigners) with dreads, bare feet, and fishermen pants walk around doing the same. The lifestyle pace of the locals and foreigners is quite different from what we are used to in Bangkok. Everything is in slow motion with an even more lax attitude than the usual Thai way. 

We walked around the area, looking for a bungalow overlooking the leisurely flowing river. The town had these romantic and cute abodes along the riverbanks some of them in a tent-form, bamboo woven, or thatched cottages. Some of them looked too intimate, but then again this town is all about peace and love. We found a pretty nice bungalow called Golden Hut. The cost per night was bit pricier than what we expected. But it was worth having an abode along the river even for just one night. Friendly staff, beautiful view, relaxed and simple room. What else do you need? A Thai elephant maybe.

After a delicious lunch and a stroll around the village, Sarah and I wanted to ride some elephants. Finally, elephant riding. This is what I’ve wanted to do since I arrived in Thailand. This is one of the things Thailand is known for, their exotic and treasured elephants. We found a nearby elephant camp that allowed us to ride and bathe with the elephants in the river. The elephants were amazing. Although they were humongous in size, they were absolutely adorable in nature. Seeing the elephants eating and interacting with their friends helps to confirm that you are in one of the most exotic countries of the world. Actually, seeing them in the wild would probably make them seem more exotic but this is the closest we can get to them. Elephants are very significant in Thai culture. They are important to most Southeast Asian countries as they were used as the main vehicle in ancient wars and still play a vital role and symbol in the country’s most practiced religion, Buddhism. We were about to ride them just like the ancient Thai warriors did as they darted across battle fields, spearing their enemies left and right. 

Barebacking, Anyone? We were going to be riding the elephants bareback. I found this more appealing since you can actually feel the elephant’s course and leathery skin on your own. Actually that definitely wasn’t the appealing part. It was mainly because you are able to be closer to the elephant, really embracing the elephant on this short ride. With just a small blanket laid across the elephant’s back, we straddled the elephant skin to skin, crotch to spine. To clarify, our crotches to her spine. Oh it hurt. At least for a little while until your groin starts to numb and the fear of you falling off the giant elephant becomes even more encompassing. It wasn’t that bad especially when you think about what you are actually experiencing. Our elephant was named Mai. Either she was a defiant creature or our guide was too harsh. Our guide would get angry, yell at her and whack her on the head with a stick every couple of minutes. This was definitely not my favorite part of the ride. I think he was a bit malicious in nature, especially towards animals. He was quick to hit our elephant and continuously used a sling shot to knock nearby birds off their perches.

Elephant Riding. The walk was quite slow and peaceful besides the knocking sound coming from the guide’s stick. The elephant was walking quite slowly making it hard to imagine that these animals were used for fighting in battle. It made me think of predatory snails. Have you heard of them? Snails genetically modified to hunt and kill other snails. Can you imagine that chase? You would have to fast forward a video of their hunt in order to see any action. Mai walked us down the small dirty road to the riverbank. She stepped into the river and started to walk knee-deep in the water—well, elephant knee deep. We were about to go bathing with her. I didn’t know what to expect. How do you go bathing with an elephant? 

Farang vs. Chang Without warning, she started to become restless and unsteady. She started to frantically swing her head around and then her whole body. Sarah and I barely had a moment to figure out what was happening before one by one, we were propelled off her back and into the river. I guess the guide gave her the signal to throw us off. It was startling but very refreshing to be dumped into the river. This river is more acceptable to swim in though. Though I’m sure the townspeople of Pai probably expel garbage and other forms of waste in their rivers, I figure the farther away from Bangkok the cleaner. 

After recovering from shock, the guide motioned for us to climb back up Mai. But right when we got settled on Mai’s back, she threw us off again. And again. And again. We didn’t stand a chance with Mai as with one shake of her head sent us flying. Every time we got back up she would throw us off like frail little dolls. We started to become more resistant to her movements. We’ll Sarah more so than me. But we started to hold on to her ears and her neck to be able to stay on her back. But a sudden splash of water into our faces from her nose would distract us enough to lose grip of her body. We were thrown about for another 30 minutes. After a couple of skin burns and water-filled ears and stomachs, we were ready to head back to the camp. 

Thrown off like a little doll...

 A little better. Still improving...

On our way back, the guide continued to get mad at Mai. She wasn’t following his directions and she kept on going off the path to get food. You could tell she was hungry as she was eating everything she could find along the way. When we got back to the camp, we fed her bananas. It was so cute, yet disturbing. Have you ever noticed that an elephant’s mouth looks like a gigantic vagina? Labia majora check! Labia minora check! Pubic hair...eh I'll stop there. Sarah brought this comparison up. Since then I couldn’t stop staring at Mai’s gaping, genital-looking mouth as she vigorously stuffed bananas into it. Regardless of our dirty minds, it was fun to watch her use her nose to sniff around our hands, snatch the bananas, and desperately shove them into her mouth. She was a hungry girl!

A giant vagina, right?

Cute!?!?

By the time we got back into the main town center of Pai, it was nearly dark and the night market was being set up. It was very large as it extended to almost every street in town. The vendors sold a variety of weavings, jewelry, beautiful postcards, food, and Pai-themed items. Most of the Pai-themed items can only be described as romantic and cute. Pai products help to represent the charming and sweet atmosphere of the cutesy and friendly town and people of Pai. 

Another theme of the town, which can definitely be seen upon arrival, is relaxation. Life here is just slow paced. When you walk, you walk with leisure and without purpose. When you eat food or shop, you eat and shop without a care and without a sense of time. When you talk to fellow travelers and vendors, you communicate with such a peace of mind that it is almost like you are in a world of its own. While you are living your life in the slow lane in Pai, there is always gentle and graceful live music playing at every moment. You almost begin to think that you’re in a dreamlike movie and the encompassing melody is your theme song. I really enjoyed walking around even without the intent of buying anything. But of course, everything was so cute I had to buy something. And I ended up buying a lot of things.

Pai Voyager. We signed up for a tour that was going to take us all around the mountains and rustic villages around Pai. We had a lot of sights lined up for one day so we had to wake up very early to begin our tour. So around four o’clock in the morning, we got on a bus and traveled two hours away from Pai to a village called Pang Aung to watch the sunrise. This village was a small town that seemed to feed off tourist revenue. Strangely enough, most of these tourists were not even Western looking. They were Thai or Japanese. I think people in Japan are on their vacation right now. There seems to be a lot of Japanese traveling around in the last couple weeks. 

At the Crack of Dawn. It was beautiful to see this large glossy aqua tinted lake encircled by green hills and purple mountains. Since it was the early morning, there was a blanket of fog that skimmed the top of the water. That should also signify how freezing it was up on the mountain. It was so cold. I know, again. All I had was that tiny little pullover. Honestly, the reasonable person would have bought a sweater by now. I think either I was trying to make myself suffer for not preparing well enough or I just didn’t want to spend any more money. You know, I am only making a teacher’s salary. I felt paralyzed from the cold and the possible frostbite my hands and feet would inevitable get. Though, it didn’t distract me from taking pictures or taking in the entire landscape.

I shouldn’t be complaining. There was a model wearing a shoulder baring wedding dress out on a raft in the middle of the lake. She looked cold but she sucked it up. If she can do it, so can I. Though, I’m not getting paid to suck it up. Nevertheless I did. The sunrise and sky itself was not noteworthy but the scenery was beautiful as the clear skies and golden rays of the sun struck the silky waters of the lake.  After nestling around the villager’s fire pit and a chilly walk through the forest and village, we made our way back to the van ready for our next destination.

Pai’s China Town? We visited Ban Rak Thai, which is a small city with a large population of Chinese immigrants. I guess these particular Chinese immigrants escaped to Thailand when China was swept over by Communism. We had an early lunch in one of the restaurants overlooking some of the prettiest views of the clear lake and village. The view was magnificent. I took a lot of pictures, some of which I might consider for my next painting. Lunch was delicious and spicy. I met some of the other people on the tour who helped me understand more of Thai culture, food, and language. While we were eating they kept testing me on what I was eating. I learned some Thai while eating good food. Not a bad combination.

What? We Can’t Play! We went to a national park called Namtok Pha Suea Forest Park which is well known for its exceptional waterfalls. There are six levels of waterfalls from mountains that extend into Burma. Oh man! It reminds me of Kanchantaburi’s waterfalls. We were so excited to swim and jump off the falls. I even had my bathing suit on ready for another adventure. Unfortunately, we were only given 30 minutes at this park and we weren’t allowed to jump off these. The falls were still pretty. I wandered around the rocky surroundings, getting closer and closer to the water. I even tried getting into the pools of water but it was a bit out of reach and the signs that displayed a ‘No Swimming’ picture were discouraging.

 

Let’s Get Dirty. Our next destination was the hot springs and mud spa called Phu Klone at Baan Mork Jampae. This area is known for having some of the world’s best mud. Sounds weird, right? The mud or clay is considered to be very pure in properties and is comparable to the mud found in the Dead Sea. At this spa, you can choose to swim in a pool of hot spring water or enjoy a mud facial or body wrap. It is pretty inexpensive too. Well considering that it is mud, you would think it would be inexpensive to rub it on your skin. But you know how places in the States will hike up the price for features like mud spas because of the novelty appeal. Most of Phu Klone spa features price ranges from $2-$10. We didn’t have time or the money to get our entire body layered in mud so we stuck with just the facial. It was such a weird feeling getting mud lathered onto my face. I felt so dirty but so clean at the same time. We also added a foot soak in the hot springs to experience water untainted by human touch or feces. And with my bacteria-infested feet, I definitely needed the foot soak.

A Childhood Memory. Having mud on your face was strange. It hardens and you look silly as you try to speak or express any type of emotion on your face. It felt rather refreshing to take off, although I had mud stuck inside my nose, on the roots of my hair, and underneath my fingernails. And it wouldn’t come out! I remember when I was younger, I had this good friend. She was the toughest girl I knew back in 2^nd and 3^rd grade. We used to play together all the time but she really wasn’t too nice to me. Honestly, I think we were just friends because we were one of the only Asians at school. Surprisingly, I used to look more Asian when I was younger. I wonder happened? 

She bullied me around a little bit and made me feel insignificant at times. She would barter our friendship based on her mood or challenges that she would bestow on me. For example, she once told me that only tomboys are allowed to be friends with her. Although I wasn’t the girliest of girls, I knew I wasn’t a tomboy. But I told her I was. She then stuck her hand deep in wet mud until it covered half her forearm. She wiped it on the tree and looked at me with condescending eyes. She said, “Well, if you are such a tomboy, you would put your hand in mud and wipe it on the tree.” Of course, I don’t know if those were her exact words, considering that it was over 17 years ago but I do remember this moment vividly. Though I was confused on why this qualified me as a tomboy, I confidently stuck my hand in the mud and wiped it on the tree. She started to laugh at me and skipped away. She knew that she can control me and make me do whatever she wanted. This displayed my incessant need for approval and my need for everyone to like me. And honestly, I still feel like I’m still doing this; sticking my hand in mud trying to prove myself to people who don’t matter as much as my own self.

Long Necks. I’m sure most people have seen pictures of these secluded village people. These Padaung villagers are from an ethnic group called the Kayan. They are originally from Burma or Myanmar and are refugees from the extreme military regime. They migrated to the most northern parts of Thailand in Mae Hong Son where they established their home and tourism based economy. They are well known for their special textiles and weavings but mainly for their big ear lobes and long necks.

In their culture, it is considered beautiful for women to have elongated necks. Even by the age of five, young girls will already have had a couple brass neck rings to begin to neck lengthening process. Adding more brass rings signifies your age and beauty. So as you get older, you continue to add more rings to your neck. For the most part, these rings stay on your neck for the rest of your life. Some say that upon taking them off, the neck muscles cannot hold themselves up without support. Thus many women become badly injured or die from this element. Others say that all that may happen is the neck muscles become weakened over time and has a slight skin discoloration. But with some time, many women can live without the brass rings. A similar stretching strategy is used on their ear lobes, in which they use an object to widen the hole of the ear lobe. Many find neck lengthening very damaging and repulsive especially with the younger ones. The young girls do not have a say in their own future as a long neck. Once they are in the kinder years, the rings are placed on their neck and they become a crucial part of the tourist industry. Motives for continuing this odd tradition is said to be for cultural preservation. But it is also maintained to support the tribes’ livelihood as they are not able to legally work in Thailand since they are refugees. 

I felt like I was in a movie or a circus show. Upon entering, you pay the viewing fee and you enter a passage bordered by vendors selling the villages’ handmade creations. From afar, colorful dresses and gold gleaming rings catches your eye immediately. When your eyes finally focus, you realize “Wow, these people are real.” While you continue to approach, you are in shock that what you are seeing is not an optical illusion; they are real people with really long necks. How is this possible? Each of them manages different shops along the path. They all sell the same exact thing at every shop: ivory or wooden elephant figurines, jewelry, silky sheer scarves, and a set of brass rings for your own neck elongation development. I ended up trying some of the brass rings. I actually didn’t volunteer to try them on. One of the long necks placed the rings on my neck and wrapped one of their scarves around my head. I felt indifferent and uncomfortable about wearing them.

See, I wasn’t sure how I felt about the industry yet. In many of these developing countries, people will exploit certain human rights in order to make money. For example, parents will send their kids out on the streets since it is easier to empathize with young sellers. So people give them money, thus continuing to fuel the economy of child solicitors. Because I paid to get in the village, I contributed to the village’s livelihood but also the preservation of their economy and their children’s long necks. But I wanted to see them in person before I made a judgment about their society. When wearing the rings, I noticed how heavy they were. I can see how their necks would start to stretch with the weight alone. The dense rings would gradually push their collarbone down over time, creating more space between the person’s torso and head. Don’t worry; I did not become a long neck. The rings on my neck were easily removable and I took them off right away once I got my pictures.

It was interesting to observe these women and their day to day life. You don’t see many men around in the village unless you sneak into their thatched-roof stilted houses nearby. They are almost hidden since they don’t really contribute to the spectacle. Though, you see quite a lot of children running around with several rings around their necks. Most of them are readily selling to you as you pass by their shop. There was even one three year old who knew the three basic selling dialogue lines in English: Would you like to buy? I give you good price. How much you pay? These are the children who help fuel the economy. And we, tourists, are the ones that feed into this industry as we gawk at these giraffe looking kids and people. You start to wonder if the kids know what they are getting themselves into: a world of tourism, circus acts, and isolation from the outside world maybe. Probably not, they are too young to understand the long term effects. It’s hard but I’m trying not to make a judgment. I’m just hoping that the young girls can make their own decisions at an early enough stage.

Another Temple... I think I’m about templed out. I have seen so many already since I started traveling. This temple was rather unique though. Wat Phra That Doi Kong Moo is a Burmese style temple overlooking the beautiful valley of Mae Hong Son. Most tourists are brought up here because of the extravagant view of the city and the blinding white appearance of the temple’s two chedis located on top of the mountain. It was so bright it was difficult to look at for a period of time. Monks can be seen walking around the chedis several times, offering their donations to each of the small shrines in the chedis. But it was so hot up on this mountain. I can’t even image how the monks must have felt underneath their full length robes.

Here Fishy Fishy. We headed over to a national park well known for their fish caves. After paying an entrance fee, we walked throughout a park full of grass, trees, lakes, and boy and girl scouts. There were a lot of scouts participating in drills and physical activities. This is probably what all our kids do during those weekend camps they always complain about. 

Scouts of Thailand. Being part of boy and girl scouts isn’t an extracurricular activity here in Thailand. It is part of the school curriculum. Brought about by King Rama VI, students are required to participate in scouts, engage in specific scout training and camps, and wear their scout uniforms to school at least one day a week. Scouting is a very significant part of Thai culture and the program is credited for producing agile and responsive scouts during disaster. Though we haven’t seen this side of our kids yet, our students participate in many school functions, which unfortunately require them to stand in the sun for a while. Especially, when it’s the sun in Thailand, it must be torture. I’ve even seen one student at my school faint from dehydration as she was standing in the sun for a couple hours. The school staff apathetically carried her off the field while other students continued standing. My mom used to tell me that when she was in grade school, her principal used to make the students stand out in the sun for a couple of hours. She used to describe this event as being rather brutal as the Taiwanese sun isn’t much cooler than the Thai sun. Students would faint and the school staff would drag them off the field one by one. She used to tell me that she always wished she was able to faint so it would give her an excuse to be taken out of the sun. But she never did faint.

That was a bit of a tangent. But my tangent is mainly because the fish caves were rather dull. There was a beautiful lake with large fish scrounging around for food. The caves weren’t even caves but more like a small water hole full of fish. I was expecting mystery and hazardous exploration of the caves and wild fish flopping and flying from the waters. But it was pretty basic. There were fish in the water. We bought food for the fish, fed them, and then went on our way.

Sundown on a Doi. Our last stop was pretty remarkable. We went on top of one of the highest mountains in the area, Doi Kiew Lom, to watch the sunset. The scenery was amazing with the combination of dusky clouds, auburn sun rays, and mountains and valleys for miles. It didn’t even look real. That’s how exquisite it was. On one side of the mountain, the shadows from the clouds gave landscape such depth it was hard to capture in just a picture. On the other side, the sun was setting vividly painting the sky with shades of orange, purple, yellow, and blue. The mountains stood in perfectly with a nice silhouette backdrop. Pictures do not do it justice. 

The view from one side of the mountain

The view from the other side

Person Highlight

The other day I met this man named Tik, a free-spirited nomad whose speech and expression is as slow and peaceful as his way of life. Tik caught me fiddling with my door, unable to lock it up before taking a stroll around town. After finding me a new key and lock from the guesthouse his friend owns, he told me a little bit about his life. He has a pretty extraordinary story. Though he is of Thai descent, he speaks fluent English so I was able to easily communicate with him. 

Tik was born and raised in Thailand but he has been traveling since he has been able to walk. He has traveled to many countries and lived in worked in many countries.  He lived in England for seven years and has been living in and out of India for the last five years or so. He is a bit of a Renaissance man as he was a musician in India, farm worker in Mongolia, sous chef in England, and now a business owner in Thailand. Why do I keep on finding so many well-traveled and well-rounded people out here? I wish I were able to do what they’ve done. I guess I still have time. A couple days later I found him singing at one of the bars as I was exploring the night market. We both recognized each other and he bought me a drink while I watched his performance. After the show, we talked for a couple hours and I was so intrigued by his unique and laidback character I bombarded him with questions.

Tik was one of those people who responds to all questions with, “Love, that is all you need” or “How can I answer that question? I love everything in the world. Everything is equal to me.” I wasn’t asking controversial or thought provoking questions. They were pretty basic. Which country was your favorite to visit? What was your favorite food to cook when working in England? It was difficult to get a straight answer from him as he seemed to not care for anything or have too much care for everything. I asked about his business he was starting in Thailand. He told me it was a business concept he picked up from India but he wanted to establish it in Pai. He wanted to create an institution that revolved around cooking and yoga. There was one more feature in that mix. I think it had to do with meditation or something. Whether visitors wanted to pay or not pay, he wanted everyone to live peacefully at his abode while embracing these few skill sets. I have a feeling most visitors won’t pay. Maybe I’m being a bit pessimistic. Maybe I’m being realistic.

I’ve always been interested in yoga since I’m not too flexible as I can barely touch my toes. More than just that, yoga has always been appealing since I am a stressball with back issues. Incorporating yoga into my life seems like a good way to lower anxiety and strengthen my core. However, I don’t think I have the attention span for it. My mind is constantly racing with thoughts and questions. What am I going to do today? How I should deal with this problem? Who is Dexter going kill next? It’s difficult for me to completely clear my head. This is how I was back in college. After hurting my back last fall, my friend Sam gave me a free trial to his yoga studio. Since he had similar issues with his back, he knew exactly what remedy might work for me. So I joined him for some yoga. Surprisingly, I was able to clear my mind for at least majority of the session. It was relaxing but it also helped my back pain. Since then, I have been very interested in trying out yoga some more.

Because I was interested in the art, I asked Tik about his experience with yoga. He told me that he prefers a different form of yoga called Tantra. It is basically doing yoga while having sex. Well, it’s much more than that. The practice has very strong ties to Buddhism and is said to be one of the many steps to reaching enlightenment. Wow, go Buddhists! He started to describe the mindset and the physical actions that he would do while performing this type of yoga. I was completely taken aback and slightly repulsed as I didn’t want to hear all the details of his sexual activities. I became immediately uncomfortable and changed the subject quickly. Now, I know how it feels to be blathered to about sex. I’m sorry to those who have heard ceaseless stories of my intimate details. It’s not too pleasant I realize.

I slept in the next morning. Yes, I did. I slept in and it felt so good. Waking up at nine in the morning felt bizarre. It felt like I was doing something wrong. I believe there are some of you out there that don’t even think this is sleeping in. But for me, it was. Since starting my teaching program, I haven’t really had too many late mornings. Every day, I would set five to six alarms around five in the morning. I would set that many alarms because I would get to sleep very late. Sometimes I wouldn’t get to bed until three or four in the morning. So waking up with just a few hours of sleep was difficult and setting several alarms was crucial. For some reason, I still do pretty well with just a couple hours of sleep. I sustain a great deal of energy and become more wired as the day goes on. However, I end up getting migraines and headaches more often under these circumstances and my panda eyes tend to worsen over time.

Even after my program, I’ve been very busy, maybe with the less crucial features of life—preparing for Thailand and hanging out and drinking with friends. And in Thailand, with the amount of work that Sarah and I put into our teaching, our nights and mornings are consumed with not sleeping. But despite not getting enough rest, at least I’m always doing something. It’s much better than being bored and going to sleep because of it.

I didn’t have any real plans the following day. And it felt good. I stayed in town and explored a bit, talking to locals and drinking some delicious green tea at a nearby café. I did plan to meet up with Tik and his friends for dinner. He invited me to Beer o’clock, which was a time they all were going to be drinking good beer (which means Chang beer), eating good food, and having good conversation. Since he was a sous chef back in England, he was going to display some of his culinary mastery to me and a couple other friends. 

First, Tik took me to the local’s market and introduced me to some new and exotic fruits and vegetables I’ve never seen before. He even taught me how to say some of the food items in Thai—which I can’t seem to remember anymore. When we got back, we went into one of the hostel’s kitchens and started to prepare some of the food. It was pretty neat being in this type of environment. I felt like I was part of the family as everyone was speaking a mix between Thai and English, trying to accommodate me and my unilingual skills. They even let me have some part in the cooking. I didn’t do such a great job though. They all were making fun of the way I was cutting the veggies and handling the food. I couldn’t catch a break.  I deserved it though. I made a mess and probably messed up the recipe a bit.

On the menu was marinated and barbequed chicken, an assortment of veggies, and beer. Rather basic but it was amazing. Everything was created from scratch and made with fresh produce. The chicken was marinated in this Mediterranean and Indian curry type base. A homemade chili and garlic sauce was made to be drizzled on top of the chicken. Juicy and crunchy veggies and crispy pita bread was added in the mix. The chicken was so good it felt like it was melting away each papilla on my tongue. Wait, that sounds pretty painful. It wasn’t painful. It was so good we almost ate all the chicken while barbequing. With only a little bit of chicken left over from the cookout, we had our meal together. Our dinner setting wasn’t extravagant or restaurant-like but the food was spectacular. I would definitely go to Tik’s restaurant if he still had one. We had a couple beers, ate with our hands, and had a rather crude dialogue in Thainglish. It was a great dinner.

Look What I Found! As I was looking around the hostel’s reception area, preparing the table, a book in the bookcase caught my eye. The worn book cover read ‘The History of Thailand’ from the 1980’s. I picked it up immediately and started to skim through it. Are you serious? All of it is in this book, all of Thailand’s history. It describes in excruciating detail each kingdom’s story. It tells about each king from their childhood to their entire reign. It describes the funky laws that the kingdom used to impose on their people. It even reveals the tidbits of information you would never be able to find online and those of which I can’t speak of in public. I couldn’t believe that I found a book that would help educate me and my students. Forget trying to translate Thai scripted Thai history books or skimming Wikipedia articles to get the gist of Thai history. It was all here in this book.

I began to frantically jot down as many notes as I could while skimming the pages. I’m only here for one more night and I need this information for class. I started to become drained from writing so much so I asked the hostel owner if I could buy the book from him. See, usually hostels provide book exchanges instead of purchases. They have a variety of weathered books left behind by wandering tourists and people who stay at the hostel can exchange their used books for other used books. However, he gave me the price of a whopping 150 ฿ or $3 for the book. Three dollars for my students’ education. I gladly handed over money for this prized possession. I don’t think he has ever seen someone so zealous over a book in his bookcase. But he doesn’t know how much trouble it has been for me to teach Thai history. There wasn’t anything online even close to the amount of detail it provided. I wasn’t sure if this book was banned in Thailand since it was abnormally thorough. And in Thailand, if a book is banned and you publicize its content, you will be in jail for a long time. Just in case, I checked online for Thailand’s banned books and searched for its title and author. Nothing showed up. I am going to be such a good Thai history teacher now.

Feel the Rhythm, Eat the Beat? Afterwards we went to Edible Jazz, a live music joint where Tik and his friends were performing. I liked the concept of this bar and guesthouse. You can eat, drink, and listen to some relaxing, jazz music. Well, it’s not that unique as you can actually do that at a lot of places. Maybe it’s the distinctive name that I really liked. It was calming being able to huddle around the campfire with fellow travelers while sipping on warm Chang beer—compliments my extremely slow drinking habits and my irritating intolerance for beer. After the show, Tik and I sat down and talked for a bit. I was very interested in Tik’s story but it all started to become redundant. Every time I asked him something, he would always respond with a vague and unaffiliated answer. And I asked him a lot of questions. In our entire conversation over two days, he never asked me any questions about myself. I was fine doing all the asking since I wanted to learn about him. But it was rather strange having a one-sided dialogue between us.

It was getting late and I was very tired. After a discussion about tea, he asked if I wanted to try his famous chai tea he used to make back in England. I didn’t know if this was a ploy to try something with me or if ‘chai tea’ was a cue for something more vulgar, so I kindly declined his offer. It was dark and late and I didn’t feel comfortable enough to go to a strange man’s house. Unfortunately, I have been craving chai teach for a couple of weeks.

A Local’s Abode. The next morning, when it was light outside, I decided to take Tik up on his chai tea offer (and definitely not his ‘chai tea’ offer if that even crossed his mind). He picked me up on his motorcycle and he rode a bit out of town to get to his house. I felt so strange being a Farang and riding on a bike that I wasn’t paying for. By the way, I am a motorbike hoar now. I can’t stop riding them. I ride motorbikes all the time now and I ride them all over town. I prefer them over any other vehicle. Can you believe the change? I still can’t.

Despite our worn-out conversations, it was a nice feeling hanging out with Tik and trying to submerge myself in the local community. He introduced me to his neighbors and friends along the way and I tried to absorb everything I could, developing a better sense of the unique Pai and Thai culture. It was also very beautiful on the drive over to his house. He is very lucky to be able to live in an area like this. Pai is one of those areas that when most people visit, they could imagine living here one day. For some people I met, this thought has become true and now they live here. Some only planned to stay for a week and now have been residing for a couple of months. Some had come back to Pai after experiencing substandard living and have lived here ever since.

When I got to his house, I was shocked at how quaint and nice it was. This is mainly because he is supposed to be the ultimate hippie who believes in the simple things in life and hasn’t held a job for over six months (and very proud of it). His house was meticulously structured and designed to look like a hippie abode. It was made out of wood and bamboo and its surroundings and interior screamed ‘I’m made from nature’. But it looked more expensive than your typical flowerchild eco-lodging. I don’t even know what a typical hippie house would even look like. I was thinking maybe a tent or a tree warped, wooden shack formed solely by nature and made with peace and love.

Summing It All Up. He made some chai tea and we talked some more. Again, it was difficult to get a straight answer from him and his dialogue began to get too whimsical for my taste. But I think he embodies a little bit of what Pai has to offer to travelers; a ‘one with nature’ world without expectations, pace, societal conforming opinions and actions, and adult responsibility. Though an appealing lifestyle for a short while, I don’t know if I could live here permanently. Not like Bangkok is any better. It’s too fast paced and dirty to live in Bangkok for long time, in my opinion. But what I appreciate the most about Pai is the crisp clean atmosphere, the excess of surrounding nature, and the ease of everything. However, I need more. It is wonderful that some people can make Pai their home. It’s one of the most enchanting places I’ve ever visited and I would like to come back again in the future. It would be a good R&R for the next time I have a teaching crisis.

Ting Tong means crazy in Thai

Some insights from the Dalai Lama:

So true!

Want to see more pictures from my trip to Pai? Visit https://plus.google.com/photos/103535186598541974109/albums/5700853340179525473?authkey=CKPzu6X-q-29Kg