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Thailand 2021-2022

December 2021 - March 2022
I’ve paid my dues
Time after time
I’ve done my sentence
But committed no crime
And bad mistakes
I’ve made a few
I’ve had my share of sand
Kicked in my face
But I’ve come through” Read more
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  • Thailand 2021-2022
    Day 10

    Onward To Chiang Mai

    December 12, 2021 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    As much as we enjoyed the sun, sand and brief rain shower on Koh Lanta, the last couple of days we've been looking forward to heading north to Chiang Mai.

    Is it the Muang Mai market, the Sunday street market, the great and plentiful vegetarian restaurants or just our familiarity with the city? I don't know, but there's a certain "je ne sais quoi" that draws us to Thailand's original capital like moths to a flame.

    After a week on Thai soil, we still aren't completely over our jet lag and find ourselves stifling yawns at 8:30 PM. Our eyes magically pop open at 3:00 AM, encouraging us to read our Kindles or work on our Duolingo while we try to get back to sleep for another hour or two. By 5:30, at the crack of dawn, we abandon our efforts and get on with our day. I'm getting to the point where I'm looking forward to awakening at the crack of noon.

    Today, however, we were happy to jump out of the sack before the sun broke the horizon. Our ride to the airport picked us up at 6:30 for the two hour ride to the airport. Our plane leaves at 10:30 and we should be checking into our home for the next three months by 1:00.

    Chiang Mai, here we come!    Read more

  • Thailand 2021-2022
    Day 12

    Muang Mai Market

    December 14, 2021 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    Chiang Mai is home to one of the world's great outdoor markets, the Muang Mai Market. Every visit we make to Chiang Mai is filled with regular trips to this fruit lovers paradise, and today we made our first pilgrimage in nearly four years.

    We were pleasantly surprised to find that fruit prices here have decreased considerably since our last Thai trip and, compared to Vancouver, they are at bargain basement levels.

    We were once again awake at 5:00 AM, so we decided to head staight to Muang Mai to get our pick of the best produce of the day. Other than the prices and decidedly far fewer Westerners browsing the stalls, not much has changed since our last visit. Most of the same vendors are in the same locations and the selection and quality of the produce remains beyond compare.

    We had to stop our buying spree before we got to the watermelon section as we were already laden down with two large papayas, 3 kilos of mangoes, a kilo of avocados, two bunches of bananas, 3 kilos of oranges, a huge ginger root, ten limes, six persimmons, a pre-cut pineapple and a kilo of jackfruit. We figured this haul would have cost us well over $60.00 in Vancouver, but it set us back only 458฿, less than $18.00 CDN.

    That should hold us until our next trip to Muang Mai on Thursday morning!    Read more

  • Thailand 2021-2022
    Day 16

    J J Market

    December 18, 2021 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Every Saturday and Sunday there is an organic farmers market held a kilometer or so northeast of the old city. A visit to the Jing Jai Market, commonly known as the JJ market, has been a part of our weekly routine for as long as we've been coming to Chiang Mai. The market was closed and relocated for major renovations for most of 2021 and just reopened at its original location on December 4.

    In years past JJ Market was a weekly gathering place for many expats, snowbirds and other assorted farang. This year, however, we saw only two other people who were clearly not of Thai origin. Maybe there will be more there on Sunday. Also absent was one of our favorite stalls that sold doughy little buns stuffed with assorted savoury fillings.

    But our main goal today was to come away with enough greens for a couple of days of eating. The first stall we went to was selling different types of fresh young lettuce for only 100฿/kg, about $3.87 CDN. As we were filling our bag with our selection, the lady operating the stand assumed Brenda was Thai ad was rattling off all kinds of details or selling points to her. Once she weighed our selections, I tried to hand her a 100฿ bill, but she ignored me and preceeded to fill another bag with greens, which she handed to me and then took my money. A woman next to us explained in English that the vendor was informing Brenda that if we bought a kilo of greens for 100฿, we would get one kilo for free!

    I guess we'll be eating a lot of salad over the next couple of days.    Read more

  • Thailand 2021-2022
    Day 18

    King of Fruits

    December 20, 2021 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Ooh, that smell
    Can't you smell that smell?
    Ooh, that smell
    The smell of death surrounds you

    Okay, it doesn't smell quite as bad as the Lynyrd Skynyrd lyrics describe, but it's bad enough that we had to put it out on our balcony while we worked out at the gym.

    At Muang Mai this morning we bought a couple of pieces of durian to enjoy in celebration of 182 months together. Known as the king of fruits, it's odor is so pungent and unpleasant that most hotels in Asia will not allow you to bring it into your room. In fact, despite being cello-wrapped and sealed in two plastic bags, the aroma emanating from our little snack was too overpowering to be kept indoors.

    Strangely, as bad as it smells, it's creamy texture and vanilla-custard-like flavour make it irresistble to those brave enough to get past the stink.

    Tastes like heaven, stinks like hell!    Read more

  • Thailand 2021-2022
    Day 18

    Have Guitar Will Travel

    December 20, 2021 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    The only thing I didn't like about our lengthy traveling was not having a guitar to play. I would spend nine months improving my skills and building my calluses only to have both deteriorate over the next three months while we were away.

    But then I discovered "The Traveler Guitar", a full scale electric guitar in a compact package small enough to carry on to aircraft. It's not perfect: there's no volume control and virtually nowhere to rest your arm or hand while playing. But the fact that it has 22 frets , six strings and is easy to carry around makes it perfect enough for my current needs.

    But what's an electric guitar without amplification? Well, a search on Amazon led me to the Rushhead Max headphone amplifier. It allows me to play without disturbing Brenda and offers effects like reverb, echo, chorus and flanger as well as an endless array of distortion. I can sound like Hendrix at Woodstock, Clapton with The Bluesbreakers or Mark Knopfler, all without having the neighbours complaining about the racket.

    Of course I'll be glad to pick up my Strat and ES-335 when I get home, but in the meantime I'll be maintaining my chops and keeping my fingertips as tough as nails.

    Rock on!!!    Read more

  • Thailand 2021-2022
    Day 23

    A Thai Christmas

    December 25, 2021 in Thailand ⋅ 🌬 27 °C

    Vancouverites dreaming of a rare white Christmas were granted their wish this year. But these two residents of the home to Canada's most expensive real estate couldn't be happier missing out on the white stuff.

    Christmas is always a non-event in this Buddhist country, but it is even more so this year with so few tourists around.

    Typically, there are expat get-togethers, special dining events and poinsettias everywhere. There are none of these things in evidence this year. We tried to reserve spots at a special Xmas dinner only to find out had been cancelled due to a lack of response.

    And so we started our Ch4istmas Saturday with a card exchange followed by a stop at the JJ Market where we bought two almond croissants. They were a perfect breakfast accompaniment to the Bailey's spiked coffee, which is one of our Xmas traditions.

    Brenda then made a call to her friend Marie in Calgary, where it was 10:00pm on Christmas eve.

    We spent our afternoon lounging by the pool at Kad Suan Kaew and will go out for a nice meal at a restaurant to be chosen later.

    Calls to my daughter, Vanessa and my sister, Dena, will be made after dinner, which will be early morning in Ottawa.

    There is no snow on the ground, no chestnuts roasting on an open fire and no sleigh bells jingling, but we're having a holly jolly Christmas nonetheless.    Read more

  • Thailand 2021-2022
    Day 30

    New Year's Day Chiang Mai

    January 1, 2022 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    It was time for us to say "good riddance" to 2021 and we chose to celebrate its departure in a non-traditional and relaxed fashion.

    Karen, a Calgarian we met at a dinner get-together, invited us to join her on a day tour to see the floating pagodas and hot springs located a couple hours east of Chiang Mai. We embarked on our journey at 7:15 on Friday morning in our driver, Steven's private car.

    After about an hour we stopped at a hillside café where three of us had some java and Brenda had a fizzy passion fruit mocktail. All were delicious and the view overlooking the valley from the patio was breathtaking. We continued onward over narrow, twisty mountain roads until we reached our destination in Lampang: Wat Chaloem Phra Kiat Phrachomklao Rachanusorn. We'll just call it The Floating Pagodas.

    Built high on the mountaintop by Buddhist monks who carried construction materials on foot to the summit, the temple is barely visible from the staging area where we parked. From there a harrowing ride in the back of a songthaew up a very steep, twisty road, wide only enough for one vehicle, had all us passengers hanging on to avoid falling out of the truck! Once we were back on terra firma, we then had to scale eight hundred or so steps to reach the temple.

    The monument is known as "The Floating Pagodas" because they are built atop jagged limestone outcroppings that, from below, give them the appearance of floating in mid-air. The view from the summit of the valley below was drop-dead gorgeous and photos cannot do it justice.

    After a tour of the mountaintop buildings, we went back down the way we came and waited for another songthaew to return us to the parking lot. At the base we stopped for a quick plate of Pad Sie Ew before continuing our journey.

    Steven then drove us on to Chae Son National Park where the locals boil baskets of eggs in the pools of 75.1°C water that is fed by hot springs. I'm not sure if the smell of sulfur in the air emanates more from the springs or from the locals chowing down on their eggs, but the aroma is most definitely pungent!

    From the springs we walked up to the six-tier waterfall whose pools are home to hordes of fish swimming happily in the fast moving spring. Steven thoughtfully brought along bags of fish food for us to throw at the marine life, who would literally climb over each other, splashing relentlessly, to get a morsel.

    By now it was approaching 4:30 PM and we were all starting to feel the day's travel and exercise. The drive back to Chiang Mai alnog the highway was less scenic, but much more pleasant than the mountainous route we took in the morning. We arrived back in Chiang Mai at about 6:30 and had Steven drop us off at Good Souls restaurant where we each had a very delicious New Year's pizza.

    A stop at Tesco on the way home to buy a couple of bottles of beer to ring in 2022 after which we planted ourselves in front of the TV and watched a very bad Thai boy band sing off key as the clock ticked down.

    We rang in 2022 standing on our balcony and watching the fireworks in the sky above the Tha Pae gate.

    If years were US presidents, I'd say 2020 was Donald Trump and 2021 was George Dubya. Let's hope 2022 is an Obama year.

    สวัสดีปีใหม่ (That's "Happy New Year" in Thai)    Read more

  • Thailand 2021-2022
    Day 31

    Happy 66th Birthday, Roch

    January 2, 2022 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    We just got back from getting awesome foot massages done at Pranom's and we're having a slice of chocolate cake from Vegan Soulmate's, specially ordered for Roch's special day. My, that goes well with the left over Bailey's we've put into our coffee.Read more

  • Thailand 2021-2022
    Day 36

    Giving

    January 7, 2022 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    "He who gives away shall have real gain."
    -Buddha

    It is a very common sight in the morning, all over Thailand, to see Buddhist monks, clad in their saffron-colored robes. They roam the streets collecting alms, in exchange for which, they offer their blessing.

    On two mornings this week, as we strolled along the moat toward the Muang Mai market, our attention was drawn to a trio of dogs behind a gate, barking loudly and excitedly at a passing monk. They did not look at all agressive as their tails were wagging ecstatically. The monk approached the gate, reached into his basket, gave each of the dogs an early morning snack and then continued on his way.

    Judging from the dogs warm reception, we have to believe that this ritual has been ongoing for some time and just watching it transpire put a big smile on my face.

    Just one more reason to love this country.    Read more

  • Thailand 2021-2022
    Day 36

    Thou Shall Not Steal

    January 7, 2022 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Having been mugged in Salvador, Brazil in 2015 was probably the worst experience I ever had in my travels. Although I wasn't injured, the audacity of the mugger, who went after my phone in broad daylight on a Sunday afternoon, caused me to be on edge and to look over my shoulder for the rest of the trip.

    Most major cities in Europe are rife with pickpockets or snatch-and-grab thieves who, although non-violent, do force you to be vigilant when in crowds.

    Bangkok has its share of scammers who will try to lure you to an exclusive "one-day-only" sale of emeralds, or tuk-tuk drivers who will take-take you on a very expensive roundabout route to your destination.

    And then there's Chiang Mai. This is a city where merchants close their shop for lunch by hanging a length of cord across the entrance. Where the throngs of scooter riders leave their helmets unguarded and unlocked on their bikes. Where I can wear my Garmin sports watch and walk down a dark alley at night without fear of someone trying to take it from me.

    I don't know if it's the influence of the Buddhist religion, the belief in karma or the fear of prosecution or imprisonment, but for some reason, it feels safer to be in Chiang Mai than in Vancouver, Toronto or Monteal, not to mention most major US cities.

    Another of the many reasons why Brenda and I keep returning here winter after winter.    Read more

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