Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, October 27-30, 2009

Chiang Rai, Friday, October 30, 2009
Got to bed about 9:30 last night and didn't wake up til 6:20 this morning. It was cool enough overnight to use a sheet and blanket most of the night, although I kept the fan going. Got up about 7. Stretched as much as possible. Still can't do sit-ups. I finished the OJ. Still tasted good, but not as good as Valencia OJ. Showered and packed, turned in my key.

Walked a short distance and hailed a tuk-tuk pickup taxi. Hoped for one which had people going to the bus terminal. This one was empty and the fare is 40B. Seems like too much for a mile or so, especially when the bus fare to Chiang Rai is 132B for the 180km, 3 hour, trip. And in a pickup bed bench seat. The side openings on all these vehicles is too low for me to see out without bending down, and the low roof requires crouching to get in.

I arrived at the bus terminal before 8. Only 2 ticket windows were open and the line on each was 20 people long. I was already standing for the national anthem at 8 when everyone stands. The next seat available was on the 9:30 bus. I walked around the terminal, looking at everything, including something to eat. Nothing looked, except the skewered meats, and they had flies on them.

The bus pulled in at 9:30. I checked my bag into the luggage bay and found my seat, by a window pillar and next to a young Thai man who spoke no English. The bus pulled quickly, at 9:45. The bus looked fairly new but had hard suspension, more like a truck than a big bus. I was near the back and bounced a lot. The road is paved, but has a lot of patches, apparently done poorly, causing the bus to bounce. The air blowing thru the overhead vents did not seem cold, but that was fine, because it wasn't too hot, definitely cooler than Bangkok and the south.
There was a stop at a bus terminal long enough for everyone to get off. I bought a doughy bun with a black paste filling, for 10B. Tasted OK, not too sweet.

The bus pulled into Chiang Rai Bus Terminal 2 about 12:45, and I found by asking several times and showing my ticket that this was the final stop, contrary to both my guidebooks, which state the bus terminal is in the center of town. The central bus terminal is the old terminal and the new one is 7 km away. Tuk-tuk rides are given to the old terminal for 10B. I got on the second one and the driver waited 10 minutes hoping, I guess, to add a 10th person to the 9 of us on the pickup bed seats. As he left the terminal, he stopped and made us slide forward for 2 more passengers.

At the terminal, a man offered to take me to the Ben Guesthouse, by showing me the brochure. I hadn't read about it and resisted at first, but the brochure offered free transportation to the bus terminal and had wifi. So I agreed to go. He led me around the building to his pedicab. I squeezed in with my backpack and he pedaled me probably half a mile. Ben GH is in a residential area and quite a ways from the center of town and the other guesthouses. It looks fairly new and is being worked, including putting in a pool. The pedicab driver wanted to be paid. I asked the clerk about the free transportation and she said they would 'give ride, first call.' The driver had nothing to do with the guesthouse. He probably had told me I would pay him, but his English was very poor and I didn't understand that. I paid him the 30B. The room rates on the sheet showed a low rate of 120B for one with a shared bath. The clerk said the rate was 180B, higher, but she didn't or couldn't say why. Probably, this is the new high season rate. The room has twin beds, and I was not going to walk any distance for another room or pay the pedicab to take me somewhere else, so I took the room.

It was still early afternoon, so I felt like walking around to get my bearings. I found a crude map at the reception desk and walked out til I found a major road, probably only a few hundred yards. I guessed at the orientation and walked along til I found a small cafe with photos next to the Thai names of their dishes, on the wall. I pointed to a fried rice dish and sat down. A glass of ice cubes was provided and the table had a small pitcher of water. The rice dish was large enough and had little taste, so I added some sliced chilles from the jars on the table. Tasted good. There was also a small bowl of broth, which I drank. Cost 30B.

I walked a little further and saw a shop selling cell phones. Many of these shops are more like open stalls, with no front wall, just a roll up door. The young woman could speak some English so I asked her if she could help get my phone to work. She was able to get a message showing the baht remaining, 85, and some other instructions on some long string of letters and symbols to dial. I didn't understand the instructions and neither did she. Finally, she took out the battery and reinserted it. When the phone started up it worked. She said 'You call'. I called Bill and talked for a few minutes. He was getting ready for work. Apparently, it just needed to be reset this way. I hadn't thought of doing that. I considered adding minutes to the phone, but the minutes are good til Nov. 13, so I'll wait a while.

At the next intersection I saw a sign for a wat which was shown on my map, so I could see where I was at. I walked a few block and looked at the wat. I couldn't find an English name anywhere so I just looked around and took no photos.

I found signs for the Chat House and walked in. The room with shared bath is 100B, so I said I'd take it tomorrow, and come by at noon. It is smaller, older and much shabbier than the Ben GH, but there is free wifi.

I walked into another wat and found the same lack of an English name. The 3rd wat had one sign to photograph, so I took some photos. Later, I found another wat with a name sign, so I took a few photos.

I walked over to an island to look for the Aka River House. There were signs pointing the direction. First I stopped into the YMCA Town Center. A woman who spoke pretty good English said it is a school. The Y hotel is out of town. I walked another quarter mile and found the Aka River House. There were no attendants, only a few workers. One said 'No, maybe tomorrow' when I asked if there was a reception area. I did not see any sign of an office, just a 2 story set of rooms.

I walked back toward the Bus Terminal and turned toward the Hill Tribe Museum. It is on the 3rd floor and it was nearly 5. The museum closes at 6, but the tour desk was still open. I asked for a brochure. One little old man, probably a guide, suggested I go on a tour tomorrow. The clerk, a young woman who spoke very good English, said the only tour tomorrow was No.10, a boat ride, an elephant ride, a visit to 3 villages, walking and a ride back. The tour is all day, 9 to 5, and costs 2000B if I go, making 4 people. There were only 3 so far, but 2 more walked up while I looked over the descriptions of all the tours, and told the girl I wasn't ready to decide on a tour. I asked about going on my own and she said there are no signs and the guide is needed stay on the trail. With 6 of us the cost would be 1700B each, so I decided to go. Another woman walked up and decided to join because she didn't have days to wait for another tour to form. I didn't have enough Baht with me, so the girl accepted my Visa card and charged It. The tour includes a hotel pickup. I said that it would be good if they could pick me up before the other 2 because they are at the Chat House and I could leave my things there while they pick up those 2.
On the way back to the Ben GH, I passed a park with a large group of young people doing aerobics. I stopped at a shoe store long enough to buy a pair of slip on sandals, for 69B. I can really use those for the Chat House, to go out to the bath. Fortunately, Ben GH has a lighted sign pointing the way off the main road, because the street name I was looking for, Soi 1, was not in sight, and it was dark.

USAID is having a convention or something in one of the buildings at the GH, and the clerk/manager asked if I wanted to eat at the BBQ being prepared for that group. The cost was 150B and I first said yes, but looking at everything, I wasn't hungry enough to join in, even though it looked like a good selection of salad, noodles and several kinds of meat. So I crossed off my listing on the sheet with my room no. on it, sitting on the reception desk.

Heard only three firecrackers or cherry bombs here today, much better than in Chiang Mai, where firecrackers, cherry bombs and small rockets were going off almost continuously every evening. Apparently, there is some festival coming up soon, maybe on the weekend, or on the full moon of Nov. 2.

So my outlay for today is 1981B, including the 1700B tour for tomorrow, about $60, but not including tonight's 180B room which I'll pay in the morning.

Chiang Mai, Thursday, October 29, 2009
Got to bed about 10:30 last night and didn't wake up til 6 this morning. Got up about 7. Stretched a lot. Feel better and can stretch more than I have since my back seized up.There is still some swelling which will take a few more days to go down, so bending over still hurts. I can't bend over enough to easily tie my left shoe.

Decided I needed more rest for my back before travelling, so I asked for another day at the Smile GH, and paid the 200B for the room, for tonight.

Walked down to a 7-11 and bought a liter of OJ for 67B, $2, and drank over half. Took my laundry over to the lowest advertised rate to wash and dry, 15B per kilogram. My bag weighed over 1.5kg. When I picked up the clothes about 4:30, the charge was 25B.

I rested and read before lunch and walked to Tein Sieng again. This time I was early, before noon, and I got a plate of rice and 2 toppings, one looks like papaya in sauce and the other is fried veggies. Tasted good. 20B.

About noon I walked into the Thai Massage Conservation Club, a studio which uses blind people trained in Thai massage. The agents are sighted. Paid the 150B for the standard one hour session. The masseuse places the sheet on the leather covered bed and pillow. A man was massaging a woman on the bed next to mine. The massage started with me on my back, first massaging the feet. Most of the massage consisted of pressing hard, sometimes with the full body weight, on nearly all of my muscles, with turning one side, then the other and finally on my stomach. The legs were twisted near the end and I was sitting up at the end. Only a little kneading, of the shoulders and head, and a light pounding on the back. I expected the left leg to hurt more, but the pain was about the same all over and the leg twisting was just to the limit for that leg. I felt less back pain after the massage and have less pain than before. I was so relaxed after the massage that I walked back to my room, after buying a 950ml bottle of water for 6B, and slept on and off for 4 hours, with a break to get the clothes.

About 6 I went again to the AUM restaurant for dinner. I had tempura veggies with tamarind sauce and a banana shake, 85B, plus a 10B tip. Bought another 950ml bottle of water on the way back, 6B.

I worked on the diary, then swam for 15 minutes in the pool, the same as last night. The cool pool water is very refreshing.

So my outlay for today is 569B, $17.

Chiang Mai, Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Woke up before dawn. Moved around on the bed to loosen my back. Still very sore. Carefully got up at 7 to use the restroom. Went back to bed. Couldn't get comfortable. I rested til 8:30, and got up after the other 2 had gone out. I stretched more and felt a little better. I walked around to loosen up and look for a better room, one with fewer stairs and a better bed. Julie and one other low priced place were full. Other places looked like they were upper floor rooms or were expensive, 250B or more. Finally walked a side street and saw a Chinese clinic, the Mungkala Clinic. I asked about acupuncture. The nurse asked me to have a seat. I said I would return later.

On a side street near the clinic the Smile guesthouse had a room for 200B, with a shared bath. The guesthouse is very Asian, with shoes left at the entrance. They have a lounge, computers table, tour desk, restaurant and small pool on the ground floor. I asked the girl to reserve the room. I looked for other places near the clinic, and bought a passion fruit shake, for 15B, on the way back to the Same Same. Picked up my stuff and left the key, then looked some more for a cheaper place. Didn't see any that looked better or lower in price, so I checked in to the Smile Guesthouse, and paid 200B.

I rested and worked on my diary, and showered. I left about 1 to check in at the clinic. They were closed til 2 for lunch. I walked over to the same restaurant I ate at last night and had a bowl of veggies and noodles, with ice water, for 20B. Bowl wasn't as full this time. Different cook, maybe the owner. Still tasted good. I added a little chilli powder. Made the broth quite hot. Drank a lot of water to thin it down. On the way back I looked at hand sewn bags, made by the Karen people I was told. I got a large flat bag with a shoulder strap, to replace the plastic bag I often carry, and a passport bag with a neck strap, for 160B total, 8B off the marked prices.
Checked into the clinic at 2:30 and was told a half hour acupuncture treatment was 500B. The clinic is licensed and I didn't have time to shop around for anything cheaper, and might not trust just any acupuncturist. The treatment was as expected based on other treatments I've had, new needles, in the lower back and back of the legs, with electric current to feel, and heat on the back. Three times the cost of the senior center treatment, but still a low price. I now have a patient number and was asked to make an appointment for tomorrow. I hope I feel well enough to travel tomorrow.

I returned to the Smile GH and rested in a soft chair near the pool, and read from one of the guidebooks. About 4 I read that the Tein Sieng Restaurant, which serves a highlighted vegetarian dish, closes at 5. I arrived at 4:25 and they were sold out. I walked to the 3rd of the highlighted wats, Wat Chiang Mun, and looked around and took photos. Feel sorry for the birds in the little cages, which are sold by temples for people to release as part of their offering. Didn't buy any, though.

Walking toward the east gate I checked the front rack at the 'On The Road' used bookstore. Bought a Joseph Conrad paperback novel for 60B. Checked 2 different stores that sell add-on cell phone minutes. No one understands why my phone does not make calls. A check by one girl shows 88 minutes left on my account. She didn't understand the rest of the message and it made no sense to me. Got a 600ml bottle of water for 7B, and drank it all.

About 6, I saw a vegetarian restaurant, the AUM, which looked good and was mentioned in the LP guidebook. I ordered 2 of their best dishes, a Thai soup, called Kausoi, and springrolls, and an unsweetened papaya shake, 50B, 50B and 35B, for a total of 135B, with a 10B tip. Very, very good. Too much food for one meal, but it was too good to leave any.

Returned to the Smile GH about 7 and took the netbook down to a table by the pool, to work on my diary. Talked briefly to Angie, from Canada, who loves this city and the GH, and has been here a week already.

So my outlay for today is 1107B, $33.

Chiang Mai, Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Got up at 6, stretched, showered. Heard the frenchman call 'Gary', but he was gone before I could look into the courtyard. I packed quickly and left my key with a man at the reception desk. At the Coffee Cup I ordered an orange juice, for 30B. It tasted like it had come out of the juice box from a grocery store, not fresh squeezed. The clerk said the taxi would stop here. A large sonthaew, painted with red, white and blue stripes, with 3 long bench seats in back, stopped in front. I was the second passenger. As I climbed up the step and bent down to get under the roof, I felt my lower back muscles squeeze the nerve, and tighten harder. I sat down and straightened my legs as much as possible and tried to relax the back muscles, but I could not lean back very far.

The songthaew served as a bus for about 10 students, all in uniforms, who got on after me and got off at 2 different schools. Only 2 other women rode as passengers to other stops. I was the only passenger for final and longest portion of the 20 minute ride to the bus terminal. I gingerly climbed out of the songthaew and paid the driver the 20B fare.

We had stopped near the ticket windows. I was shown the Chiang Mai ticket window and paid the 218B fare. The agent gave me a receipt and tag to print my name on. He attached the tag to my bag, knowing the bag would not fit in the overhead tray and that the bus would fill up, which it eventually did. I waited with the other bus passengers on the plastic seats in the open air terminal. An empty bus pulled into the correct space within about 20 minutes. I gave my bag to the driver at the bag bay and boarded. The bus was nearly 2/3 full. I had an empty seat next to me, which allowed me to stretch out a little and do some twisting to try to loosen the back muscles. I kept the empty seat for over an hour, but then a Thai woman needed a seat, so I had to hold my camera for a few hours til she got off. Later, I put it in the overhead along with my camera bags and hat at the second of the two 20 minute stops on the way. The first was at Tak and the second at Lampang, where I got off and bought a 600ml bottle of water, for 10B.
Out of all the passengers only myself and 4 others looked like tourists. The 4 were young, one couple and 2 guys, one from France and one from Switzerland. The 2 guys and I agreed to take a songthaew together for a better price, 30B each. We each wanted to go to a different guesthouse. On the way the 2 guys decided to share a room to save money, and they decided to go to the same one I chose, the Julie Guesthouse. The 2 guys got off first and walked the 100 feet or so down an alley to Julie's. There was only one room left and they took it.

The clerk suggested the TR Guesthouse nearby. It had a promotion sign out front stating a price of 200B. I walked back down the street, which had a lot of guesthouses and other shops, tour companies, restaurants, etc., catering to tourists. A sign out front of the Same Same Guesthouse stated a rate of 100B for a dorm bed and free wifi. The dorm had 2 bunks. I got the last bed. The room is on the first floor. The ground floor contains a reception and restaurant, and has high ceilings; and is open to the 3rd floor in the front. The second floor has a common area and 2 rooms. Toilets are on the 3rd and 4th floors and showers are on the 4th floor. Great for young backpackers with their young legs. Two guys were in the other bunk and a girl was above me.
By this time, about 3, I was hungry. So I ordered a bowl of veggie Khao Tom, for 50B, and a mulberry shake, for 50B. Mulberries were from Laos. The soup and shake were both great. The soup was mild and the mulberries had a very strong and sweet flavor. Shakes are usually sweetened with sugar.

In the room I turned on my netbook and found the network. I went down and got the password, and began uploading photos to Flickr. When I got to a folder with a lot of photos, I decided the best thing for my back, now that I had stretched all I could, was to walk to try to loosen the muscles. It was nearly dark, but I saw that one of the 3 wats recommended as highlights in the old city was near. I found it, only because there are street signs here, and I took a free map at the guesthouse. The wat has some spot lights on it after dark. I decided the walk was helping my back, so I walked to a second wat, a little further away. It also had spotlights. Neither wat had visitors, altho there were a few people, including some monks, in the area, and a few vehicles going in and out. All along the way I was offered rides by the songthaew drivers, both as they drive by, often just by a honk, and when they are stopped, asking 'Where you going?'.

I was still hungry, so I looked at several restaurants on the way back. Finally saw one simple place with tables and stools. The kitchen was a small area in the front corner. I asked for vegetable soup with the flat noodles. The bowl was larger than normal and ice water was provided, all for 20B. The soup was several veggies and noodles in a beef broth. Mild, but good flavor. I added only a little bottled sauce, from the holder on the table, for more flavor.
Walked back to the Same Same GH and checked on the upload. Not finished, but I posted a new blog entry, with 3 days of my diary.

I was alone in the room most of the night. One guy and the girl went out early in the evening and didn't return till after I fell asleep, probably midnight. The other guy said there were bedbugs biting him and he moved out into the hammock in the common area. I couldn't sit up on the bed because the bunk was too low, so I did the work lying down, with the netbook in my hand or on the night stand. I did a lot of stretching to try to loosen the back, but it was too sore to stretch very far.

I did a lot of turning all night to try to find a painfree position, but there was none. The pain in the prone, back or stomach, was low pain, so I eventually fell asleep. The back probably went out because of the long train ride on the hard bench coming up to Sukhothai.

So my outlay for today is 528B, nearly $16.