Chiang Mai Day 5 - contains adult language

Today's the day we rent the Kawasaki 650 to take the 100 km loop. We leave the guest house and drop off our laundry at a stop along the way. We have two heaping grocery plastic bgs of dirty clothes and she will have them ready by this time tomorrow. It costs 160 baht which is about $3.60.

We head to Big Tony's to pick up the bike.

When we head out of Big Tony's Pat gives it a bit too much gas and it jerks forward. I almost fall off the back and of course I scream right into Pat's ear. I'm sure it gave Big Tony a chuckle!

We head out on our adventure. I'm wondering what I've gotten myself into. Pat says it was my idea to get the bike but I distinctly remember him wanting to get it and being the good wife that I am I said sure. Holy crap was I stupid! The bike sits like a crotch rocket so I have to lean into Pat most of the time. The road is so curvy and filled with traffic. Everyone is headed up to the elephant camp.

Our first stop is the monkey show. Both Pat and I felt sorry for the monkeys. They were on chains. The handlers didn't seem to be mean to them but it still felt like it wasn't right.

 

 

Here is the monkey bowing like everyone here does. They were very cute.

 

The monkey went up in the tree, he was attached to the trainer with a rope. He is had a chain around his neck.is that for safety or control. We weren't sure.

They had another area with monkeys and they all were chained to a tree or something. All in all we didn't care for this experience.

Our next stop was the elephant camp. We were a bit late for the last show of the day which was at 1:45. We went in anyway. There were quite a few elephants there and they did a show in the middle of this big arena. There was only a small fence separating us from them.

Here they tried to kick the soccer ball into the net.

 

Here, each of the 5 elephants painted a picture.

Here is what the elephant painted while we watched. Not bad with just his trunk. He posted some videos of the experience too. :)

Me with some beautiful children near the exit of the elephant camp.. I wanted to put one in my bag ego bring back with me but I couldn't make up my mind which one I wanted.

Our next stop would be at the Queens Botanical Garden. Little did we know that they wouldn't allow motorcycles in so we would have to hike up the very steep hill to the top. It was 2 km and I thought I would die. I tried to hitchhike but no one would even look our way. Both Pat and I were sweating profusely and I had to potty so bad that I wanted to cry. When we finally got to the place where everyone was we realized it wasn't the top. I decided I wasn't going any further ... But Pat pushed me on. And as we started out for the next portion, I put my thumb out and these two young girls felt pity for us old farts and gave us a ride. Yay! At the top were some beautiful gardens and about 6-8 buildings with different varieties of flowers and plants.

 

 

Mocha and I in front of an indoor waterfall.

 

We decided to stop for dinner along the way and we both wanted coffee as we were a bit chilled. It surprised me how nippy it got up in the hills. We would hit these pockets of cold air that will just make me shiver. Also, the ride down the hill was horrendous as Pat had to use his brakes a lot and I would be pushed into him which in turn pushed him into the tank of the motorcycle. Once we got to the bottom Pat said he was going to need a suction cup to get his balls to come back down. Sorry for the graffic description but I thought I was going to die of crotch numbness and Pat with his testival difficulties. We decided to go to the airport mall before we went back to the guest house. Why, I really don't know, it had been a stressful yet fun day but I was exhausted. :) we got McDonalds ... Yes, in Thailand. I haven't had fries forever but I might as well splurge while here. I also got Auntie Anne's.

 

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More pics of Chiang Mai

 

Sarah's and Claire's shirts being painted

 

 

 

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Chiang Mai Day 4

We both slept well last night ... We were so tired from the day before. Once we had breakfast we went to the train station to see if we could change our departure time. We're scheduled to leave at 5:30 a.m. Uggggg. They are all booked up so we make arrangements with our guest house to have a taxi pick us up at 4:50 a.m. It'll cost us 150 baht ... About $4. We then take the scooter back to drop off.

We went to get minutes on the phone we have as we saw that the twins had called us a couple of times. Once we get our minutes we check in with them and they are zip lining. The whole family ... Even Peggy! They have scheduled our cooking class for Monday at 5:30 and they will meet us at our guest house to go to the school. I'm really looking forward to this.

Pat wants to look around the IT mall, that's all I can think to call it. They have all these electrical gadgets ... A computer geeks heaven! I bought a Thai cook book ... Pat had the gall to ask me if it was in English .... Dork!

It was time for lunch, which we've both decided we think Thai food is our favorite. We have not found anything we haven't enjoyed.

 

This was a curry of some sort ... Can't remember exactly.

Mine was Praenang curry with prawns .... The best dish I've had this far.

The restaurant was beautiful inside. There were bench swings around the sides that faced inside to a table you ate at.

Pat got a coconut rum drink that was heavenly.... :)

 

 

We then look for a place to get a massage ... When in Rome, I mean Thailand, you have to get lots of massages. We both get 2 hour massages ... Totally wonderful. Pat got a Swedish one which means they worked him over really well... He did she dug her elbows and knees into him. He wanted to scream a couple times but didn't, ... Sissy. :)

We left there feeling wonderful and head

 

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Chiang Mai Day 3

We both slept horribly last night. I'm not sure why but I bet tonight we'll exhausted. We had breakfast at our guest house, sharing a banana pancake and a veggie and pork omelette. Our b'fast cost us 170 baht = $5.

Our plan today is to find scooters to go out to the factories. We'll see what we can find. Pat would rather us get one and I ride with him. He says he'll worry too much if we each have our own.

We found Big Tony's where Pat wanted to secure a larger bike for the weekend. There is a 100 km ride that we want to do that we can hit the elephant camps and some waterfalls. We aren't going to do a trek but ride out on our own. It will be a nice ride.

We scoot out to an umbrella factory that has all kinds of things there. We get Sarah and Claire t-shorts and have the local Artists paint elephants on them. They turned out so cute. I wanted to get one for Harper but they didn't have smaller sizes. :( We then head out again ... The roads and places aren't marked well so it's really hard to find what you're looking for. We make it to a silver store where I go wild buying gifts for friends, Pat did really well letting me get things. As I am checking out, the older lady tells me, "give him kiss for thank you" ... So I called him over and gave him a kiss which made them laugh. Our next stop was a silk factory. A lovely older lady showed us the silk process and how they take the cocoons and put them in hot water and then spin the silk off of them, it was so interesting.

Needless to say, we were on a 135cc scooter and we're not small so the ride wasn't very comfortable. Pat kept telling me to spread my legs so he could sit back further. We had top box on the back so could only go back so far. At one point he got aggravated with me and wanted to yell, "spread your legs" but didn't. Not that anyone would have understood what he was saying, but just in case ...

On our way back, we sorta got lost a bit but we ended up at this huge airport mall. It was amazing. We found a restaurant called Hot Pot. There is a large pot on the table on this cook pad. They fill it with a watered down stock. You then go around and get raw meats, veggies, etc to put in your pot to cook. It was "okay" ... Not a lot of flavor compared to the other things we've eaten. Not sure I would do it again.

We found a theater there so we decided to see if there was a movie we could watch. Jack Reacher was in English with Thai subtitles so we decided why not. It cost about $5 each. Right before the movie started the anthem for Thailand started and everyone stood. We weren't sure if we didn't stand would they haul us out so we just went along with it. They showed on the screen a lot of pics of the king .... Very interesting. The movie was awesome ... Tom Cruise is back on my "like" list. I want to see it again!

We headed home afterwards and dropped into bed ... A great day!

 

 

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Chiang Mai Day 2

We were up early this morning, had a good breakfast ....

I had fresh yogurt with muesli, raisins, and nuts. Brenna would be proud.... Pat on the other hand had a pancake made with fresh banana and drizzled with honey. Not horrible either. Both so good.

Pat is always busy researching things from the area. :)

We headed out about 9:30 and started walking. There were a few shops we wanted to find. On the way Pat wanted to get a hair cut. Here he is getting it from a nice lady, it cost $4.50. I think it was the best cut he's had in awhile. This is with a nice long shampoo too.

We walked and walked and walked today. We probably walked about 7 miles or so. We went into a fresh food market and saw a durian fruit. It didn't tempt me in the least. On our walk we met a nice young lady from New York who was here for 2-3 months. We struck up a conversation with her because Pat asked her where he could buy some pants so he could go in a temple. She told us that her job had closed after 13 years and she decided to go on an adventure. She was here by herself and was loving it. Her name was Amy and she had close cropped red hair with a small bang and tail dyed yellow. So very nice and we walked with her for a short distance. She told us of a place to stop for lunch so we did. Here are some pics.

Pat drinking a Latte and I got a Thai tea with milk ... Both very good.

 

We decided to get a cell phone here so we could contact the Hoekers who are in the area. It was easy to get and quite inexpensive. We called them and made plans to meet at the night market tonight.

We walked and walked and walked .... We walked some more. We found a place called 71 exports where they sold really cheap clothing.... Of course I couldn't find anything because everything is made for tiny people. I find this racist and prejudice ... But what's a girl to do but lose weight! Brenna, I need someone to move my butt when I get back!

Since we're in Thailand we had to see the three largest temples. They were very interesting to say the least. It never ceases to amaze me that women are treated so differently. I had to put on a long skirt and cover my shoulders whereas Pat put on a shirt and could wear his shorts.QSo not fair. What's a girl to do?

 

Here are some of the flowers we saw and that I had to take pics of

Yes, I'm partial to pink, what can I say.

After seeing one temple we started down this street and we had been walking for awhile. I asked Pat if he, I mean, we were lost. His answer was, "we're never lost when we're together", one of the many reasons I love this man! But we were sorta lost as we wound up at a dead end in a gated area that said, Laboratory Animal Experiments or something like that ... It was a part of Chiang Mai University. It gave me the willies and just knew I was going to hear or see something that would make me cry. We turned Round and at the entrance to the area a young man came and Pat asked him how to get to a certain mall. He spoke some English and told us which way to go. We knew we were in for a continued long walk but here comes this young man in his car and offers us a ride to where we wanted to go. We have met so many nice people. Always willing to

We were so tired and poor Pats foot was killing him. We had dinner at a buffet which had a salad bar which I was hungry for. Quite good and cheap!

We got a call from Kelly saying they were on their way to the night market and to meet them there which we did. It was so good seeing them. We love these girls so much and seeing their family is always a treat. We formally met Matt, their oldest brother as well. We are going to try and meet up and do something together if we can.

We finally got back to the room about 11 pm. I went straight to bed but Pat wanted to go see if he could get a foot massage and he was in so much discomfort. Needless to say, he had an adventure. the place right down the street/alley was closing so he hopped on a tuk tuk and asked the driver to take him to get a massage. What do you think happens when a white man asks a Thai driver to take him to get a massage .... Go Go bar here we come, "you want shower massage" ... This is not the situation you want to be in. And of course he said no ... Wouldn't want to get kicked out of college ministry.

A very good day overall!

 

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Chiang Mai Day 1

We did a lot of walking today to get the lay of the land. We found the local Starbucks, yes we did, and the costs here are the same as home. The local coffee isn't bad so we'll probably stick to it. We wondered to the day market to see what they had. Lots of shops with lots of beautiful things.

We went back to our room, I was so tired because I didn't sleep well on the night bus. I took a short nap and Pat walked around. We left about 4 and we got a massage. Pat got a Thai massage and I got a aromatic oil massage. They both were for an hour. It was so wonderful. They both cost us about $14. Yep, we are going to get one everyday!

After our massage we went to the night market. What an array of things to buy. We we had dinner at one of the more populated restaurants. We were told this is the key to eating safe here. We haven't had a problem thus far ..... :)

While reading our Thailand book that Zac gave us, it suggested not to buy anything the first time at the market. So we did just that but oh the beautiful things we saw. A soft purple scarf that I want to get Melissa, some pottery for Debbie, the list goes on and on.

We decided to head back to the room but along the way we saw a booth selling something similar to a crepe. There wasnt anyone there but in a few seconds a young lady came waddling over. She was muslim and very much pregnant. Her husband came from the other way, she scolded him playfully for not being there. They bantered back and forth. What they sold was "Rotee". We ordered a chocolate banana Rotee. She took a piece of dough that she flattened out and slapped on the counter to make it into a large circle. She put it on a hot, flat surface that cooked it. She then sliced fresh bananas and folded the sides over onto the bananas. She cooked it on both sides then asked us if we wanted milk. We said sure and she drizzled carnation condensed milk over it along with Hershey's syrup. HEAVEN!!! We shared this .... But then we de died to get one for each of us. Bad mistake. I was so full I wanted to hurl.

All in all a very good day!

Not many flowers here but I thout this one turned out nice.

 

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The Orphanage

Words can't express how excited we were to go see the children at the orphanage. The drive was short and it was tucked behind some commercial buildings. We drove along a paved path to an area that was roped off. A young girl came out to lift the rope so the car could go under. We later learned her name was Pha. What we saw was very humbling and .... I'm not sure how to explain it. There were two cement buildings where the children lived. Mei and her husband (can't remember his name) and their three girls (Mei, Mai, Mi) live here with the children, or should I say some of the children. There are three that live with Pastor Sam and his wife, Oi. They are Mathew, age 7; Knot, age 14, and Ben age 9 months. They also have Rose who lives with them who did live at the orphanage but is an adult. Rose is the mother figure for Ben, a real cutie. Ben didn't like me but took to Pat and allowed him to carry him around. They also have another boy, Ghot, who Oi has been teaching English to. He lives with them because he has become a Christian and wanted to stay. Isn't that what the love of Christ is all about.

 

At the orphanage we met Oi, a girl, age 18; Gong, a boy age 14 and his brother Gang, age 12; Pha, a girl age 12; Phuen, a girl age 14, Jimbo, a boy age 14; Yui, a boy age 14; another young girl, her name escapes me, who was about 12;

 

Pat is carrying Ben and Mathew is walking behind.

 

Pha is in back with Phuen on the right. One of the M girls is on the front left. (Either Mai, Mei, or Mi)

Gong, who was very quiet and didn't smile much enjoyed getting his picture taken.

This is Knot, a very sweet boy who Boone says is very good on the computer. I wanted to smooch his face so bad but knew I couldn't. They don't hug there as much as we do .... Or should I say, as much as I do.

This was Pha and Gang racing to the church.

The church is a beautiful structure on the back of the property. It isn't finished. Construction on it has come to a halt because of funding. To have church there really wouldn't take much or so we think.

We didn't take as many pics of the kids as we should have. We were so involved with talking with them and we really didn't stay there that long .... And that's all I'm going to say about that.

 

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