Chiang Mai 9/1/2015

The first thing you notice when you first get off the train from Bangkok is the air. We arrived at the train station just after 12:30 and as we carried the bags along the platform on the way to the taxi area outside, the drop in heat and humidity when compared to the capital we had left behind came as a welcome relief. The temperature on arrival was a manageable 29 degrees centigrade and with the breeze coming in from the surrounding mountains, the change was a massive contrast to the hard to breath mid 30's we had been suffering through. Even the trip o the hotel, squashed into the back of a pickup truck taxi, boarded seats down each side, 8 people, luggage and a dog in a dress  wasn't enough to break into a sweat. First crammed in, first let out, 50 baht each and we were dropped right to the door as the remaining 7 passengers were loaded back up for the rest of their journeys.

Chiang Mai is Northern Thailands largest city, but is far removed from what you would usually expect from such a large place, feeling more like Bath on a Sunday than Bristol on, well any day. The streets whilst occasionally busy with traffic are not congested and the overall vibe is a relaxed one, at least in the day. It's a night that the place really comes alive, with numerous bustling street markets and lit temples all vying for your attention. You see much of the same products on display on many stalls at the various markets that you visit with maybe a small difference in prices, but the sheer variation on show is still huge. T-shirts, toys, souvenirs, soaps, insects, foot massages, food, food, drink and food, stalls almost too numerous too see let alone list.

On the first night we walked for what seemed like miles, down packed streets and through smaller less crowded alleys before almost falling upon the Srisuphan Temple at the top end of the market It was by far the shiniest temple I had ever laid eyes on and was tastefully dressed for the evening in it's' silver attire, blasted with changing coloured lights to add a little bit of "Vegas", that "OVER HERE LOOK AT ME!!!" factor.

It's a shame then that no women are allowed in. Vicky, desperate to see what the inside was like loaded me up with her giant phone and sent me in begrudgingly to shoot a video for her. For my 2 baht this sort of segregation based purely on gender ruins what could be an interesting experience for all to see. Unfortunately, with my honed eye for detail not yet developed, I missed out all the old playboy magazines that had been selotaped to the walls, the pole dancing monks, the pool table and the Galaga '88 arcade machine (complete with the original fag burnt buttons), only managing to capture the exquisite craftsman (or woman) ship that made up the rest of the interior decor.

I had mentioned to Vicky that I didn't really want to do any tours as we were only here for 3 days. Soured somewhat by the experiences so far where you get rushed from point a to b to c through f and k, given a short amount of time in each before being whisked to the next without getting a feel for any, but I negotiated with my other self successfully and we booked onto a tour which didn't seem to be too long or be trying to cram too much into a small, set period of time. It took us to the local National Park, to the highest point in Thailand, to local villages and a couple of temples and still gave us time in the evening to visit more of the night markets. In the cooler air in the day was able to wear my jumper for the duration of the tour. In the even cooler evening as temperature dropped further I was even able to slip into a set of jeans. Luckily they were mine.

The next day I woke up exhausted and Vicky was down with a cold, which called for a lazier day, for some.

Leaving vicky at the hotel I wandered up to the old town towards a couple of temples I had marked on my map, grabbing a coffee on the way and stopping to look more closely at buildings and signs en-route. At one of these stops a Thai chap started to talk,

"Where you from?" he smiled.
"Here we go" I thought", England" I said.
"Where in England? Not Birmingham?" Birmingham" was said in a very good brummie accent which I rightly commended him on, whilst trying to move on my way,
He carried on talking, explaining that he had been in England a long time ago, maybe 30 years around Birmingham and Yorkshire,  fighting,  and you could see by his lean stature and flat nose that it was a plausible enough story, but jokey and smiley I still tried to edge away in the direction of my intended destination, but it just wasn't happening fast enough.

"You looking for something? you look like you are looking.." he questioned cheerfully.
"Nope" I said, "just walking, off to see some temples."
"You want lady?" he asked, "Up here" (pointing up the street and to the left), "you want lady for free?"
"Errrrm, noooope" I reiterated, starting to walk away a bit more purposefully this time.
"Ladyboy, Lady, I get you Ladyboy for free?", this time I laughed and just walked off, "Nice to meet you" I said. "you have a good day."

He laughed back as I carried on away, with me, still a little unsure of what actually had just happened. But this sort of stuff only seems to go down when I am trudging alone somewhere on my own taking in the sights and sounds of what surrounds me at the time, I guess that's when I have my "Tourist" face on. It would be wrong to have to stop looking around on the basis of trying not to get hassled, but maybe it's time I donned a different guise before I head out. Maybe it's time to get myself a clown outfit and makeup!

I found the first of the temples I had come searching for just a short walk away. the temple at "Wat Pan Tao" was small and wooden, with a large gold statue at the end in the centre, donation pots lining the windowed side whilst being bathed in strips of light that were pushing in through the slatted boards. As usual with me I wasted the first few shots in the camera before I managed to come up with a few more closer to what I had wanted. Sometimes it's the feel of a place you want to convey, and sometimes it's harder for me to do that than just taking a picture of the brightest, or most central thing that is on display, and sometimes you still don't quite get what you were after anyway.

It's not often nowadays that I end up with a "Woah" moment, but that's what my internal voice shouted at me as the temple just around the corner came into view from behind the building that had been obscuring it. "Wat Chedi Luang" was built in the mid 14th century, but was damaged in about 1551 by an earthquake (or series of), but what is left is a huge imposing structure, still standing, damaged and missing details and most of it's statues (with the exception of some stone elephants on one corner), but firm, steady and enough of a draw some 600 years after its initial construction to make the walk to find it more than worthwhile.

I had read online that the temple area was even better at night, a sentiment I didn't really agree with as far as the main structure goes, but just behind the first temple I had visited that day, there was another budha statue hidden away. I had seen this earlier in the day but at the time hadn't given too much attention.

In the evening however, when lit by the stage, it became one of the stars of the show.

Wat a place.