From rough seas to calm waters

The last week and half has been choppy and tiresome. Shear exhaustion had me looking forward to my trip south to an island called Ko Lanta. Anouk and I had booked a flight down there. After a sleepless night of tossing and turning I dragged my weary body out of bed to catch the plane. 8 hours later, we arrive in Krabi (5 hour layover in Bangkok). After much anticipation to finally give ourselves a relaxing break and get well again (Anouk was ill as well), we are greeted with the most depressing sight. It was one helluva gray grizzly drizzly day. We immediately check the weather report online and it tells us the weather will be like that for the next week. I'm in shock. Almost in tears, my exhaustion physically and mentally was so shot at this point. Since I was too tired to move or think, Anouk saved the day and frantically checked weather for all other islands. The least offensive is Koh Chang. We book the next flight out in the morning back to Bangkok. After a 5 hour bus ride we check into a guesthouse on the mainland called Trat. Another sleepless night. Finally the next morning we ride the ferry to the island. Another long bumpy and windy truck/taxi ride leaves us feeling even more exhausted and slightly ill, and as we approach our destination the surroundings seem too remote. We stop the taxi driver and ask if he can please turn the truck around and drop us off a few beaches back where it looked like there was a decent amount of life.
Now the story gets good - we drag ourselves in a state of delirium to the closest place to find food and a chair. We get both at a very hippie looking establishment that we later notice seems to the beach-y theme around here. The helpful owners suggest staying at bungalows across the way. They aren't directly on the beach like we had hoped, but they turn out to be just what we need. The beach ones are much more expensive and a lot more "rustic." Cold bucket showers, mosquitos, and sand everywhere, is more than we can possibly handle in our state. Our bungalows turn out to be better than anything we expected. And cheap! I decided immediately to stay for the rest of my time in Thailand.
I will post pictures soon, but really no words or photos can truly describe the sensation of being here. Life is amazing.

The last post didn't publish

So if you're wondering what I was referring to before it's because there's a post missing.

Nothing too exciting. Except me listing the stuff I made in cooking class yesterday! Otherwise the class was great, other students and the instructors very friendly, and the food delicious. I have a recipe book so I will be attempting these recipes at home.

Today I went to the hospital because I am sick...yet again. I spent 5 hours being bounced between waiting rooms and doctors offices in hopes of getting to the bottom of this sinus infection. I'm now armed with more medication.

After I got back and had something to eat, a friend of a friend, Samorn stopped by to say hello. I later went and dropped by her stand at the night bazaar, an we made plans to meet again tomorrow so she can show me around a little. Looking forward to it!

Gotta have faith

I can't believe I forgot to mention the best part of my whole day!

After paying and thanking my tuk tuk driver for driving me swiftly back to my hotel after my grueling day at the hospital, and happily re-entering my home away from home, it was 10 minutes before I felt a huge sickening wave of realization hit me.

I had left my prescription medicine that had taken 5 hours to get in the back of the tuk tuk. I hurried back to the reception desk just hoping against hope that I was wrong and I had left it on the desk. But I knew. As I was desperately trying to explain my pitiful position to the receptionist, and I could feel the pathetic exhaustion start turning into tears, I heard the sound of a small engine, like a lawnmower, growing louder. My heart practically leapt with joy as I turned to see the tuk tuk pull up infront of the hotel. MY tuk tuk! I ran out to express my gratitude and relief in heaping amounts as I collected my precious cargo. No problem, he said with a smile as he hopped back on and drove away.

So there you go. Have a little faith in your tuk tuk driver.

Last days in Pai

Back in Chiang Mai. Ursula and Lotte just left to go to Koh Chang. We luckily found a nice hotel/guesthouse to stay in that I will continue to stay in for the next 4 nights until I go Koh Lanta.

Its really humid here. I opted for the cheaper room, so I only have a fan, but there is a pool if I need a quick dip. Last night the girls and I ate Mexican food. Recommended by a guy on our bus ride back from Pai. He was from Santa Cruz, and Mexican himself, so I trusted him. I don't think I would ever go eat Mexican food in Thailand if I was by myself, but Lotte had never had nachos before, so we went for it. And treated ourselves to a couple of pitchers of fruity margaritas.

Sometimes I feel bad about not eating Thai food all of the time, but it really gets tiresome after a few weeks. I do want to take a Thai cooking class in the next couple of days, however, so that will most definitely be a lot of Thai food. I might try to go see Doi Suthep today. We'll see. I think the dairy farm thing is not going to end up happening. Craig kept trying to get ahold of Korn while we were all in Pai, but he couldn't. That wouldn't be until the 19th though I think.

The heat is making me forget everything. I have had so many awesome, funny experiences that could make great stories for this post, but my brain is in a fog.

Lets see... In Pai, we made friends with a Thai guy who had a fruit shake stand during the day and then played music at a local bar at night. He was really nice and a true Thai hippie. Long hair, mustache, bandana, big 60's looking sunglasses. Loved to chat about concerts while we sipped our shakes.
On our second to last day in Pai, we had a big morning of eating a delicious breakfast at a small cafe called the "Witching Well" that was definitely something straight out of West County. It had an actual well in the middle of it with a fountain of water for effect, and a bookshelf with books about Wicca. One was even called Gay Wicca. The food was so good we wanted to come back for dinner that night and then breakfast again the next day before heading back to Chiang Mai, but unfortunately we were sorely disappointed that evening when we discovered it was closed. After breakfast we said goodbye to Craig who was off to Mae Hongson (I think?), and then we browsed the English books at the little used bookstore down the street. I bought a couple that I'm excited to start reading. Afterwards, we hopped on our scooters for a drive down the highway and over to a beautiful waterfall. It was tucked away, so you had to walk along this little dirt path and then over a (scary) wooden bridge and then wade up the river through the rocks before you got it. But it was gorgeous.
The heat was stifling so we headed back to town to treat ourselves to a spa. 3 and half hours of spa-ing actually. Most was actually pretty painful. Like the full body scrub, I thought my skin was going to rubbed off! Lotte and I were laughing out of shear pain at how ridiculous the situation was. Luckily it ended on a good note with an oil massage. Except for my ticklishness, it was pretty relaxing. From there, we picked up our clean laundry that we had washed after the day before's activities of swimming with the elephants in the river, and said goodbye to our scooters. You know, I kind of liked riding around on that little scooter. Maybe I'll look into getting one when I get back home.
We took photos of the nearby Wat all lit up at night, and then wandered the street food vendors tasting little things here and there. I tried this yummy snack that was like a gooey red bean paste that was flattened like a pancake and then placed on a grill till it puffed up and was hot, then they put nuts and sweetened condensed milk on top and cut it into little pieces to eat with a toothpick. After dinner we ate ice cream (of course, like every day), and then sat at a little "white people" bar (thats what I called it) and ordered a couple of buckets of mojitos to share. It was truly a lovely evening.

Pai with a side of Chiang Mai

After arriving in Chiang Mai on Wednesday, I met up again with Craig at the Duang Dee guesthouse. He had befriended three girls along his way up north - Anouk and Lotte, from Holland, and Ursula, from Switzerland. After spending the evening with all of them walking around Chiang Mai, having tea at a tea house by the river, and then watching Craig eat grubs and beatles from the street market (I couldn't stomach a taste myself), Lotte and Ursula invited me to join them on the their trip up North to Pai. Although I had planned to spend a bit more time in Chiang Mai, I decided to go for it and went with them the very next morning. The bus ride was really windy and the girls felt very sick by the end of it. But once we arrived it was great. Pai is just a hippie town, where there are a TON of white hippies mixed in with the Thais. I sort of feel like I'm back in Sebastopol at times. There is even a Buffalo Exchange like in SF!

We are on our third day here and so far we have rented motorbikes to tour around the countryside, and this morning we took an elephant ride which ended with a bath in the river. It was sort of like an elephant rodeo, with the mahoots (sp?) commanding the elephants to literally shake us off their back and send us flying into the water.

Of course there are many more stories that have happened along the way, but I just can't remember them all. Hopefully I'll have something more interesting to say next time.

Train - cockroaches, transvestite, and Parisians

I just got to Chiang Mai after a 16 hour train ride. I sat with 3 Parisian girls who totally freaked out from the cockroaches that kept scuttling out to say "hello." I had to take one for the team and quickly became the designated exterminator, setting aside my book each time one of them squealed, taking my flip flop and whacking them.
After a rough night of awakening every hour or so to a massive jolt or sway and fretting that I would fall off my bunk, or worse that the entire train was going to tip over and crash, we were awakened by the transvestite train steward(ess?) saying in a high pitched tone, "boyfriend!" He is "boyfriend?" I guess...

Wat Songdhammakalyani

I've spent the last four days with the female monks at Wat Songdhammakalyani. Recommended by Dan's brother Brian, I called the office early last Thursday morning and asked if I could come and stay for a few days. The woman on the phone said yes. So I packed up my things and took a taxi. About an hour and a half later I arrived.

Day 1:

I was greeted by one of the female monks and she had me fill out some info about myself as well as read a short description of their daily routine and their 5 precepts that I was to follow during my stay.

After I was shown my bungalow and settled in a little bit, I joined them in the outdoor kitchen area for lunch. The whole ceremony around eating was very new for me and I couldn't help feeling pretty dumb a couple times when I didn't know what to do. The 8 ordained monks sit in a row with their alms bowls infront of them, and myself and three other women who are laywomen serve them. Then they chant a prayer before eating. After that it's our turn to serve ourselves, but we must also chant the prayer before eating also. (I never actually learned any of the chants).

In the afternoon everyone is more or less alone to meditate, read or sometimes take a nap. Then at 5, we gather in the garden for an hour of community work. The abbess, the Venerable Bhikkhuni Dhammananda, told me after we worked that it was a very important part of their day because otherwise she thinks they would not interact or bond enough. I was given the white robes meant for laywomen to wear for the evening and morning chanting. It took me awhile to figure out how to wear it. The first day's evening chanting was a beautiful experience. We sat upstairs in their building they have for chanting on seperate mats, and I was given an English version of the chants to follow along with. My legs promptly fell asleep, as they have every morning and evening during chanting. Afterwards I was shown how to light incense for honoring our ancesters and placing it on the gilded shrine in the garden. Then it was time for bed. And I wandered back down the long paved path to my bungalow, stepping carefully around the multitudes of small toads scattered quietly along the way, and layed down to sleep on my wooden bed.

Day 2:

I awoke at 5am to walk to the building where they chant at 5:20. As I began to dress I realized in horror that I was absolutely covered in mosquito bites. It then dawned on me that my mistake had been not lathering myself in repellent for yesterday evening's garden work. What a moron, I thought to myself. From then on I made applying insect repellent a little ritual of my own.
After chanting, the Dhammananda gave a talk in Thai, so I just sat quietly and listened even though I didn't understand. Then it was time for breakfast. Afterwards, I spent the morning in the library reading about Buddhism and how it started, and also about meditation practice. Lunch went the same as the day before, and the meal was a variation on breakfast so as not to waste food. Everything is vegetarian of course because one of the precepts is not to kill. Once lunch was over and I'd helped with all of the clearing and washing of dishes, I decided to spend some time meditating. So I went to the temple in the back part of the monastery and sat before a giant blue Buddha wearing a gold robe. I sat for more than an hour concentrating on my breathing and trying to clear my mind. Although I became very calm I was not quite able to reach a point where my mind stopped popping up with random thoughts. And my legs were also completely asleep. So I gave up and wandered back to my room for a nap in the heavy humidity.
That evening the garden work was tiresome and sweaty in the heat. Our task was to overturn the soil for planting vegetables, but since it was too hard and full of rocks, the Dhammananda decided we would have to dig up the bed completely and put dead leaves underneath to airate the soil. Luckily she sent one of the younger monks, Thaniya, to show me how to feed the fish with the plants we had just pulled up. Thaniya spoke broken English and was very sweet and kind. She told me she had only been ordained 4 months ago and was the newest member. Also that she was their only temperary member staying for just 6 months.
Out of curiousity, I asked what made her decide to become a monk. She had only just graduated university afterall. She explained that she enjoyed university and the party lifestyle that came with it, but realized a need within herself to become more centered. She had listened to the Dhammananda a couple of years ago, when she had come to speak about becoming a female monk at her university. (Side note: the Dhammananda has three degrees, one is a doctoral, and she used to be a professor at Thaniya's university for many years). So Thaniya explained that she was bored of the partying (or as she adorably put it: "I was boring" which after realizing the error became a favorite inside joke amongst several of the monks and I), and decided to join the seminary.
Each of the women had their own stories as to how and why they became monks, and each one was fascinating.
After "breaking the ice" with Thaniya, befriending the other women came naturally and easily. One in particular, named Vira (pronounced Wee-rah), became a favorite despite her very limited English skills. She always smiled, and loved to poke fun at me in a friendly way. Thaniya referred to her as a joker.
That evening, after chanting we all gathered together sitting on the floor, before the Dhammananda. She was always so welcoming and inclusive of me, translating everything she was saying so I could understand. A regular volunteer arrived that evening as well to help organize the following day's excursion to the Siam Society in Bangkok, where the Dhammananda was invited to give a talk on the two cities both claiming to be the home of the Buddha. I was invited to come! Not everyone could come, so I was very honored and excited.

Day 3:

I awoke a little before 5, and dressed in my regular clothes, as instructed by the Dhammananda. We gathered for chanting and then had a slightly shorter breakfast than usual to ensure enough time to drive to Bangkok. You never can tell what the traffic will be like.
A second volunteer came that morning to assist in driving. A woman named Than, who looked like a man. (It answered my question as to where were the gay women in Thailand, since it more common to see lady boys). So I sat in the front seat with Than, due to it being against custom for a monk to sit next to anyone except another monk. And Thaniya, Acala (pronounced: Achala), and Yera (don't know how to spell it), sat in the back seat together. As we pulled out of the driveway, they began chanting. This, I was told, was to protect them against harm.
Once we arrived we all sat in the reception area and had some refreshments while waiting. Thaniya and I wandered upstairs to the library to browse around for awhile. The Dhammanandas talk drew a small crowd, mainly comprised of westerners. After which the monks had lunch, and then the volunteers and I were allowed to eat. One volunteer, nicknamed Muu (piggy), was especially friendly towards me and spoke very good English. She asked for my email address and even said she'd send me information about Chiang Mai, recommending that I visit the baby panda at the zoo:)
On the ride back, Acala asked what I thought of today's talk. I told her that I found it very interesting, and remarked on the uniqueness of the Buddhist religion and philosophy. We chatted the whole way home about it and about meaning and purpose in life. When we arrived back at the temple and had gotten out of the car, Acala took my hand and said, "Carrie, we are very happy to have meeting you," with a warm smile on her face. "Thank you for having me I said," smiling back.
After a much needed nap it was time to work in the garden again. We gathered bags and bags of dead leaves. Vira making jokes about how in California I would say "ew" to doing dirty garden work, but how in Thailand I was on the ground scooping huge piles of leaves with both arms. Haha, what a joker. Between that and the fact that I had over 45 mosquito bites, there was always something to be laughing about. Naan, one of the laywomen loved to pantomime the mosquitos, making buzzing noises and then pointing to her arms and legs over and over making "bock! Bock! Bock!" noises, turning everyone into fits of giggles. Besides joking around their other favorite thing to do was to try to teach me Thai. Unfortunately, despite my great ability to mimic the sounds of the words, I was a very bad student and always failed to remember the same words the next day.
After work was over we all went to go clean ourselves up and get ready for evening chanting. I sat with my palms pressed together as it was a rehearsal evening for Sunday's special ceremony for one of the volunteer's fathers who had passed away last year. Afterwards the Dhammananda played a recording of one of her talks she had given in English about the importance of living in the present moment and always expressing your love and appreciation of your loved ones. She shared a very moving story about a couple who always fought. So much so that they did not speak to each other for one month. And on the thirtieth day, the husband passed away suddenly. The wife was beside herself in misery, so she came to the Dhammananda's meditation retreat to try to heal herself and relieve her sorrow. It was an example of what can happen when we take each other for granted.

Day 4:

Today is special because Sunday is the day for alms rounds. I was excited to be coming along. There were 4 monks (including Thaniya) as well as me and two volunteers who followed behind with a cart to collect the offerings from the villagers. We walked 2km around the streets of the village to accept multitudes of food from families who looked like they barely had enough for themselves. Yet they always gave alms each Sunday without fail, and in return were given sacred blessings by the monks. One family who was waiting for us on their doorstep with their bowl of rice and other food, was an elderly couple and their son who was a midget. He had a cataract in his eye and had trouble breathing, but proudly scooped rice into each one of the monks bowls with a smile on his face. After the monks gave them their blessing, Yera told me that they had been waiting every Sunday on their porch to give alms for the last 36 years.
When we got back and all of the offerings had been sorted and many had been placed into dishes for our meal, I looked at the table overflowing with food and was amazed. Everything was delicious. Later that morning we had the ceremony to honor the deceased father of one of the volunteers. It was very beautiful and very moving. Again we ended with yet another huge feast of food.
That afternoon, I spent napping and contemplating life. And the abundance I was blessed with, which became so clear as I lay on my wooden bed in the little bungalow under a fan that stirred up the hot humid air.
Right at 5, when we were all supposed to gather for work in the garden, it began pelting down in rain. Huge torrents of water splashed down, but after about 15 minutes it lightened enough for me to sprint to the kitchen under my small umbrella where I joined Thaniya, Vira, Kitya, Mtta, and Naan. We sat around and waited out the rain and the rest of "work" hour. Thaniya then held up a package of spaghetti that they had gotten from somewhere and asked if I would make them all spaghetti before leaving the next day. Sure, I said, but how? What will I put in the sauce if you don't have tomatoes? They told me they had some tomatoe sauce and proceeded to show me ketchup. Hmmm, I said doubtfully. Well, I'll try, but if it tastes bad you can't blame me! Ok! They replied, smiles on their faces.
That night I tried to figure out how I was going to make ketchup taste anything like real tomatoe sauce.

Last day:

Only 3 monks arrived that morning for chanting. Apparently many had fallen ill with headaches and stomach aches. Including Thaniya. I was not to see her again before leaving unfortunately.
At ten I came to the kitchen to start preparing my pasta dish for lunchtime. Naan had already gotten out onions and a cutting board for me, so I started chopping. Acala soon came in and cheerfully told me that she would be my sous chef. (although it sounded more like sous ship). I put her to work chopping the garlic. I explained how I would normally prepare pasta sauce and that it was a favorite family recipe. She was interested in hearing about my family and whether I enjoyed cooking and learning from my mother. Yes, definitely, I replied. By lunch time I had done my best concocting a makeshift version of red sauce over pasta. Acala tasted it eagerly and said it was good. In spite of myself, I was actually impressed that I had managed to turn ketchup into something even vaguely resembling pasta sauce. A few more monks came out of their rooms to join in the "spaghetti" eating. Naan caught my eye over the table and gave me a smile, saying "aroi" which means delicious. Thanks I said, giving her a smile and a small bow of appreciation.
After lunch was over and I had packed my things and cleaned the bungalow, Acala told me that Than could give me a lift to the bus stop. Oh thank goodness, I was not looking forward to walking to the bus stop carrying a huge backpack in the heat. I bought a tee shirt specially designed by the Dhammananda's son, a book about meditation written by the Dhammananda herself, and a lovely little, hand-embroidered bag, made by Acala. Then I donated a sum of money, what I could afford, to support the temple and say thank you for all they had given and shared with me. I scurried after the Dhammananda before she went back to her office to give her my thanks. She smiled and said she hoped I would remember my time spent here, and that they would remember me that evening as they worked in the garden. Also she said, with a smile and a twinkle in her eye, from now on she would make it a new requirement for all Americans to prepare a farewell lunch.
Acala and Naan implored me to try to come back each year to visit. They would be waiting, they said. And so would the mosquitos! I said. As I made my way to the car, I stopped and held each of their hands and said thank you one last time. Naan said, "we'll memory you." "I'll remember you too. Please tell everyone Goodbye for me. And you have my email, don't forget to write."
"oh yes," said Acala with a big smile, "good luck."
And so I made my way by car, by crowded van, and by taxi to a litle guest house by the train station of Bangkok. After a long afternoon nap and a nice shower I went downstairs to talk to the friendly owners about my next journey. Next stop: Chiang Mai.

Pet elephants and million dollar coqs

Today I met up again with Craig from Seattle. As we were wandering aimlessly in Bangkok we met a guy named Tinakorn. Or Korn (pronounced kohn) for short. He said he was from the Chiang Mai province and started chatting to us, interested in where we were from and what we'd done so far in Bangkok. After talking for awhile by the river he invited us to join him for dinner in Thonburi (the city across the river). So we of course said yes, excited by the prospect of a local Thai inviting us to do something with them and hopped on the very next ferry boat across the river. From there we caught a bus type thing - sort of like a bus crossed with a pickup truck and then walked to find a street side restaurant. Korn ordered a great spread - Tom Yum soup, crawfish, fried rice with lime, shrimp and green onion, and a whole steamed fish marinated in garlic. It was heaven. His English was fantastic and we talked about everything from what we were planning to do for the next few days to who was the best James Bond to how really really rich Thai men buy a fighting coq for 2 million baht in the hopes that they'll profit on the bets made at the coq fight. Korn told us he was actually goin to make his way East tomorrow to select a pet baby elephant for a friend of his. And since he said he'd be back in Chiang Mai around the same time that both Craig and I planned to be there next week, he offered to have us both come stay at his family's dairy farm. We were thrilled to be invited and are looking forward to it.

So now I just hope that this trip I'm making tomorrow to the temple works out. Hopefully I will actually get to meet Bhikkhuni Dhammananda.

First days in Thailand

It's my 3rd day here in Bangkok. I have been trying to piece together a little plan of how I would like to spend my time here.
After not going out at all the first day because I was trying to rest after the trip from Sydney, I decided to explore a little yesterday. I'm currently staying at the Thai Cozy House in the backpackers ghetto of Bangkok. Slightly expensive for Thai prices but fine with me so long as I can relax and gather together a plan.
Yesterday I woke early and headed over to the Grand Palace where I was able to catch free morning tour in English. There was a nice guy from Seattle in the tour group also alone so afterwards we set off together to find some food, walk through the cities markets. The variety of things you can buy on the street is astounding. Everything from a real tiger skin to fake teeth, and of course a million different kinds of amulets. My favorite of course was seeing, smelling and tasting the street food. I started simply. After we sat at an outdoor street vendor cafe for a bowl of noodles in spicy Thai broth, we walked over the bridge amongst the rows of amulet vendors and I stopped to buy some pineapple with chili powder. Then I got a fresh mango fruit shake. Craig, the Seattle fellow, wanted to try grass jelly. So we stopped at a little hole in the wall place and he got some. It tasted like tea flavored jello and it was served in a small bowl with ice and a brown powder that tasted like tamarind. Craig said it reminded him of molasses.
Afterwards we parted ways because I was feeling ready for a nap and was supposed to get back around 3ish to call Dan's (who I met in Argentina) brother, Brian about meeting for dinner that night and getting insider info about how to get around Thailand since he lives here. I of course managed to get lost and it took me about an hour to find my way back. But it was fine and after arranging to meet him at 7:30 I went to my room for a nap.
Brian took me to a restaurant nearby where we ate falafel (of all things, I guess if you live in Thailand eating falafel is a treat). It was good though, and he was super helpful about giving me all sorts of travel advice. He is very knowledgeable about temples and meditation in Thailand and so I decided to take a trip to a female temple west of Bangkok for this weekend. Hopefully it will work out. I am probably just going to show up tomorrow, even though I emailed. They might not reply by then. Worst thing that could happen is that it doesn't work out and I head north to Chiang Mai earlier than expected.
I had thought about going to Angkor Wat but after looking at the flight prices and learning about the alternate long and bumpy bus journey, I think I may have to leave it for another trip.
It's almost 1 in the afternoon here now, and I have been doing Internet research about this meditation thing and travel north afterwards all morning. Might go out in a bit to get pad thai and see some wats.

Random thoughts

I'm hanging out in my hotel here in Bangkok, watching tv and taking advantage of the free wifi. I know it sounds lame but I'm exhausted.

Oh another little thing I did this weekend was deliver notes that Dan (the Canadian guy I met in Argentina) gave me to give to his old friends at Glebe Market in Sydney. They were both happy to get these little notes via a random messenger. So that was fun!

Muffin thief on the last day

Am sitting in the kuala lumpur airport, and low on battery. Can't write much. Halloween in Sydney was fun, good to see the "group" again. While sitting in the park yesterday, trying to eat a muffin for breakfast, a bird flew from behind me and literally bit off a piece of muffin as I was eating it and flew off. If you've ever seen the movie Birds you will know just how creepy that is. Ok thought I'd share that random anecdote with you all. I'll give another update about Thailand after I get settled in.