Ban Na

I arrived in the very northern most part of the northeast of Thailand (Issan for those of you keeping track) about two and a half weeks ago for training -- teaching us Thai and about Thai culture and about the project -- to help villagers in Thailand (and Laos) develop the computer skills and language skills necessary to compete in our 21st century world. (if you are interested, check out their web site: openmindproject.com. It is mostly run by Thai people, though the volunteers are mostly Farang and Nippon (developed world people) and there are a few Expats in charge as well. The other organization, teaching English in schools is volunthai.org) We had a weekend there getting settled and going to class -- first hand experience of how hard it is to learn a new language as an adult. I got to practice my Ponglang dancing -- much to the delight of the Thais! (very useful skill I learned there) And I'm beginning to think that all my volunteering in Thailand and South East Asia require that I first visit Nong Khai and the giant sculpture garden there.

On my first weekend with Mook, she, Jacob, a Thai family, and I drove 600km to visit Vientien, stopping in Nong Khai (the town across the border) and visiting the giant sculpture garden there. It was very strange to be there again, two months later and with a much better feel for the land and the people and the art of Thailand. The sculpture park is very cool! It is full of huge brick and cement sculptures of the life of and teachings of Buddha. There is a statue of the man who tried to cut off the Buddha's thumb, statues of people who are so devout or so generous that they give away their children, and all kinds of other moral lessons. Fascinating! And all Huge! One of my favorites is the elephant who calmly plods through a pack of frantic dogs trying to distract it from its purpose in life.

After a weekend of training, Angela, the other volunteer and I headed back across the border with Laos, through Vientien (making only the briefest of stops), and into the country side to a tiny town called Ban Na. Ban Na is a small farming village (less than 600 people) located just steps away from the Phou Khaw Khouay National Protected Area (a very large "National Park" in Laos). She and I spent about two weeks there "teaching English" to about 14 tour guides ("our boys"). The story (per the Lonely Planet and other sources) of why the town has tour guides at all is very ingenious! Several years ago, the town decided to plant sugar cane, as a more lucrative crop than vegetables. But the local herd of elephants preferred the sugar, too, and moved in, destroying the crop. To avoid killing the elephants, the towns people, with help from the Canadian and German governments, built a tower where tourists can observe the wild elephants in their natural setting. The tourists pay a fee to hire the guides, and more to stay overnight, and much of the money goes to town and other local towns to help out the farmers if Elephants destroy the crops. This way, the farmers are less inclined to shoot the elephants to protect their livelihood! The tower, in case you wondered, is near a salt-lick that the elephants frequent to get the minerals they need in their diets. So (and here is the plug), if you go, or your friends go to Laos, make sure to support the local community action to save elephants and still have a way to make a living.

I try not to have expectations at all (as reality is rarely what I expect it to be), but teaching English to the guides was not quite what I expected and was very different from my fist volunteer experience here. The town was much smaller for one. And we had a much freer schedule, in that we never really knew from one day to the next if we were teaching or not. We started the two weeks thinking that we would alternate day-long or over-night treks to the tower (talking with the guides and helping them gain familiarity with English and the kinds of questions English speaking people might ask), with "classroom" time where we would review what we learned on the trek, other important English terms, and role-play various situations the guides might find themselves in (such as booking treks). This plan lasted a grand total of three days.

On day four, we came down, ready to teach, and found all of "our boys" (as we grew to calling them), waiting for us. "No class" they inform us. "It's a Holiday!" We had cleverly scheduled our two weeks over the Laos New Year -- also known as Pai Mei in Laos and Songkhan in Thailand. In the guide books it is some times referred to as the "Water Throwing Festival." We had no idea how big a deal it was in our tiny town. The fist day started calmly enough, with us going with our host family (Mom, Dad, and Grandpa) to the temple for prayers and blessings of the perfumed water we all carried with us. Then, en mas, we all filed out of the temple and began splashing water all over, drenching all the Buddhas, the Naggas, the stupa, the statues of famous monks, everything! Then we packed up and headed to another temple to do it all over again.

Then the real party started.

We spent the next 5 days moving from house to house to house, eating, drinking, dancing (those are handy skills I learned), dumping water all over each other and rubbing baby powder all over each other's faces and hair! It is the tradition to wash each other clean and then freshen up with the power. In other words, a giant water fight that goes on for days and you know the water is coming and get to just sit and take it, and even thank the person who just dumped a bucket of water (sometimes with ice in it) down your back. Great fun! The drinks were always beer (beerlao -- worse than the worst mass, cheep beer I've ever had in the US and served with ice-- if you are lucky) or whiskey (lao lao -- home brew and strong enough to take the hair off or put hair on your chest -- I'll leave it to your imagination to decide which it did for me). It is rude to refuse, so ... They did graciously give me just the tiniest tastes of both the beer and the whiskey (a sip really), but over the course of the day, it adds up. And I'm not sure if the tiny sip is actually better, as it tends to vaporize faster and get up you nose! Angela pointed out once, that everyone looks at the glass as if it is the worst thing you could offer them, then everyone, even the most hardened of them makes a face as if it was the worst thing they ever tasted. And then they smile and thank you for it! And everyone laughs! Once they got going, the people in Ban Na, and the surrounding towns, didn't stop. We were offered beer or whisky for the last 11 days in a row! The first 5 for the new year, then preparations for a wedding, then the wedding, then a birth celebration, then another new years celebration, then our own departure celebration. Whew! It is good to have a few days to "dry out."

On our last day we got to see wild elephants! We had hiked out to the local waterfall (dry because it is the dry season) though blazing hot sun (it is so hot in fact, that the other day, not thinking about it, I said, "Wow, its almost cool today." then looked at the thermometer and saw that it read 32oC (90oF)) and down crazy little paths that you had to know existed in order to find. We finally crashed through the bushes to a rocky plane with a tiny stream running through it. Angela and I look at each other and say, "Is this it? Looks like it, the guides are setting up to make lunch. And what is he doing stripping off his clothes?" Turns out just before the stream crosses the large, flat, hot rocky area, it hits a natural dam and creates the most wonderful swimming hole imaginable! Shaded by trees, with a rock to jump off of, and deliciously cool, clear, drinkable water! We spent the entire afternoon splashing around: jumping in, swimming, getting out and drying off, then jumping in again to repeat the whole thing! Perfect!

After a final dip, we packed up again, and trudged back up through the trees to the tower to spend the night. Met up with a couple of Swedish boys, who we made the guides practice their English with. And, as night fell, after another wonderful diner of sticky rice eaten with fingers we were treated to the sounds of a baby elephant and its mother coming down to the water to bathe. Just as we had done hours before. It was too dark to really see any thing clearly, but a dark blob of baby elephant could be seen shuffling up the hill, dark against the light sand and grass, to disappear into the tree line. So Amazingly Wonderful! Later there were sounds of more elephants, but the highlight came in the wee hours of the morning, when I was awakened by a call of "Teacher!" and a beckoning hand. Groggy from sleep, I staggered out of the mosquito net and followed Mr. Pon to the edge of the tower. "There!" he whispers and points. Right below the tower is an Elephant! All grown up and large as life! Beautiful and Wild and Amazing! We didn't get any photos, unfortunately, but just watching the elephant shuffling around the tower, heading towards the bush, and then changing its mind and heading down the road was spectacular!

Our own going away was very sweet and moving! The town had a party for us. They made a Banana leaf "tower" and decorated it with yellow and white flowers, and stuck sticks covered with strings into the top. A man, speaking the monks language, though not a monk, said something over us as we held to strings attached to the "tower." Then people put money and food in our hands (including a boiled chicken head in mine) and tied bunches of strings around our writs. Our wrists look a little bit like we just tried to slit our writs (to put a dark, culturally insensitive view on it), but are tokens of well wishes and good luck and affection. And we are both very proud of them. Which is lucky as we are supposed to wear them for the next 5 weeks! We ate the food (not the chicken head) and then had dinner. More beerlao, and more lao lao, dancing, singing, and food. The Laos people make music everywhere and for any occasion! Clapping hands, tapping spoons against empty beer bottles and plates or each other. Drumbing, playing recorders, or traditional pipes, and singing! Ah! A wonderful expression of life!

And the next morning we left. Angela to head to China on a trip around the world with out flying, and me to tour Laos a bit before flying home in the last 5 minutes of May 8.

Central Thailand

Sukhothai

After Chiang Rai, I headed south to Sukhothai -- one of the ancient capitals of Thailand. I planned to get there in the evening and then, the next day, meet up with Shannon, an Australian woman I'd met in Chiang Mai. I arrived and got picked up at the bus station by a girl on a motor cycle. Here is an image for you: me and my back-pack clinging to the seat as she drove us along the highway to what is my favorite guest house so far: 99 Guest House. It is more or less the home of a woman named Naa, who, as her day job is a tour guide in the ruins, and at night welcomes strange Farang into her home. It was the closest to being part of a Thai family as I've come, outside of my volunteering.

The next morning, I got up, and after a late start, headed to the ruins. Following Naa's advice, I rented a bike and rode around, in the blazing sun visiting all the various structures. They are spectacular! Huge and old and grand and partially restored and “cleaned up” at various times in the last half of the 20^th century to give more of an impression of what they were like when people actually lived there. Nothing remains of the Royal Palace or any of the houses where people lived, -- not surprising if they, like many modern houses, were made of wood and bamboo – but many large temples and similar structures (made of stone and brick) survive. The main ruins are very cool (or very hot as it was a very hot day more than 90oF and little shade), but some of my favorites were the ones where it was only me and the cows and the crows. I found a temple that must still look more or less like Old Sukhothai before the restoration: Rundown and Romantic. There was one temple full of Buddha sculptures so old that only the suggestion of legs and an arm or hand remained. And they, like little else here, were quiet! There was only the calling of the crows, and the ringing of the cow bells, or their gentile complaints as they were driven home for the evening.

Back at the guest house – after just catching the last bus to New Sukhotahi – I recovered from my day by eating massive amounts of wonderful spicy Chicken-Coconut soup and having an hour-and-a-half long Thai Massage! Sigh. What a wonderful feeling to have some woman lean on your legs until the blood stops and then push your body around in directions it is not used to going! Shannon arrived late that night (not quite recovered from a bout of food poisoning, but anxious not to let that stop her touring) and the next day she and I headed out to Sisanthanburi. Again we rented bicycles, and again suffered in the blazing heat, and again caught the last bus home after filling up on ancient Thai and Khamer ruins.

That evening we celebrated (simply being alive and having an appetite) by going to the “Food Festival” in town. It was Wonderful! We wandered up and down the street, buying bits of food from each of the market stands, trying authentic Thai food (something none of the Farang I’d met on my travels wanted to do) including some of the best fish I’ve eaten! Fresh and “melt in your mouth” tender. The best part of the festival, though, was the dancing! Local girls performed on stage in traditional costumes and then were followed by a beauty pageant! But a beauty pageant where both women and men (called lady-boys) participated. One of the striking contrasts between Thailand and the US is the very open nature of some men acting as women -- “lady boys.” Transvestites I guess, but sometimes it is as simple and subtle as wearing nail polish or lipstick, and sometimes it is so complete that it is difficult to tell men from women.

Kankhanaburi and the Death Rail Road

From Sukhothai, Shannon and I headed south to Bangkok and a day trip to Kankhanaburi, the town where the infamous “bridge over the River Kawi is located. Rather than struggle with it on our own, we joined a tour up to the city, the bridge, the cemetery and a ride on the rail way itself in the morning, and the Tiger Temple in the afternoon. The tour was fine, but I will say this – as uncomfortable as I am with the “traveling” part of traveling (taking the bus or train or taxi), I prefer doing it on my own to taking a tour. We – or at least I -- ran into the Eastern language/culture dilemma when, despite specifically asking if the museum I wanted to see was on the tour, and specifically being told that it was, found out when we got there, that it wasn’t. Sigh. I tried not to make too much of a fuss, but I was very disappointed. We did get to ride on the rail, though, which was very exciting (though not the bridge). And I chatted up a couple of Thai women (using my rudimentary Thai and my winning smile) who looked after us on the way, letting me barge in front of them to get a good view.

Autthaya

Shannon’s and my frantic tour of Thailand continued with a jaunt up to Autthaya, another ancient city/capital of Thailand. This time, instead of bicycles, we rented a tuk-tuk and drove to the sights! Very luxurious. We started with the most famous of the temples: Wat Mahathat. I especially wanted to go to this one because there is a giant Buddha head (about 2 or 3 feet high) that has gotten wedged into the trunk of a Bodhai Tree (I think). The trunk and the head are the same color, and it looks like the head is part of the tree (which, in a way, it is). It is truly amazing. As a tangent: one of my favorite children’s books is Red Ranger Came Calling by Berkley Breathed. The final page of the book is a photograph of a tree with a bicycle appearing to “grow” out of the middle of the trunk. This is much the same. They both make me stop and examine my preconceptions of what is possible.

We drove around a lot and saw lots of very impressive structures, but my second favorite, was the last one: Wat Rathchaburana (I think). It is in amazing shape, many of the external sculptures are still fresh looking! But the best part, if you are bold enough and have enough of the “what’s around the next corner…” or “what’s down this dark stairway…” curiosity (the kind that killed the cat), is deep in the heart of the main structure. A tomb if I remember correctly. Inside, up a long steep set of stairs, and then down a long, steeper, narrower, set of stairs is a tiny room, still covered with golden frescos! Awesome, in the literal sense of the word. Imagine me, with a huge grin on my face; the grin of someone who has discovered something magical that few other people take the trouble to see.

Phannom Rung and Issan (again)

Shannon had had enough by this point. The heat and constant traveling and her illness earlier in the week were wearing on her I think, so after getting me all hyped up about the Full Moon Festival at Phannom Rung, she headed south and I headed east. Phannom Rung is another set of Khamer ruins. Again, it is huge and impressive and restored over several decades, but this time with a Chicago connection. The big deal about these, besides their impressiveness, is that, if you are lucky, and get up early, you can see the sun shine through all 15 doors of the temple/palace on the day after the full moon in early April! (You can also see the sun set through all 15 doors about 6 months later). Very cool. There is a big festival to celebrate, like the Lamduon flower festival in Sisaket, with dancing and music and a big “Sound and Light” show at night. I missed all of it, arriving in town at 8pm and having to dash off to meet up with Aew (a friend from Prangku – and the only one in town to see me on my fly by visit on my way north to another volunteer gig…). But I did get to see the ruins. I spent the morning wandering around them with another Australian woman, and two Thai women. Amazing. One of the highlight for me, though, was looking at a pediment (?) sculpture that had spent much of the 20^th century in Chicago. As the restoration work began, continued, and neared completion, Thailand and the Art Institute fought over who should get the sculpture. Eventually the AI gave in, and if you want to see it, you have to go to Thailand (something that I recommend anyway). I also got to stay in my second favorite guest house (the Honey Inn) – where, after initial frustrations with language and the booking via the internet, the host again took me under her wing and (more or less) treated me like one of the family!

Taton and Chiang Rai

From Chiang Mai I took a bus to Taton. It is a tiny town on the border with Burma (now Myanmar). It is famous -- at least among the Farang -- for two things. One, there are seven temples on the hills around the town and it is fun to walk from one temple to the next. (though it is a long and hot hike) A couple of them have HUGE Buddha statues, that can be seen from the road through town. Cool. Two, you can take a long boat down the river to Chiang Rai.

I took a tuk-tuk to the bus station (paying twice what the Thai woman at the hotel said it should cost, despite hard bargaining on my part -- or at least the attempt at hard bargaining) and found that the bus left in about 45 minutes. I went to the counter to try to buy a ticket and was told to come back in 15 minutes. For those wishing to travel in Thailand, keep this in mind: the ticket window is only open sometimes. You can buy a ticket several hours in advance, or half an hour before the bus/train leaves. As 11am rolled around (departure at 11:30am), I started hovering by the window, along with another Farang. Turns out we both were going to the same place and approached the window at more or less the same time. So the woman in the booth assumed that we were traveling together! Which we did from then on. We had lunch together (a very good Pad Thai!) and sat together on the bus and shared a hotel and meals in Taton! Nice to know someone. I left Taton a day earlier than he did, but we met up again in Chiang Rai!

The trip to Chiang Rai was great! It was about four hours in a rather noisy, but very fun, long-boat. There was a Japanese tourist in the boat, but otherwise it was me and the Thai people. The country side was beautiful! Tall hills rising from flat fields and dotted, here and there with a house or two. We passed lots of children taking advantage of their summer holidays to go swimming! They loved waving to us -- or at least staring at us as we went by!

My time in Chiang Rai was very short. I basically used it as a jumping off point for two day trips: First, to the White Temple, and second, to get a stamp for my passport. Getting a stamp for the passport is a very strange thing that the Thai government requires if you travel here for more than 30 days and don't want to get an official visa. I have crossed into all three of the border countries: Laos, Cambodia, and Myanmar (Not Malaysia because of the violence in the south -- everyone, the Thai people, my guide book, the US Government -- all say to avoid the very south of Thailand, so I am). My first trip was a day trip into the capital city of Laos. We went from site to site, seeing the high-lights of Vientiane while I was still a bit jet-lagged from my 18-hour flight. The second was to the border of Cambodia, where all we did was walk out of Thailand to the Cambodian border guard station where I bought a visa. Then we crossed the road where I exited Cambodia and walked back into Thailand. The whole thing took half an hour at most! The drive there was much longer than the time at the border. My third trip (to Myanmar) was somewhere in between. They took my passport at the border and told me to walk around for a bit. So I did. I walked into town. Up and down the main street. To the end of the town in one direction. And through a market to a temple in the other. The temple was very cool (literally) and very different from the ones I'd been in in Thailand. For one thing, it was full of people hanging out and staying cool. Women and children in one wing, men in another sitting on the floor, by the open windows, napping or talking and hanging out. Very comfortable feeling. One odd thing though, Myanmar is one-half hour behind Thailand. So, if it is 10:00am in Thailand, it is only 9:30am in Myanmar (formerly known as Burma, by the way).

The white temple is also very cool! (but not literally -- it was very hot the day I went). It is a Buddhist temple that is entirely white on the outside. All other temples are brightly colored. White and gold and yellow and red and green and all kinds of colors. With glass of many different colors, set in the sculptures, sparkling in the sun! The White Temple, as you might have guessed, is all white! and the glass is all silver-mirrors. It is truly spectacular! And as much a contrast to the rest of the temples in Thailand (that I have seen) as the Bottle Temple in the south of Issan. To enter the temple you walk across a bridge that begins, not in a pool of water, but in a pool of arms, reaching up, desperately, from the ground. The bridge rises, until you pass though a cloud-like sculpture of a very serene and happy Buddha (actually one on each side) and then into the temple itself. In side the temple is all golden. A huge golden Buddha is painted on the far wall, smiling, and surrounded by Heaven (I think). The strangest thing, though, is the wall you enter through, which is in the process of being painted. It seems to be covered with scenes of hell: dripping gas pumps, tortured faces, and strangest of all, figures from Star Wars and The Matrix! I am not sure if the painting of Neo (from the Matrix) is a hero or a villain in the painting. The same with the X-wing fighters from Star Wars.