Thailand - Chiang Mai

20 June - 3 July '08

Sawadhee! Chiang Mai with its vibrant markets and colourful people was definitely a city where we could have spent many, many months. After arriving at the airport, we found a tuk-tuk driver who drove us to his recommended guest house... as we sat outside under the bamboo roofs chatting to the warm and friendly resident tour-guides, we knew we had arrived home. With nicknames like Billy, Jackie, Jimmy and Tracy, these guys not only spoke good English, but they were also knowledgeable in our slang (the guesthouse also had its very own ladyboy). After settling in, we performed our city-arrival rituals... find food, do laundry, explore city. Our sole mission whilst in Chiang Mai was to enrol in a week-long thai massage course, so the following day we went in search of a school. We decided on ITM (International Training Massage) purely because it sounded like the least intense and most fun - nize choice. That evening, we snacked our way from food stall to food stall through the atmospheric sunday market - this street market was unique in that many families from all over would sell goods that they had spent days making from local materials. We also managed to squeeze in a visit to the local cinema to see "The Incredible Hulk 2" (what was interesting was that after the trailers, the was a 1 minute advert about the King during which everyone would have to stand up to pay respect).

The following morning was an early start since it was beginning of our training. There were 11 people in our group - 1 French, 2 Germans, 2 English, 2 Chileans, 1 American, 1 Singaporean and us. We began with a short mantra and then an hour of yoga with the rest of the school (about 40 students) before the actual learning and practical sessions began. At the end of the day we were given time to practice the techniques we had learnt. For the remainder of the week (and for the first time in 2 months), we had some routine in our travels - wake up, have breakfast, catch tuk-tuk to school, learn, lunch, learn and practice - and each night when we returned to the guest house, we would sit outside with the locals and drink and chat (they called us their family and treated us like 2 of their own). The 11 of us on our course were beginning to bond with one another during the sessions (partly because we practiced on each other), and on our penultimate day, we all went out for dinner - we sat, joked, ate and drank by the riverside where we ended the night in typical Preya fashion... with flaming sambucas.

After nursing our hangovers the next morning, most of us rose early to join the rest of the school in the park where we performed our yoga/tai chi routines. This was followed by a 'fun' practical exam back at the school. The reason why it was fun was because we had sparked up some good relationships with the teachers who continually joked around with the two of us. They seemed to give us more attention because we were Indian (we promised to send them some pendants of Ganesh). So... of course we passed the exam (with a little help ;-) and for those of you brave enough, we are more than happy to demonstrate our new skills (although naturally Preya will only use male subjects, and Yatin only female). That same night we headed we headed out to the Kawila Stadium with our local friends at the guest house where we saw several Muay Thai boxing matches. Although each boxer was passionate about winning, they were also very respectful to one another. A match would begin with some prayer rituals by each boxer, and during each round, there was a live band of percussionists playing - the contestants would almost bounce around to the beat. We witnessed a lot of bruising, some bloody noses, and a couple of knockouts... we even placed a couple of bets and naturally lost.

The next day, we hooked up for some lunch and pool with our Singaporean friend from the course, and for dinner with the Chilean couple - we worked up an appetite in true amsterdam'esqe fashion before dining on a boat cruise. The four of us had a great night which thankfully ended with wine this time. Chiang Mai lays host to many activities - trekking, elephant-riding, rafting, ATV etc... but the one that stuck out for us was called 'Flight of the Gibbon'. It was described as a rainforest adventure and involved gliding 2km from tree to tree along a pulley system. The experience was quite exhilarating and as we flew from treetop station to station, we witnessed the forestry below from a heart-racing height. It's difficult to describe in words the actual logistics of the flights, but the photos on our slideshow should paint a good picture (it was very safe and our 2 guides were professional monkeys). That night, we relaxed on the cushions of a rooftop bar where we picked up and sampled some thai herbs ;-).

After another couple of days of 'happy' walking and eating, we caught our 15 hour overnight train to Bangkok where we would meet up with Kerry (Preya's friend from work).